Below you will find the Foreword and Contents of the book. It is 324 pages with over 200 images. Please look for my four other books about Dick Wood, EJ Dailey, Walter A. Gibbs and the Triumph Trap Company on eBay.
Foreword
This
book covers Walter’s life from cradle to grave, including his original birth
certificate, to his first article in the 1914 Hunter Trader Trapper, and
finally, his last Holiday Greetings letter in 1980. If you want to know the legend from head to
toe, this is the book for you.
Although
all know of Walter’s legacy of trapping, he was much more; an author, logger,
farmer, fisher, hunter, guide, gummer, pearler, bottle hunter, historian,
biologist, carpenter, lover of wildlife, fur farmer, ginseng hunter, goat
trapper, stamp collector, air raid warden, reemployment committeeman, veteran,
veterinarian, game warden, photographer, city slicker, bait dealer, house cat
owner, school trustee, stockholder and mostly a man of common sense and good
humor. Although trapping is included in
this book, my goal is to shed light on the other parts of Walter’s life. He was easily quotable, making common sense
and poignant comments about all aspects of life. I have included many of them. If a photograph caption is in quotes, it came
from Walter.
With
all aspects of history, there are different points of view as to what happened
when. This book is no different. Since I was not there when these events
happened, all I can do is write what I found and let you, the reader, determine
what you want to believe or disregard.
At times, Walter wrote conflicting information. I contribute this to the passage of years and
a memory that had the general thought of an event but may have lost the detail
of time.
I
wanted to write this book because of the connection Walter had to the Triumph
Trap Company. If you have read my other
books, you will know all have that connection.
With Walter, he was a jobber selling many of their traps. Because he was a writer as well, he was able
to use that platform to advertise Triumph Traps. In my research, I have found no one else
referred to large sized Triumph Traps as much as Walter did. He often included references about the
Triumph No. 415, No. 415X, No. 31X and No. 42X Ranger in his articles. I have included many examples of those
references.
Please
note that parts of this book are written about practices from long ago. Many of these practices are illegal or not
socially acceptable today. My intent in including
them is not to glorify them in any way.
My intent is to show a picture of what the conditions were when Walter
lived. Also, all towns are in Maine
unless noted otherwise.
Part
of Walter’s legacy includes the contacts he made with numerous people through
the course of his life. I have included
several photographs of those people along with comments Walter made about
them. Some of the photographs are of
well-known trappers including EJ Dailey, Herb Lenon, Ed Danko, Pat Sedlak, V.E.
Lynch, O.L. Butcher, Frank Terry, Oscar Cronk, Jim Mast, and others. Walter also corresponded with other notable
trappers including George Thiessen, Edwin F. Keith, John Kleffman, Ed Howe,
Claude E. Marble, Raymond Thompson, Willie T. Harmon, Walter A. Gibbs, Frances
E. Adams, Gene Hill, and Pete Rickard.
Walter’s
trapping partners included his father, brother, Clifton McIntire, Adin Green,
Bill Gourley, Walter Tozier, Stan Howland, Paul Stubbs Jr and Wendell
Shaw. He was heavily influenced by his
interaction with Margaret Brown Glassford, Howard Whiting, Charlie Temple, and
Robert and Terris Moore.
He
had many pets, mostly wildlife, with one exception – Berg, a farm cat. His wildlife pets included Elmer Gnawwood –
the beaver, Chuck – the woodchuck, Harry and Harriet – woodpeckers, Susie –
deer, Gentleman Jim – Susie’s son, Red Wing – Susie’s daughter and Red – the
fox.
Photographs
in this book were taken long ago by Walter or others. Many had imperfections on them. I did not try to enhance or repair the
photographs as many were one of a kind.
Over two hundred articles by and about Walter were
researched for this book. I probably
missed some that I do not know about. I
know I missed one for sure unless it was never written.
From November 1961 to September 1964, Walter had a
series of articles in Fur Fish Game titled “From the Deacon Seat.” The first one was in November 1961 with a
continuation in December 1961. Chapter
Two was in the July 1962 issue and Chapter Four was in the September 1964
issue. I could not find Chapter Three in
issues August 1962 to August 1964. Did
he forget a chapter or did I miss it? If
you find Chapter Three, I would be interested in a copy.
Walter was easily quotable, so I will start the book with a quote that will lay the groundwork. In 1977, Walter made the following comment.
I have farmed and trapped and guided and run trout hatcheries and bossed the river and run a trapper’s mail order business and written four books on trapping and lived in the woods. Mister, I like to do things.
As you read through the book, I think you will agree the last sentence was an understatement.
Contents
Foreword…………………………………………………………………...……………...6
Chapter 1 – Family………………………………………………………………………...8
Father Knows Best………………………………………………………………..8
All Walter’s
Children……………………………………………………………22
Chapter
2 – A Complete World All by Itself…………………………………………….27
The Big
Bowl…………………..………………………………………………..27
Ray………………………………………………………………………………30
Chapter
3 – Walter of all Trades…………………………………………………………35
Logger…………………………………………………………………………...35
Guide…………………………………………………………………………….42
Willimantic Fur
Farm…………………………………………………………...52
Pearling………………………………………………………………………….53
Borestone………………………………………………………………………..53
Soldier…………………………………………………………………………...62
City
Slicker……………………………………………………………………...65
Gumming………………………………………………………………………..66
Warden…………………………………………………………………………..73
Stockholder……………………………………………………………………...73
School
Trustee…………………………………………………………………..73
Stamps…………………………………………………………………………...74
Bait………………………………………………………………………………74
Ginseng………………………………………………………………………….75
Bottle
Hunting…………………………………………………………………...76
Chapter
4 – Walter L. Arnold & Co…………………..…………………………………77
Business as
Usual……………………………………………………………….77
Not Much of
Anything…………………………………………………………..83
The Campbells-Fairbanks Expositions………………………………………….89
Oscar
Cronk……………………………………………………………………..99
Chapter
5 – Partners…………………………………………………………………….107
Combining Business with
Pleasure…………………………………………….107
Pig
Snouts……………………………………………………………………...130
Human Otter…………………………………………………………………...141
Son-in-Law…………………………………………………………………….147
Picture in the
Paper…………………………………………………………….154
Chapter
6 – Trappers and Hunters……………………………………………………...156
Ed
Howe……………………………………………………………………….156
G.R. Hunnewell………………………………………………………………..160
Willie T.
Harmon………………………………………………………………160
Ma
Green………………………………………………………………………161
Adin
Green……………………………………………………………………..162
Clifton
McIntire………………………………………………………………..163
N.C.
Burbank…………………………………………………………………..163
Raymond
Thompson…………………………………………………………...165
Dailey, Hawbaker and
Devoe………………………………………………….166
Herb
Lenon…………………………………………………………………….168
Pete
Rickard……………………………………………………………………170
Eustice
Judkins………………………………………………………………...172
Frank Terry…………………………………………………………………….173
Charlie
Temple………………………………………………………………...174
Walt Soule and Hank
Bither…………………………………………………...179
Roger
Fablone………………………………………………………………….181
O.L.
Butcher…………………………………………………………………...182
Donald Jack
Anderson…………………………………………………………183
Myron
Smart…………………………………………………………………...184
George
Theissen……………………………………………………………….185
Chapter
7 – Traps and Firearms………………………………………………………...186
Give Them the
Works………………………………………………………….186
BANG! He Will Get His Face Full of
Powder and Ball……………………….190
Oneida Community Limited and Animal
Trap Company……………………..198
Triumph Trap Company and W.A. Gibbs
& Son……………………………...200
Blake &
Lamb………………………………………………………………….205
Complete
Respect……………………………………………………………...206
Chapter
8 – Trappers Organizations……………………………………………………212
The Minority Must Be Good
Losers…………………………………………...212
Mamie and the Beaver
Coat……………………………………………………220
Regional
Associations………………………………………………………….225
Chapter
9 – Cabin Life………………………………………………………………….231
Peggy…………………………………………………………………………..231
The Cabin on Indian
Pond……………………………………………………..235
Back into the
Woods…………………………………………………………...239
Cabins for
Others………………………………………………………………244
Ride the
Lightning……………………………………………………………..248
By His Lonesome………………………………………………………………249
Chapter
10 – Planes, Trails and Automobiles…………………………………………..258
Folsom’s Flying
Service……………………………………………………….258
The
Monster……………………………………………………………………261
Walter’s First
Car………………………………………………………………264
Chapter
11 – Pets……………………………………………………………………….267
John Q.
Berg…………………………………………………………………...267
Elmer
Gnawwood……………………………………………………………...268
Chuck…………………………………………………………………………..270
Harry and
Harriet………………………………………………………………272
Susie……………………………………………………………………………272
Chapter
12 – Wildlife…………………………………………………………………...276
Beaver………………………………………………………………………….276
Bear…………………………………………………………………………….278
Just Plain
Bunk………………………………………………………………...281
Fisher…………………………………………………………………………..289
Moose………………………………………………………………………….297
Marten………………………………………………………………………….299
Buffalo…………………………………………………………………………301
Chapter
13 – But We Forget It All When We Make a Big Haul……………………….302
Indian Pond No
More………………………………………………………….302
School of Hard Knocks………………………………………………………..308
End of the
Line………………………………………………………………...312
References………………………………………………………………………………314