Older Books - Nostalgia Reigns

I've been looking at some of the older books I have that hooked me on shooting, hunting and, along with my grandparents, the outdoors in general.

The first of these is "Herter's Famous Professional Guide's Manual" (the abridged edition) by George Leonard Herter and Jacques P. Herter. A wealth of knowledge and marketing.

George wrote/co-wrote several books including, "How to Live with a Bitch", "Bull Cook and Authentic Historical Recipes and Practices", and "Herter's professional course in the science of modern taxidermy" among others. This man was a character to say the least. Very fun to read, each and every time.

If you're old enough you no doubt remember the Herter's catalogs. When I was assigned to the Defense Language Institute, my first roomate's father worked for Herters and was from Waseca. I thought that was too cool.

The second is "Hunting-Fishing and Camping" by L. L. Bean. Wow! This one really sucked me in. You can tell when you look at the guns I hunt with and how I prefer to dress!

The hunters in Mr. Bean's book use classic leverguns, side-by-side shotguns and wear wool as well as Mr. Bean's famous Maine hunting shoe! Lots of good photos in black and white but the book is very Maine-centric as Mr. Bean says right up front. He allows as game generally behaves everywhere the same.

The front endpiece is a map of Baxter State Park often referred to in the naming of LL Bean products. The back endpiece is a map of Maine with the by county 1941 deer kills. Given as 19,881, I wonder how many deer were killed in 2005...