The Cute, The Strange, and The Baffling - Old Photos from the Ranch Archives

When I'm organizing the hundreds of old photos of life around the ranch, sometimes I stumble upon some pictures that make me smile, get a bit puzzled, or furrow my brow.  Here are a few of those pictures.

 This picture could easily have been taken today--there's always someone who likes to pull off this little trick! 

 I have been trying to figure out what on earth is going on in this picture for about a year.  What is that contraption? The only thing I can think of is that the wheel is powering something, so maybe it's an early form of clippers.  You can see the man standing is cranking the wheel with his right hand.  The man on the ground is holding an object in his left hand and is holding the horse's tail out of the way with his right. If you have any ideas, please leave a comment!

 I love the expression this kid has.  He seems tired, or bored, or maybe he's just had enough of holding the horse for the camera.  The horse looks a little unsure of the whole operation.  I have found four or five pictures of this same scene with the little boy going from attentively holding the horse to this picture where he is just done!

 This picture puzzles me. There is a rough looking coyote in the foreground, but the only one paying any attention to it is the horse in the middle--the dog is ignoring it, and the other two horses as well as the people seem to be looking at the photographer.  Why were they taking a picture with this coyote?  It'll forever be a mystery.

 I have nicknamed this picture "Best Dressed" because I can't think of anyone I know who would go out into the corral wearing fancy shoes, pantyhose, and a skirt.  Now that's style!  Plus, I also love the head of the dog peeking over the corral boards.

 Now that's a heavy load!  I think this is some kind of mining equipment.  This picture was taken at the south end of Smith Valley, so I think they must be headed to Bridgeport or somewhere in that area, possibly Bodie, to deliver this piece of equipment.  

I guess one way to keep the boys out of trouble is to have them drive a team of donkeys around while they're afoot.  The kid on the left looks like he's seen his dad stand like that and is doing his best to imitate him.  There are multiple pictures of these boys driving these donkeys with a hay cart, a spring wagon, and a buggy.  

Hope you enjoyed these pics from the ranch archives!

All photos in this post are copyrighted to Hunewill Land & Livestock, all rights reserved.