An in-depth history of one of the quintessential hunting dog breeds, the Plott hound. Though originating in Germany, the Plott hound reached worldwide fame through the contributions of many colorful characters from the Southern Appalachians. Originally brought to America by German immigrant Johannes George Plott, the hounds quickly became renowned for their stamina and gameness. Quill Rose - a legendary local outlaw, moonshiner, gunfighter and more - helped cultivate the bloodline for bear hunting, while revered baseball icon Branch Rickey brought national acclaim to the breed through his hunts in the Hazel Creek Watershed. Writer Frank Methven wrote extensively about the Plott hound for decades, and the Methven Award remains one of the most coveted big game hunting awards in the world. Author and breed expert Bob Plott reveals the fascinating people and places that have shaped the history of the Plott hound.
Before the coming of the four-lane, Jackson County was an insular community defined by geography--wedged in between the Great Smokies and Blue Ridge escarpment, bisected by thousands of miles of streams. The people who settled the area tended to be tough as pine knots but also tended to be salt-of-the-earth. This book offers tales of a time of transition in the area, when arguments over whether someone should opt to have an electric wire run to their home weren't far separated from quibbling over Internet service providers. Inside are tales from logging camps, fields, gardens and lonesome game trails and stories of challenges faced with the unique sense of mountain humor. Local columnist Jim Buchanan tells tales of bear hunts, cool springs and creatures great and small.
Hunting season has finally arrived and Battle Cry, a Plott Hound, is on his first hunt of the year. Every ounce of him from his nose to his tail quivers with excitement. He eagerly anticipates romping through the woods with his Plott companions to see who can be the first to strike, tree, or bay. Little did he know that around the bend an event loomed that would change his life. Learn about the breed that North Carolina has recognized as its state dog by following this touching tale of Battle Cry's journey as he adjusts from hunting in the woods to celebrating his new life as Lucky.
The Plott bear hound, a dog originally from Germany and developed in the North Carolina mountains, is known as one of the world's best hunting dog breeds. Recognized now as one of the premier hunting dogs in America, the Plott bear hound is unique among hunting dog breeds because it descends from Germanic stock rather than the traditional English foxhound. The breed's story began when its original breeder, Johannes Plott, and his brother Enoch left Germany in 1750 with their prized hunting dogs. This trip across the Atlantic began the two-hundred-year journey that would culminate in the North Carolina mountains with the development of what is now arguably the world's finest breed of hunting dog. This fascinating story of the Plott family and the Plott hound is a classic American tale of adventurers and underdogs--a story that Bob Plott, the great-great-great-grandson of Johannes Plott, is uniquely qualified to tell.
Paterson Award for Literary Excellence. Milt Kessler Poetry Book Award, finalist. "Dawes's verse has an expressive power and lyric resonance that can be attributed to a trans-Atlantic consciousness weaned on the spiritual sources of reggae."--New York Times Book Review "Raised in Jamaica, Dawes takes some of his cues, and this book's title, from reggae music. But his voice in these long and short poems and sequences selected from each of his many books, which began appearing in the mid-1990s, is crystal clear, accessible and serious, mixing a timeless myth-making energy with a strong contemporary conscience..." --National Public Radio "This first U.S. selection from the Jamaica-bred, Nebraska-based poet (he also has a reputation in Britain) is his 16th book of verse in just 20 years; it reveals a writer syncretic, effusive, affectionate, alert to familial joys, but also sensitive to history, above all to the struggles of African diasporic history--the Middle Passage, sharecropper-era South Carolina, the Kingston of Bob Marley, whose song gives this big book its title. Dawes is at home with cityscape and seascape, patois and transatlantic tradition." --Publishers Weekly " Dawes] is highly original and intelligent, possessing poetic sensibility that is rooted and sound, unshakeable and unstopped, both in its vibrancy and direction. He writes poetry as it ought to be written."--World Literature Today "Dawes asserts himself as man and artist and finally, with grace achieved and grace said, sits down to begin life's tragic feast . . . a writer of major significance."--Brag Book "The notion of a reggae aesthetic--of the language moving to a different rhythm, under different kinds of pressure . . . underpins all Dawes' work as poet."--Stewart Brown Born in Ghana, raised in Jamaica, and educated in Canada, Kwame Dawes is a dynamic and electrifying poet. In this generous collection, new poems appear with the best work from fifteen previous volumes. Deeply nuanced in exploring the human condition, Dawes' poems are filled with complex emotion and consistently remind us what it means to be a global citizen. From "The Lessons": Fingers can be trained to make shapes that, pressed just right on the gleaming keys, will make a sound that can stay tears or cause them to flow for days. Anyone can learn to make some music, but not all have the heart to beat out the tunes that will turn us inside out. . . Kwame Dawes is the author of fifteen collections of poetry, two novels, four anthologies, and numerous essays and plays. In 2009 he won an Emmy Award for his interactive website, LiveHopeLove.com. Since 2011 he has taught at the University of Nebraska, and lives in Lincoln, Nebraska.
At its peak the British Empire covered approximately one quarter of the Earth's total land area and ruled over the same proportion of the world's population: its boundaries stretched from Birmingham to Bombay, from Cairo to Cape Town, and from Winnipeg to Wagga-Wagga. In this unique book, Ashley Jackson takes the reader on a richly informative tour of the empire 'on which the sun never set', examining the representations of empire that informed the world view of hundreds of millions of people. In a sequence of elegantly written chapters Mad Dogs and Englishmen examines every aspect of the largest imperium the world has seen, from its district commissioners to dependent territories, from its armed forces to its architecture, and from its music to its monarchy. Ashley Jackson's text is as accessible as it is scholarly, and is amplified and embellished by imperial imagery from an exceptionally wide range of media. Authoritative, sumptuous, and written by a scholar who is steeped in knowledge of the period, Mad Dogs and Englishmen evokes the fascinating sights and sounds that the British Empire presented to its citizens, and thereby brings a unique period of British and world history unforgettably to life.
Discover the history and lore of this region’s legendary outdoorsmen—and their faithful dogs: “Well worth reading” (Bear Hunting Magazine). Man versus beast—it’s an age-old struggle that has been part of the rugged terrain of the Great Smoky Mountains since humans first encountered the region centuries ago. Bob Plott, a descendant of the breeder of the Plott hound and an avid outdoorsman in North Carolina, takes readers on a quest back through time for a glimpse into the minds and the rifles of the region’s most intrepid hunters. From the primitive weaponry and prevailing tactics of the Cherokee to the audacious rifle-toting ridge runners, and even a gruesome gang of cannibalistic rogues, these stories are truly a gripping tribute to mountain life and the adventure of the game.
Bulldogs and Bulldog Breeding (A Vintage Dog Books Breed Classic) Originally published in 1905, this extremely rare early work on the bulldog is almost impossible to find in its first edition. VINTAGE DOG BOOKS have republished it, using the original text and photographs, as part of their CLASSIC BREED BOOKS series. The author was a highly respected breeder of the day. The book's 164 pages cover all aspects of the Bulldog. Beginning with the history of the breed, it moves on to discuss buying, breeding and showing amongst many other topics. It also features over 60 photographs of champion bulldogs of the day. Included in the original text are a number of adverts featuring stud dogs and dog food - all with additional photographs of bulldogs. This is a fascinating read for any Bulldog enthusiast or historian of the breed but also contains much information that is still useful and practical today. Many of the earliest breed books, particularly those dating back to the 1900s, are now extremely scarce and very expensive. VINTAGE DOG BOOKS are reprinting these classic works in affordable, high quality, modern editions. These editions are republished using the original text and artwork CHAPTERS: I: BUYING A BULLDOG - THE MARKET VALUE OF BULLDOGS - SALE AND EXCHANGE ADVERTISMENTS PROTECTION FROM FRAUD - THE CANINE PRESS. II: THE BULLDOG CLUB OF ENGLAND - A DESCRIPTION OF THE BULLDOG - DEFECTS - DUDLEY NOSES - BUTTON EARS - EXPRESSION. III: THE BROOD BITCH - SHOW BITCHES AND BROOD BITCHES - SUITABLE MATING - THE AGE AT WHICH TO BREED - PEDIGREE - THE STUD DOG. IV: WHELPING - PERSONAL ATTENDANCE - THE NEED FOR A FOSTER-MOTHER - EXCHANGING PUPPIES - FOOD AND EXERCISE FOR THE SUCKLING BITCH V: FEEDING - EXERCISING - TEACHING PUPPIES TO EXERCISE - THE WHIP. VI: KENNELING AND DISINFECTING. VII: SOME DISEASES OF DOGS. VIII. SOME PROMINENT DOGS OF THE DAY. IX. CONCLUSION.
From the heyday of the Cherokee Nation and on through the twentieth century, the Great Smoky Mountains have nurtured some of the most celebrated hunters in American history. Predicting changes in weather and almost telepathically sensing animal behavior, these outdoorsmen were linked inextricably with the land that sustained them. Local author Bob Plott lovingly recalls the tales-rife with characters like Honest John, the bear whose habit of killing only enough livestock to eat at one sitting granted him a reputation at once chivalrous and menacing, and "Little George" Plott, a legendary marksman turned World War II hero-that linger among the region's hardwood forests and misty foothills. Rediscover an era of self-sufficient mountain living, when folks labored in logging camps, brewed moonshine, hunted for survival and fought for what they believed in. Book jacket.
