In 1987, Board Member, Hal Swiggett saw to it that I received an invitation to a meeting of the Board. all of Elmer's guns, trophies, and memorabilia is now in the hands of the Elmer Keith Museum Foundation Board of Directors. however, feeling it was more important that everything be saved for future generations. The family could have sold everything and realized a small fortune. A day I will never forget.Īfter Elmer's death in 1984, The Elmer Keith Museum Foundation was formed to raise the money necessary to save all of his guns and trophies. He immediate1y told me to bring in my wife who was sitting in the car and we spent the day with Elmer and Lorraine Keith. He was directly responsible for my moving to Idaho two years earlier and so I took the trip to Salmon, knocked on his door with more than a little trepidation, and was more than little surprised when he answered the door to find him only lifesize. The latter two events happened because of my good friend and brother in Christ, Hal Swiggett. Little did I realize that some day I would not only meet Elmer Keith, be privileged to examine all of his guns and be named to THE ELMER KEITH MUSEUM BOARD. I literally devoured that book over and over. Also during my high school days, GUNS magazine started, again with articles by Keith, and Keith published his most famous work, SIXGUNS while I was a junior in high school. Our librarian also subscribed to THE AMERICAN RIFLEMAN and Keith wrote regularly for the AMERICA RIFLEMAN. It was about this time that I discovered Elmer Keith. It doesn't seem like there are any heroes for today's kids we had them in overabundance. Names like Roy Chapman Andrews, Martin and Osa Johnson, Frank Buck, Howard Hill, Sasha Siemel, Robert Ruark, Teddy Roosevelt, all became part of my daily life. Every book on Africa was quickly consumed and growing up in the '50's I was fortunate in that the explorers and hunters of the early twentieth century were all to be found on the shelves. I early discovered Teddy Roosevelt and devoured all the books the library contained. As a teenager, I was blessed with a librarian at our local high school that stocked the shelves with the right kind of books, at least it seemed so to me. But I think the men I looked up to were worth more than a glance. I freely admit to a whole lot of hero worship during my lifetime. This is an article by John Taffin, that is too good not to read several times or more
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