Texas Heritage, Winter 2003 Page: 24
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Spurred to Action
From their West Texas home in tiny
Stanton, Lyn and Carrol Yater have
accumulated a collection of more than
200 pairs of spurs, including about 50 sets
from, as the couple says, "the good, old
Texas makers." The spurs in their collection
date from the 1890s, though according
to Lyn, "if the maker is deceased,
then their spurs, however recently they
might have been made, are considered
valuable."
While spurs are the main component of
their collection, the couple also acquires
other old pieces including bits, saddles,
and blacksmithing tools. "The crude
blacksmiths are really our favorites," said
Lyn, though she noted that some of the
spurs in their collection are elaborately
decorated pieces of art.
The Yaters, both from rural farming
families, began their pursuit about 12
years ago when they found an old bit and
cleaned it up. They consulted several reference
books and determined that their
treasure was made by Wallie Boone, who
lived and worked primarily in West Texas.
Asked how they could make this determination,
Lyn said that Boone frequently
marked his hardware with a backward "N"
in his last name, even though their found
piece was not stamped in this manner.
Despite this fact, the reference books gave
them enough information about Boone's
creations for them to know that the bit in
question was definitely fashioned by the
West Texas maker.
With this discovery, the couple was
hooked. They began to spend weekends
attending bit and spur shows, cowboy
symposiums, and western heritage events
where they would talk to dealers and
other collectors. "One thing led to another,
and before we knew it, we were in the
collecting business." Relying on information
that they gained from experience and
countless hours of research, the couple
became adept at "reading" spurs. "You
learn to look for certain features, such asengravings. Where is the mark and what
does it consist of? At various times in their
lives, spur makers might have marked
their spurs differently, so you have to have
a sharp eye-in addition to some knowledge,"
Lyn said.
Learning the art of spur making is made
more difficult for those interested in the
works of this state's craftsmen because
Texas spur makers had a style that was all
their own. According to one website
source, at the end of the 1800s, Texas
spurs were usually forged of one piece
(rather than cast), and plainer and more
utilitarian than spurs made elsewhere.
But that changed, and Texas craftsmen
began to make fancier spurs, including
those in the gal-leg and gooseneck styles.
Those ornamental styles featured shanks
that were shaped and decorated to represent
a woman's leg or a curved goose
neck. John Robert McChesney who
worked in Gainesville in the late 1800s
and who is considered "the grandaddy of
the Texas-style spur," is often credited
with these creations, though historians
are unsure. The Yaters are very familiar
with the work of McChesney, and their
collection includes several of his spurs.
"McChesney didn't mark his spurs, and if
you find one that is marked, then it was
made after his business was sold to
Nocona Boot Company, and the spurs
were mass produced," said Lyn.
This is the kind of familiarity that
comes from years of collecting and studying.
Though they have turned their passion
into a small business, the Yaters, who
still attend shows, admit that their collection
is mostly for their own enjoyment.
"There are spurs that we sold in the beginning,
that we really do wish we had kept.
Collecting is fun and interesting, and
we've met some great folks and learned a
lot in these past 12 years, but the real
truth is that we keep doing it because we
get so much enjoyment from it."
-By Gene KraneTop: Spur shanks in the shape of a
woman's leg; center, engravings
such as these are used by the
maker to identify their spurs; bottom,
an assortment of ornamental
spurs from the Yater's collection.
Photographs by Joe Richardson.HERITAGE WINTER 2003
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Texas Historical Foundation. Texas Heritage, Winter 2003, periodical, Winter 2003; Austin, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth45376/m1/24/: accessed April 26, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Texas Historical Foundation.