American Sheep: A Cultural History
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Although sheep have not occupied the same place in the American imagination as cattle (did John Wayne ever portray a shepherd?), from the early days of European settlement, they were an essential part of the economy, providing both food and wool.
Members of the Continental Congress corresponded about their sheep husbandry; during the Civil War, the cotton-producing Confederacy scrambled to obtain wool for its armies; and at the height of the Chicago stockyards, as many sheep were slaughtered daily as cattle.
Brett Bannour, who manages the animal history collections at the Atlanta History Center, has an eye for interesting detail, highlighting the relationship between sheep and a range of historical figures, from Thomas Jefferson and James Madison to John Muir, Theodore Roosevelt, W.E.B. Dubois, and Lyndon Johnson.
American Sheep is, admittedly, more concerned with the wool sheep produced than their meat. However, as it traces the cycles of interest in the domesticated ovine, it outlines many important moments in American history.
Hardcover. Black-and-white photographs throughout.
Published: October 1, 2024