216. VAUGHN, Robert. Then and Now; or, Thirty-Six Years in the Rockies . Personal Reminiscences of Some of the First Pioneers of the State of Montana . Indians and Indian Wars. The Past and Present of the Rocky Mountain Country, 1864-1900. Minneapolis : Tribune Printing Company, 1900. [5]-461 pp., numerous text illustrations (photographic and 8 half-tones by Charles M. Russell, some full page, including frontispiece). 8vo, original pictorial green cloth in black and gilt, spine gilt-lettered.  Light shelf wear, lower hinge starting (but strong), otherwise fine. Author’s signed presentation copy to William H. Black dated February 1, 1903 , at Great Falls , Montana.

     First edition. Adams , Herd 2403: “Scarce.” Eberstadt 106:319: “Embraces the James Stuart Prospecting Party; Thrilling Events in Northern Montana in ’65; Lewis’s Early Days in Montana; Bloody Battles and Tragedies in the Sun River Valley; Choquette’s Reminiscences of a Trip to Montana in 1843.” Eberstadt, Modern Narratives of the Plains and the Rockies 501. Graff 4466. Holliday 1123. Howes V60. McCracken, 101, p. 48: “According to Barber, many copies of this book were destroyed or damaged by fire, making it a fairly scarce work. An interesting look at the early years of Montana from one man’s perspective.” Rosenstock 1271. Smith 10526. Yost & Renner, Russell I:11.

     Welshman Vaughn (1836-1918) initially came to Montana in 1864 and worked as both a miner and butcher in various locations.  He eventually moved to Great Falls , where he financed construction of several buildings and became instrumental in the growth of the town (his house in Great Falls is supposedly haunted).  The town of Vaughn , Montana , was named for him.  In his first chapter, he states that he left his home in Wales intending to return in a few years but was so captivated by the West that he never did.  The penultimate chapter of the book is on Yellowstone. ($150-300)

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