Synopses & Reviews
Hathaway Jones (1870-1937) was a master spinner of tall tales, a native Oregonian, and the son and grandson of pioneers of the Oregon Trail. He lived most of his life in the Rogue River canyon and traveled through this remote area as a contract mail carrier from 1898 until his accidental death in 1937, trekking the narrow mountain trails and bringing stories to the isolated people of the region.
This collection of his amusing and delightful tales is one of the largest ascribable to one yarn-spinner in the United States. Stephen Dow Beckham's Introduction to the collection puts Jones into historical context in the oral tradition of tall tales, tells his personal history, and identifies the informants who kept his tales alive.