Texas Ranger Museum Holsters

Papa Lee

Papa Lee

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We recently re-visited two Texas Ranger Museums to do a bit of a more in-depth view of the holsters on display with the Texas Ranger firearms. First, the great Texas Ranger Ranger Hall of Fame and Museum in Waco. This is a big one, with many displays and exhibits. Next, the Buckhorn Saloon and Texas Ranger Museum in San Antonio. This one is also interesting, although not on the same scale as Waco.
I found what looked like Bedell Rogers holsters, Shelton Payne, El Paso, what appeared to be an Original El Paso Saddlery rig, an alleged Andy Anderson rig, and several others of indeterminate origin. None of the famous A.W. Brill marked holsters said to be favored by Texas Rangers were found at either museum. There could be many reasons for this, but I hoped to find at least one!

First some Waco Holsters:
 

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I marvel at the inaccuracies in the displays' descriptions. Andy Anderson, for example, was not a holster maker in the 1940s; he was in the military WW2! And became a saddler at war's end. That particular set appears (I've long had the image in my files) to be by Wyeth, for the Sterling brand of spring-loaded, forward draw holsters.

You didn't notice that Phares' holster IS a Brill? It's suspended from an adaptor that makes it look otherwise. He and Ranger Hickman had major clashes (that's an early Myres for Hickman, one that is a bit of an anomaly because he appears in a photo of 1928 wearing it -- before this new 'Threepersons' holster appeared in Sam Myres' 1930 catalogue announcing the range).
 

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Those are great pictures Lee! It’s been a long while since I visited the Ranger Museum in Waco. I’ve never been to the Buckhorn in San Antonio, will put that on my travel list!
I have a single 1911 holster built in the same fashion as the Lone Wolf double gun rig holsters. Bought it several years ago at a Missouri Valley Collector’s show in Kansas City.
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Magnificent Tim! And thanks so much for these images, my request for an image of the backside of Gonzaullas' set were ignored (odd because the museum was so cooperative with images for my book Holstory).

It's my analysis that yours, and his, are for Sterling of St. Joseph MO, which I see on yours matches the locale marked on the backside of your set. It took lotsa luck on my part, and persistence, to learn the story of these holsters that are likely named for Texas Ranger Sterling. By Wyeth also of St. Joseph MO, the designer named in the brochure turned out to be employed by Wyeth, confirming the unique rolled border that is Wyeth's and the occasional oval mark on the belt loop.
 

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Tim, I can make out most of the legend imprinted into the backside of your holster; can you read ALL of it, please? Then I'll look up that operation, too.

P.S. for the OP: museums don't display all of their collections all at once; and the museum's site lists many more holsters including Brills when one knows what one is looking for. Which first requires us to work out how their site's search function works (search for 'holster' not on just any page with a search function, but only on the 'right' page; I think I had to locate their 'collections' page first).
 
Kansasgunner said:
ARTCRAFT LEA. GDS.
WardenRoss enlarged it quite well! Thank you sir.
Click to expand...

Well done! I got most of that but frankly the St. Joe MO was the clincher I had been looking for. Took lots of 'knitting' the facts together to i.d. Sterling, one can imagine that Googling 'sterling holster' only turns up jewelry of tiny holsters in silver.

Wonder what it would take to get the TR museum to correct its incorrect entries? Such as thinking the Gonzaullas set is Anderson. I've not succeeded in the past. I even attempted to interest them in my producing a book about the TR guns they hold, even sent an envoy in persons. No interest at all though I was to pay all costs. The museum does have a truly awful b&w book on the subject, small images that are indistinct. Nothing like the magnificent images that forum members donated to created Holstory the Book.

P.S. I have a blog post on Gonzaullas' guns that includes his leather, too.
 
Kansasgunner said:
ARTCRAFT LEA. GDS.
WardenRoss enlarged it quite well! Thank you sir.
Click to expand...

This link is not impossible: founding date works because the Ranger and the holster and an actor who owned one, are all 1940s and later; and the mark is made with an engraving such as are shown on the backside of that holster:

Artcrafts Engraving Co. - Uncommon Character - St. Joseph, MO

Further research shows that both Wyeth and Artcraft competed with each other's bowling teams, 1915 so very soon after founding for Artcraft. I'm going to suggest that the mark on the holster in question is for a retail subdivision of gift goods such as holsters, belts, wallets, etc. And being in St. Joe, that the one supplied the other. "Other people's Holsters' was literally what Wyeth did as a business model.
 
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Sterling ads appeared in Popular Mechanics magazine circa 1949.

There was at least one Ranger who favored the Sterling holster. In the book "Law on the Last Frontier, Texas Ranger Arthur Hill" on page 159 is his holster that appears identical to the holster & brochure posted above from my collection. I have one other example of a Sterling holster, a floral tooled for a 6 inch N frame. The brochure is a great piece in itself.

The Texas Rangers have always been noted for their individualism, especially with regard to gear that works for them.
 
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lawandorder said:
Sterling ads appeared in Popular Mechanics magazine circa 1949.

There was at least one Ranger who favored the Sterling holster. In the book "Law on the Last Frontier, Texas Ranger Arthur Hill" on page 159 is his holster that appears identical to the holster & brochure posted above from my collection. I have one other example of a Sterling holster, a floral tooled for a 6 inch N frame. The brochure is a great piece in itself.

The Texas Rangers have always been noted for their individualism, especially with regard to gear that works for them.
Click to expand...

That date is consistent with my estimation of the Sterling company's existence. I've copies of gun-related articles in Popular Mechanics in the Thirties.

How about a scan of the page showing Arthur Hill's holster? That combined with the date events of his book will add up to more than we know now. The tiniest bits of info, such as the inventor's name being mentioned in the Sterling brochure confirming my estimation that Wyeth was its maker.
 

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El Paso-holsters and grips

My only pictured El Paso…N frame 3” barrel pancake. And couple P Persinger ivories…yeah baby!
 

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WildBillWJW said:
My only pictured El Paso…N frame 3” barrel pancake. And couple P Persinger ivories…yeah baby!
Click to expand...

Very nice, but FYI, not connected with the Texas Rangers of the 19th century. But if you were ever to own a genuine 19th century El Paso Saddlery holster -- wow, only a handful have survived (and the TR Museum Waco has one of the only). Today's EPS was founded 1978 by Bobby McNellis who chose the name to go with the machinery he bought from Myres when he didn't want to pay additional amounts for the Myres name, which was sold separately at the same time, then moved East first with Myres' owner Lacroix then to final owner Duclos circa 1980.
 
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