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Lumberjack Fights, Part 1 by Mark Hatmaker

 


[Part 1 of a 3-part series on Lumberjack Scufflin', all taken from Lumberjack journals and Timber Business newsletters of the late 1800s to early 1900s. [Yeah, I'm the guy who buys such arcana and reads every damn word. Tip of the hat to 4L Lumber News archivists, and John C. Frohlicher, & Ralph W. Andrews.]

Part 1—Is below for all to enjoy.

Part 2—Will go to the Legends newsletter. T’is a free newsletter but you do have to opt in to receive that content.

Part 3—Will go to The Black Box Brotherhood Members Only Forum. You gotta step up to be one of the Cadre.

You can subscribe to this free blog here, and to the free newsletter using the link.

If you wanna join the Rowdies who LIVE this stuff and not just browse it, well info can also be found here.

And if you join this month, the featured instructional volume is Timber Beast Rail Fighting.

Additional Lumberjack Fighting Resources at the end of today’s fun.

[I provider annotations in the bullet-points.]

“Kalispell hop!”

·        One of the many lumberjack terms for fighting.

“…pockets full of hot money and his eyes full of devilment.”

·        Weekends were prime for Kalispell Hops.

“I saw my first lumberjack fight when I was about six years old, and the animal logging was in its heyday around Kalispell Montana. The John B. O’ Brian Lumber Company was operating at Somers, on Flathead lake; The Northwestern Lumber Company was sawing at Kalispell, and a flock of portable outfits were butchering timber here and there around the valley.

One Saturday afternoon, Bill Bradner, foreman of an O'Brien camp, engaged in an argument with George McCauley, push for a Northwestern layout, in one of the scores of saloons that lined Main Street in Kalispell. Evenly matched they were, 6 footers, 200 pounds in the buff, both crack riverman and cats for quickness. The row started in the Silver Dollar saloon, but the push of eager spectators shoved the battlers out in the street.

·        Push—A camp foreman.

·        Riverman—Aka “Rafter.” A man who gathered and made huge rafts of lumber [not logs] for a push down the river. Notoriously hard work subject to many drownings and crushings. Agility was key.

·        Cat—A riverman or river pig with exceptional agility and balance.

They grappled in the mud in front of the saloon, their faces ruddy and distorted with hate. George depended on blows and kicks, while Bill used wrestler’s tactics. A kick in the groin doubled Bill up for a moment; Then a heavy blow on the jaw knocked him over. But his enemy was a little slow in putting the boots to him, so Bill got up, his face unscathed by the caulks, and fastened his hands on George at last. A hammerlock. Up-up- the arm was forced. “Are you licked?” gasped Bill.

·        Lumberjack fights were all-in affairs: Fists, wrists, elbows, knees, grappling, biting and a wide kicking vocabulary. [See our Black Box Store for more than a few volumes on Lumberjack Kicking.

·        As we see, the groin was not off-limits. This offered fight is only one of many I could have chosen—groin kicks, punches, bites are featured in quite a few.

·        “Putting Boots To”---Kicking a man when down was the goal of most all of these scuffles.

·        Caulks—Pronounced “corks” the steel tread worn on lumberjack boots to keep balance on spinning log and lumber rafts. Caulks are a huuuge part of lumberjack kicking.

·        Again see our Black Box Resources on this hellacious aspect of combat.

“Hell no!” cried George. The arm snapped a dry, brittle sound, like the crack of an old pinecone broken under a heavy boot. George fainted.

A cop stepped up and arrested Bill. Bill protested. Presently George came to and cried, “Help me up Bill and we'll lick that thus-and-such right!” The arrest didn't hold. None but an ex-river pig could arrest a white-water boy fresh off the jam and get away with it. And the two ex-pigs on the force had sense enough to stay at the station and play cribbage when the drive hit town.”

·        River Pig—A high compliment for rivermen. One exceptionally versatile on the river. Lumberjacks thought of River Pigs as a breed apart, even from themselves.

·        White Water Man/Boy—Anyone who has mastered these huge roiling drives not just thru placid river but through Class I, II, III & IV rapids. Astonishing men!

·        Jam—A crush of logs being pounded by the hydraulic forces of the river. To avoid jams, survive jams and break jams is hellaciously dangerous work.

In Part 2, we will look at a fight featuring a 90-pound weight difference and mucho low-line kicking.

Lumberjack Fighting Resources

Timber Beast & Mucker “Rail Fighting”

Lumberjack Kicking- The Tomahawk, Haft, & Poll Kick from A-Z

Down ‘n’ Dirty: A Rough ‘n’ Tumble Arsenalof “Dirty Tricks”

Battle Axe Axe Secrets

And more to come, much more!

Resources for Livin’ the Warrior Life

The Black Box Store

The Rough ‘n’ Tumble Raconteur Podcast



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