Interviewer
Diann Wiesner
Files
Description
Herschell Wells recalls how he started trapping during the early 1930s when he was a kid and how he focused on trapping muskrats and mink along the stream. Wells notes that as he got older, he started to prefer trapping predators, such as cats, fox, and coyotes. He also describes the process of setting the traps, skinning the animal, and treating the hides. Wells discusses making his own stretcher boards and which methods of skinning worked best for different animals. He talks about the popularity of trapping in the Butte, Anaconda, and Dillon area of western Montana and how that has significantly decreased trappable populations. Wells also describes his encounters with coyotes and fox that would dig up his traps, making it harder to catch other animals.
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Document Type
Oral History
Subjects
Trapping, Montana; Fur trapping methods; Predator control; Fur trapping equipment; Butte, Montana, trapping; Anaconda, Montana, trapping, Dillon, Montana, trapping
Original Date
8-20-1982
Time Period
Twentieth century
Geographic Coverage
Montana
Language
eng
Original Collection
Fur Trappers Oral History Project, OH 099, Archives and Special Collections, Mansfield Library, University of Montana-Missoula
Digital Publisher
University of Montana--Missoula. Mansfield Library
Rights
Copyright to this collection is held by the interview participants and by the Maureen and Mike Mansfield Library, University of Montana-Missoula. Permission may be required for use. For further information please contact Archives and Special Collections: (406) 243-2053 / library.archives@umontana.edu
Oral History Number
OH 099-025
Media Type
Sound; Text
Original Format
1 sound cassette (01:00:00 min.) analog + 1 transcript (20 p.: 28 cm.)]
Digital Format
audio/mp3; application/pdf
Run Time
01:02:23 minutes
Local Filename
OH_099_025.mp3; OH_099_025.pdf
Citation
Wells, Herschell, "Herschell Wells Interview, August 20, 1982" (1982). Fur Trappers Oral History Project. 20.
https://scholarworks.umt.edu/montanafurtrappers/20