The MeatEater Podcast

Episode 779: Bonus - The Hide Hunters, Ch. 1: Ghosts
Host: Steven Rinella
Date: October 16, 2025

Episode Overview

In this bonus installment, Steven Rinella introduces listeners to the opening chapter of the audio original, "MeatEater’s American History: The Hide Hunters, 1865-1883." Through vivid storytelling and scholarly attention, he explores the epic, tragic story of the commercial slaughter of American buffalo (bison) in the decades after the Civil War. This episode lays the groundwork for the series by clarifying terminology, highlighting the motivations and personalities of the hide hunters, dissecting the technological and economic context, and dispelling common myths. Listeners are invited to view the hide hunters as products—and, in some ways, victims—of their era, rather than simple villains.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

Clearing Up the “Buffalo” vs “Bison” Debate

• Terminology confusion: Early European settlers used “buffalo” for what are actually bison, due in part to similarities with African and Asian buffalo species, despite biological differences.
• Quote (03:45):

  “So if you are one of these folks who has to roll their eyes or feign confusion whenever you hear them called buffalo, I’m sorry. You are in for a rough ride on this story because this is a story about buffalo. American buffalo.” – Steven Rinella

The Symbolism and Tragedy of the Buffalo

• Modern perception: Buffalo conjure images of a lost world, marked by collective regret over near extinction—a wound in America’s relationship with its wildlife (05:40).
• Quote (06:23):

  “Instead, these massive creatures call to mind a lost world… a sense of regret that things hadn’t gone differently for the species, and in a way, differently for us as Americans who love wildlife as well.” – Steven Rinella

Who Were the Hide Hunters?

• Motivations: While often mythologized, figures like Daniel Boone and Davy Crockett hunted primarily for financial reasons. Hide hunters were no different—market-driven, working-class men capitalizing on commercial demand.
• Ruthless efficiency: The hide hunters harnessed cutting-edge weaponry and the burgeoning railroad network to kill and harvest buffalo on an industrial scale (10:45).
• Colorful characters: The hide hunters had nicknames like Squirrel Eye, Limpy, Dirty Face Jones, and Skunk Johnson, reflecting both the roughness and dark humor of their world (15:30).

The Mechanisms of Eradication: Why Buffalo Disappeared

• Perfect storm: The convergence of railroads, industrial demand for buffalo leather (especially for factory belting), and post-Civil War firearms technology created ideal conditions for mass slaughter.
• Technological leap: The introduction of breech-loading rifles with telescopic sights drastically increased hunters’ effectiveness (23:10).
• Railroads’ impact: The timeline linking railroad expansion with spikes in buffalo harvests is detailed—where the tracks went, buffalo disappeared soon after.

A World Not Too Distant from Ours

• Modern parallels:

  “They shot guns that fired brass casings. They read newspapers. They traveled by train. Many of them, years after the slaughter, would flip light switches. Some would even drive cars.” (14:00)

• The era, though ‘frontier,’ overlapped with familiar aspects of late 19th-century American development.

Myths and Misconceptions about the Buffalo Slaughter

• Debunking ‘army eradication policy’: The often-repeated claim that the US Army systematically exterminated the buffalo is largely myth. Staggering numbers were killed by market-driven hunters, not military strategy (53:00).
• Quotes Sheridan’s supposed speech to the Texas legislature as a persistent legend—thoroughly debunked.

Ethics, Responsibility, and Context

• Avoiding easy judgments: Rinella cautions against painting the hide hunters as “soulless hellbillies," instead encouraging listeners to look at broader systemic issues and the economic imperatives of the time (36:35).
• Quote (38:32):

  “Rather than imagining the hide hunters as soulless hellbillies, it’s better to see them as the vanguard of industrial capitalism on the western plains.” – Steven Rinella

Individual Stories

• Frank Mayer: An everyman buffalo hunter who described his choices as pragmatic, not malicious. His words capture the essence of the hide hunter’s mentality:

  “He had a hide. The hide was worth money. I was young, 22. I could shoot. I’d like to hunt. Wouldn’t you have done the same thing?” – Frank Mayer (as recounted by Rinella, 41:20)

• Other notable figures: Charles Rath, J. Wright Moore, John Cook (author of a memoir), George Reigard. Each contributed either memories or records that shape our understanding of the era.

Deep Time Context: Millennia of Buffalo Hunting

• Precedents: Humans have hunted buffalo in North America for over 10,000 years, practicing methods ranging from atlatl hunting in Alaska to ambushes on horseback after the arrival of Spanish horses.
• Contrast with sustainability: Indigenous peoples' relationship with buffalo was largely sustainable, in contrast to the commercial excesses of the post-Civil War period (47:50).

The Numbers: From Millions to Almost Zero

• Population decline: At least 15 million buffalo before market hunting; by 1883, less than 1,000 remained—over 99% gone in under two decades (56:55).

What’s Next in the Series

• Roadmap: Future chapters will cover the rise of the robe trade, the transformation of Dodge City, incursions into Texas, the final slaughter in the northern plains, the tools and tactics of hide hunting, day-to-day camp life, processing of hides, and the ultimate aftermath (01:02:20).

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On terminology and language wars – “If you are one of these folks who…feign confusion whenever you hear them called buffalo, I’m sorry, you are in for a rough ride…” – Steven Rinella (03:45)
• On the aftermath – “Children don’t play games pretending to be [hide hunters]…The hidehunters, they don’t make movies about them.” – Steven Rinella (13:25)
• On scale of slaughter – “We simply don’t have any other examples, at least in the historical era, of a comparable widely distributed wildlife species pushed to the brink of collapse so quickly by the hands of man.” – Steven Rinella (20:40)
• On Frank Mayer’s rationale – “He had a hide. The hide was worth money. I was young, 22. I could shoot. I’d like to hunt. Wouldn’t you have done the same thing?” (41:20)
• Re: disease, drought, and overhunting – “The best research out there today indicates that the herds wiped out by the hide hunters were already diminished by a host of factors besides bullets.” (58:30)
• On myth-busting – “Today, driving across certain stretches of the Great Plains…you will feel the hide hunter’s legacy in your bones, that haunting emptiness where millions of buffalo should be grazing.” (01:01:05)

Important Segments and Their Timestamps

| Timestamp | Segment Description | |-------------|----------------------------------------------------------| | 03:45 | “Buffalo” vs “Bison” terminology and its cultural roots | | 05:40 | The buffalo as a symbol of a lost world | | 10:45 | Economics and motivations of hide hunters | | 14:00 | Technological context and railroad’s impact | | 15:30 | Colorful personalities among the hide hunters | | 20:40 | The scale and unprecedented speed of buffalo loss | | 23:10 | Influence of firearm advancements | | 36:35 | Reframing the image of the hide hunters | | 38:32 | Societal and economic forces, not individual villainy | | 41:20 | Frank Mayer's personal rationale for hide hunting | | 47:50 | Indigenous buffalo hunting and sustainability | | 53:00 | Debunking military extermination myth | | 56:55 | Numbers: from tens of millions to under 1,000 | | 58:30 | Multiple causes of herd decline | | 01:01:05 | The enduring legacy of the hide hunters on the land | | 01:02:20 | Sketch of coming chapters and topics |

Tone and Language

Steven Rinella’s storytelling is both authoritative and conversational, blending rigorous historical perspective with personal reflection, humor, and a novelist’s sense of pacing. He acknowledges the romanticization of the American West while inviting listeners to inspect the often uncomfortable truths beneath the myths.

For Further Inquiry

• Steven Rinella urges listeners interested in deep research to consult historians like Miles Gilbert, Leo Reminger, and Sharon Cunningham, who compiled encyclopedic work on buffalo hunters and skinners.
• Names of relevant memoirs and interviews (e.g., John Cook’s The Border and the Buffalo) are recommended for those interested in primary sources.

Summary prepared for listeners seeking a comprehensive yet engaging breakdown of The MeatEater Podcast Ep. 779's historical narrative and analysis.