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Show Page 41 A nephew of Mrs. Davy Crockett, Rash was a likable young man-thirteen years older than Ann-who had left his Texas home at the age of twelve. For a while after he came to Colorado, Rash worked for the Middlesex Cattle Company. When he quit he went to work for an outfit called the Circle K. But Rash soon decided to go into the cattle business for himself. It is not known precisely how Rash acquired his first cattle, but more than likely most of them were stolen. Cattle rustling was quite common in those days and was usually done in one of two ways: a cow's brand was changed, or a newborn calf was taken from its mother, bottle fed, then branded by the new "owner." Mavericks, unbranded range cattle one year or older, were fair game for anyone and a few cattle could be acquired this way. Whichever method he used, Rash soon had built up a sizable herd and around 1885 or 1886 settled on a piece of property not far from the Bassett's. Rash was soon well-enough known to borrow money from the First National Bank of Rock Springs, money which he used to build his herd. Then in 1897 he bought his neighbor's ranch, thereby increasing his holdings. Around that time he was also elected president of the newly-formed Brown's Park Cattle Association, a group of local cattlemen who joined together supposedly to keep sheep off the range. That a suspected rustler could be elected to such a position is explained by Ann's statement that "Rash had a wide circle of friends, who |