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Memories of the Wild West?

ChrisR

ChrisR

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When I was very young, about 3 or 4, I had a dream that was so vivid I can still remember it to this day in every detail. I was an adult laying in a desert under a blazing hot sun in the shadow of a huge cactus tree. The only sign of civilization was a line of telegraph poles stretching into the distance as far as the eye could see. I've had no memories or dreams pertaining to this past life (if that's what it was) ever since.
 
Sounds like Arizona late 19th or early 20th century. The line of telegraph poles would most likely be next to a railroad line. There are two main rail lines across Arizona. One in the north and one in the south. The southern route was the Southern Pacific (now Union Pacific) and was built around 1880. The northern route was AT&SF/Santa Fe (now BNSF) and was built a few years later. I don't think there are any cactus on the northern route as the elevation is higher. It could also be northern Mexico as railroads were also built from the US down into Mexico. Do you remember what kind of clothes you were wearing? Do you think you were dying? Southern Arizona has a lot of poisonous snakes, including the rattlesnake.
 
I Googled 'desert cactus' and none of the images really jumped out at me. I think this image comes closest except it wasn't so heavily populated with cactus in my dream, and the telegraph poles are missing of course.


I wasn't aware of my clothing in the dream, but I was on the ground as if I'd just regained consciousness, so maybe I had been bitten by a snake or something like argonne suggested. But I wonder what I was doing in such a hostile environment in the first place? Unless you count simultaneous lives, then it must have been between the 1850's and 1870's because telegraph poles weren't invented before then, and any time after is already accounted for regarding my past lives.


I don't know if there's any connection, but whenever I watch an old western movie, they always stir up something within me, like a feeling of nostalgia. I've also been fascinated with the handgun's they used in those movies and I actually have a replica Colt 45 'Peacemaker' mounted on a wooden plaque on my wall at home. Now I don't know how much of those western movies are based on fact, and how much on fiction. Were there really gun wielding outlaws engaging in gunfights at the local saloon in a desert town in real life? I don't have any memories, but I do feel like I could easily fit right in there in that kind of scenario. Whether that feeling has any connection to the dream or not, I don't know.
 
If you had grown up in the US you would not be asking this question. Arizona was very much a part of the "Wild West". Arizona was a territory for many decades before they became a state. There were a lot of mines that brought people out to that area. Plus cattle ranches, building the railroads, etc. In the 1950's there were several TV series about the old West, including Arizona. It seems like you already have a lot of clues to research. Many people think all of Ariz. is desert. It's not. There are mountains in the northern and eastern part of the state. The desert is mainly in the southern part of the state. In the old days Tuscan(sp?) (Too-sawn) had more people than Phoenix. In the old west there was a town called Tombstone. You can guess why. I think today it's a ghost town.
 
The gun fight at the O.K. corral really did happen. That was in Tucson. A local restaurant that I frequent has an amazing picture of Doc Holiday, Wyatt Earp, and for some reason, Teddy Roosevelt, plus many other notables of that period. That is a Sonoran cactus in your "pic", Chris, so you were somewhere in the American Southwest, or Northern Mexico. Try googling "Joshua Trees", and see if they bring any response. My parents venerated outlaws. (individuals that should not have been objects of admiration) Belle Starr was a particular favorite. My grandfather knew an old man who had one of the silver dollars that Jesse James used to pay him for a night's lodging. He was generous to the common man, and thus became a folk hero. My parents actually talked about my brothers being reincarnations of the Clanton gang. My mom always said that they would be hung as horse thieves, and would weep watching old westerns, where the outlaws "swung". As adult men, they always wore Stetson hats, and those duster coats that cowboys wore. I think my Mom and Dad probably "sensed" something.
 
Its "Tuscon" Az. The Grand Canyon is in N. AZ. The south rim of the Grand Canyon is desert while the north rim is forest full of pine, spruce, etc. So AZ is not all desert.
 
Were there really gun wielding outlaws engaging in gunfights at the local saloon in a desert town in real life?
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I was an avid Wild West aficionado when I was a little girl. Westerns were popular at the time but we didn't have television service in our area until I was in my teens and I didn't see a western movie until I was about ten, so I'm not sure where my passion came from but I do remember being completely immersed in it. Anyway at some point I read that the quick-draw duel-type of gunfight was fairly rare in the Wild West (I believe they said there was maybe 200 cases, which to me doesn't seem that low of a number, but whatever) in contrast to the movies. There were a lot of deaths by gunshot, mostly you just shot your enemy in the back, preferably at night and preferably when you were alone. (For reference, see Shiftkitty. :D ) Which makes sense to me. If I wanted you dead, why would I be all gentlemanly about it and give you a sporting chance to off me first? :laugh:
 
Here is some political history of Arizona. It was involved in the politics of the Civil War. The dates fit with Chris' time line.


Here are more specific articles.
 
I've pulled this discussion out into a thread of it's own because I didn't want to hijack the other thread.


I think the old western movies are just a taste of what life was really like back then, like a caricature of real life. Like Sister Grey said, you shot your enemy in the back, at night, when alone rather than the heroic gun battles we see in broad daylight in the movies, that's what I meant when I asked if those things really happened.


I looked up the Joshua Tree BriarRose. Already familiar with those being a huge U2 fan ;) but no, they don't stir up anything like the scene with the cactus.


Thanks for the links argonne, now that was interesting to see the connection of the era to the Civil War. I didn't know that, but I have just started reading Shelby Foote's 'Civil War - a Narrative', which is another fascination of mine.
 
I just read a book of true stories of the old west,


and none of it resonated with me at all, but it was very fun to read,


there are lots of stories out there that might show you something


I have been reading them from this website now


http://oldweststories.net
 
Wow, ChrisR, it looks like we have another possible similar past life (the other one is in the Royal Navy), as I have memories of living in the Wild West too. In my case I got them through regression, and I think it was at the end of XIX century, somewhere in Colorado. I was a cowboy who died quite young, probably killed by Indians (and yes, in the back). I got a revolver, but I don't think I was involved in any gun fight. The main things I remember from this life is that I was bored, I didn't want to be responsible and work in the ranch my family had, and I had a friend who dragged me to do some silly things but nothing serious. Boredom and lack of hopes for the future affected my friend more than me, our friendship got worse and we went separate ways, not long afterwards I got killed.


If I have time I may start my own thread, maybe some people here will help me with validations!
 
One thing that I did read in a scholarly "tome", was the rate of insanity among women in the old West was very high. They were brought West by some ambitious man. Life was hard, and between hunger, hard work, Indian attacks, and range wars, the men often died. The women were left alone, to make their way in hard country, and many of them lost their reason. I read this while traveling through the wilder parts of the West, in a nice safe Toyota. I could understand how that could happen! Even now, parts of the plains are so sparsely populated that there was talk of letting them return to prairie, and bringing back the buffalo. They have come back from extinction. I noticed a pattern in my family tree - every time a frontier opened up, they pushed forward into the "new" country, giving up farm land and homes. Some of them were part of Sam Houston's "Old 300", the original Caucasian settlers of Texas. They had land grants from the Mexican government, but the local Indian tribes weren't happy! The history of the West is complex, and fascinating. Many Americans are filled with nostalgia for those days. Not me - I would have refused to leave Philadelphia!
 
As a native to southern AZ, I thought i'd chime in on this thread because i'm finding it very interesting.


I was born and raised here in Tucson (in fact, the spelling "Tuscon" is one of those little things that drives me nuts - and is one of the most misspelled cities in the US. It's a common thing to see so i'm used to it, LOL)


Anyway, the saguaro cactus is native to Southern AZ and are mostly found in the Sonoran desert and parts of California and Mexico. The picture you posted is of a saguaro, and is most likely what you saw in your dream.


The summer heats can be very brutal with temperatures reaching the triple digits, the death of that lifetime could have easily been from extreme dehydration or heat exhaustion. This is common to this day, especially with border crossers coming up from Mexico. A rattlesnake bite is a good possibility too.


Do you have any fears towards snakes or a maybe a dislike of hot weather? Either one of these could be a clue to that particular lifetime.


It is true that there was a shootout near the O.K Corral as Briar mentioned, however, this happened in Tombstone, not Tucson. Tombstone is a very cool place to visit and tons of history if you ever get a chance to go. The original saloons are still standing, and some of the buildings still have bullet holes from the various shootouts that took place.


Here is some history of Tombstone, who knows, it might open up some more memories for you. :)


http://www.tombstoneweb.com/history.html
 
For some reason even though I have never been to AZ I wanted to go to AZ for a long time. I have never been in this lifetime. I mentioned in another thread how peaceful and calm the desert scenery of Arizona makes me feel.


I know that in my lifetime as a saloon girl in NOLA I must have stopped at what are now ghost towns in AZ and raised some hell in those parts of AZ. Something about AZ that I love is that it represents freedom to me. I have never been there in this life but I really would like to one day.
 
Thanks everyone for all your comments and links. I wish I had more to add to this thread, but apart from that one dream I had when I was so young, there's nothing else to go on really. I do dislike the heat very much in my life today and I can't tolerate anything much above the high 20's, which is relatively cool for many members of this forum I suspect. I never really thought that there could be a link between that and a previous life, but you never know! As for the snake bite, well, I don't like snakes although I'm not afraid of them. I do have a bit of an obsession with tarantulas though, I've got three of them as pets. :)


The telegraph poles pictured in the history of Tombstone azgrl are like the one's I remembered in the dream, which is very interesting.
 
ChrisR said:
I do dislike the heat very much in my life today and I can't tolerate anything much above the high 20's, which is relatively cool for many members of this forum I suspect. I never really thought that there could be a link between that and a previous life, but you never know!
The telegraph poles pictured in the history of Tombstone azgrl are like the one's I remembered in the dream, which is very interesting.
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That is interesting! I think you dreamt of a past lifetime out here in the old west and was able to describe aspects of it without knowing much about it to begin with. Do you remember anything else about the terrain? Such as mountains in the distance? Rocks or desert brush? No sign of railroad tracks?


If you did in fact die of dehydration in that lifetime, then it would make sense that you chose to live in England, a place where there is lots of rain this time around.


Tarantulas are also very common desert critters. :)
 
ChrisR said:
I do dislike the heat very much in my life today and I can't tolerate anything much above the high 20's, which is relatively cool for many members of this forum I suspect. I don't like snakes although I'm not afraid of them. I do have a bit of an obsession with tarantulas though, I've got three of them as pets. :)
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High 20's C is about 75-80' F. Summer temps in the desert areas of the Southwest can be around 40'+ C or 100'+ F. I live where summers are hot, but there are mountains nearby. Kids who live in the mountains have tarantulas for pets and take them to school tied to a string.
 
Now you said (the OP) that you felt like you were coming to from something. I wonder if someone didn't knock you out and leave you in the middle of nowhere to die or just did it to send a message of sorts, i.e., "Don't come around here no more." Heh, or a local tribe could have introduced you to peyote, and somewhere out there were two sheep and six chickens, and a mangy coyote left permanently traumatized LOL
 
azgrl25 said:
Do you remember anything else about the terrain? Such as mountains in the distance? Rocks or desert brush? No sign of railroad tracks?
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There were hills or mountains in the distance, lots of desert brush and the cactus, there could have been a railroad but i'm really not sure, if there was I didn't notice it like the telegraph poles. I didn't see one of these in the dream, but there used to be one near my Grandma's house and it always fascinated me when I was little, it always reminded me of the dream. It would be interesting to find out when they were invented and where they were used.


Being knocked out and left there to die resonates more with me more than the snakebite theory, I don't know why, it just does :)
 
Shiftkitty said:
Now you said (the OP) that you felt like you were coming to from something. I wonder if someone didn't knock you out and leave you in the middle of nowhere to die or just did it to send a message of sorts, i.e., "Don't come around here no more." Heh, or a local tribe could have introduced you to peyote, and somewhere out there were two sheep and six chickens, and a mangy coyote left permanently traumatized LOL
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Too funny! Thanks for the laugh! LOL
 
ChrisR said:
There were hills or mountains in the distance, lots of desert brush and the cactus, there could have been a railroad but i'm really not sure, if there was I didn't notice it like the telegraph poles. I didn't see one of these in the dream, but there used to be one near my Grandma's house and it always fascinated me when I was little, it always reminded me of the dream. It would be interesting to find out when they were invented and where they were used.
Being knocked out and left there to die resonates more with me more than the snakebite theory, I don't know why, it just does :)
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I was wondering if maybe you were actually on a horse and someone knocked you off of the horse, and left you there.


There is a windmill in Tombstone, I think this one is a reproduction but not entirely sure - does this look familiar?


http://www.flickr.com/photos/matthigh/2982696637/
 
azgirl, I have no idea why I typed "Tucson" instead of "Tombstone", because I know the difference! I think that I was thinking so hard about how to spell "Tucson", that I messed up! :laugh: This is an interesting thread. The Old West is an unusual interest for a resident of the U.K. I would think down around Tombstone, temps could reach 115-120 degrees without much trouble. I live in inland So Cal, and we reach that here fairly routinely.
 
BriarRose said:
I would think down around Tombstone, temps could reach 115-120 degrees without much trouble. I live in inland So Cal, and we reach that here fairly routinely.
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I checked the current weather report for Tombstone a few hours ago. 90 degrees F. which I think is about 30-35 C. Tombstone is at 4,000 Ft elevation so it would probably not be so hot.
 
ChrisR said:
I didn't see one of these in the dream, but there used to be one near my Grandma's house and it always fascinated me when I was little, it always reminded me of the dream. It would be interesting to find out when they were invented and where they were used.
Being knocked out and left there to die resonates more with me more than the snakebite theory, I don't know why, it just does :)
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A windmill! Before electricity every country home in the American West and Mid West had one. They were used for pumping water from a well. In the old days there would have been a two story "tank house" next to the windmill that stored water. The water tank was a barrel made out of redwood. Being higher than the house provided water pressure for the "new" indoor plumbing. After WWII most windmills and tank houses were replaced by electric water well pumps. Some tank houses had the redwood tank removed and the room converted to a bedroom, etc. There are still a few windmills and tank houses around, even in my area. I'll see if I can find a picture of a windmill and tank house together.


You may have been robbed. Maybe you were a miner? Or businessman? Maybe they thought you had money on you.
 
Here is a picture of a modernized tank house with an old windmill next to it. Many of the old windmills today are located in cow pastures and pump water for horses and cattle.
 
argonne1918 said:
I checked the current weather report for Tombstone a few hours ago. 90 degrees F. which I think is about 30-35 C. Tombstone is at 4,000 Ft elevation so it would probably not be so hot.
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Yes, Tombstone is a little bit cooler during the summers than Tucson is but it is still hot and dry over there too. It is also only about a 45 minute drive, if ChrisR was in the middle of the desert anywhere west of Tombstone, he could have easily been left in an area where the temps reached above 100 degrees.
 
Thanks for the links! The tank houses don't do anything for me, but the windmills remind me of the dream I had, especially the one azgrl gave a link to. Were there many other towns like Tombstone? I don't want to make any assumptions. Maybe it's time to dust off some of my old regression cd's ;)
 
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