Chuck Wagon Cook

My name is Edmond "tumbleweed" Simms
My name is Edmond "tumbleweed" Simms and I can rustle up some of the best beans and cornbread in 'there's here parts'.  I grew up in St. Lewis MO., and always had that bure in my sattle to go West. When I turned 15, I told my Daddy that I was joining a cattle drive.  At first he was not happy but figured I would grow out of it.  The first drive was hard and once I arrived home, I decided that becoming the Chuck Wagon cook was the best for me.  I am a part of Captain Jacks cattle drive.  We roam the south west bringing in the cattle to the market for the dinner table.  The crew works from sun up to sun down and travel on their s.  Every morning it's coffee, sourdough biscuits, gravy, and hardtack begins the day and after a stop for lunch along the way, and finishing it off with beans, corn pone, and salted meat. 
I guess you could say without me there would be no drive.  The chuck wagon is filled with all the things I will need to keep the hunger away and provide me with all the tools for the job.  Everything fits in the chuck box" on the back of the wagon with drawers and shelves for storage and a hinged lid to provide a flat cooking surface. A water barrel was also attached to the wagon and canvas was hung underneath to carry firewood.  My day begins at 3:00am when the coffee pot goes on the fire and the sourdough hits the Dutch oven.  
Before the last biscuits are eaten, I am already thinking about the next meal.  The Chuck Wagon was more than a place for meals, it is also the social center and recreational spot. – a natural gathering place for exchanging "windies," or tall tales, listening to music if their happened to be a musician in the group, or just recounting the experiences of the day.  I guess you can say I am really more than 'the cook'. I am also expected to act as barber, doctor, banker, and sometimes as mediator or referee if a disturbance among the cowboys arose. 

Charles Goodnight, co-founder of the Goodnight/Loving Trail is credited with inventing the chuck wagon in 1866. It was basically a reinforced wagon with a chuck box fitted to the rear of the wagon in order to safely transport food across the prairie. So common did Goodnight's design become that he was often referred to as Chuck Goodnight.
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A standard four wheel chuck wagon could carry 2 tons of food, water and supplies. Goodnight used six oxen to pull the chuck wagon although teams of horses and mules were often used.
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