The Jack O’Connor Legacy and Us

As this hits the news stands and this blog, I ought to be dropping into SeaTac, returning from my second African Adventure. Over the last few weeks, Jack O’Connor has been on my mind. You recall that Jack was, arguably, the best hunting and outdoor writer of his and other times. He loved hunting anywhere, but especially loved Africa and its amazing landscapes, wildlife and people. Thus, he and his writing have been much on my mind of late.

It is probably time for another visit to the Jack O’Connor Hunting Heritage & Education Center in Lewiston. The center is focused on Jack’s legacy and the kind of outdoor education that will help ensure that our grandchildren’s children will still have an outdoor legacy to support – and fight for it as we do now. Take a moment and consider Jack O’Connor’s life.

Born in Arizona in 1902, O’Connor grew up in the Sonora Desert country, nuts about the outdoors and wildlife. After stints in the Navy, Tempe Normal (now Arizona State), the University of Arizona, University of Arkansas and the University of Missouri, he settled into teaching English. In 1934, the University of Arizona made him the first professor of journalism in what is now a widely known School of Journalism.

He wrote widely and well about wildlife, natural history and hunting, and sold a number of fictional short stories. His work was published in virtually every magazine of his time, from Redbook and Saturday Evening Post to Sports Afield, Field and Stream and Outdoor Life. In 1939, he became a regular columnist and editor for Outdoor Life, leaving academia in 1945 and moving to Lewiston three years later.

Known as the “Dean of Outdoor Writers,” Jack O’Connor was a cornerstone of Outdoor Life – the most popular sportsman’s read during his tenure. With humor and personal anecdotes, he could help the average Joe master most any technical idea. He could pack more information, entertainment and excitement into one sentence than any writer I’ve ever read. In addition to monthly columns for nearly four decades, he wrote a couple dozen books and publications about experiences and observations with firearms, hunting and natural history across the planet. In my view, his body of writing is his greatest legacy.

Uncounted numbers of us learned to read with his monthly column and books – with a flashlight – after we’d been put to bed and told to sleep. Jack O’Connor changed the way generations of us thought about firearms, hunting and wildlife and the ethics around all of them. He retired from Outdoor Life in 1972, and passed in 1978.

His writings ought to be read by every sportsperson of any stripe, but make no mistake, the man was the consummate hunter. One of my favorite O’Connor stories was printed in Outdoor Life three decades ago. John Madson (an outdoor editor) and his young teenage son Chris popped in on O’Connor after a few days of chasing chukars above the Snake River. Neither had ever been in Jack’s home, and they were eager to hang out with the legend.

His extensive collection of big game trophies was housed around his place, apparently, and the old hunter spent time showing them trophies from around the world, regaling them with story after story about this place and that and this animal or the other. Madson wrote of the experience with reverence and gratitude for the hours that millions of us would have given anything to have with O’Connor. At the end of the tour, having looked at, and talked about, dozens and dozens of trophies and places and experiences, the Dean of Outdoor Writers turned to the son with, “Tell me, Chris, have you ever seen anything like this before?” When the boy said he sure hadn’t, O’Connor said “What do you think of it?” The kid slowly looked around, thought for a moment and said, “Well, sir, you don’t fish much, do you?”

Of his wildlife and big game collection,70 pieces are at the O’Connor Hunting Heritage and Education Center, many are held by family and friends and a few are in closed collections.

You owe it to yourself and the hunters and sportsmen who come after you to make sure your descendants appreciate Jack O’Connor and his work. Check out the center at www.jack-oconnor.org. Then, take a drive to it at Hell’s Gate State Park in Lewiston. How will we ever create a sustainable outdoor future without understanding how we got to this day?

While you are thinking about it, purchase your raffle ticket for the 2015 .375 H&H Winchester Rifle. This is a re-creation of Jack’s original favorite African rifle. Based on a pre-64 model 70 barreled action, the rifle is built by Roger Biesen, engraved by Paula Biesen-Malicki, and stocked in custom-checkered French walnut. This is a true piece of art. The drawing will be held in 2015 at a date to be announced in August.

Find more information about raffle tickets for the rifle or about the center itself on the phone at 208-743-5043 or www.jack-oconnor.org.

Check it out. It’s about our future.