Birth place or City of origin: | Cleburne |
State of origin: | TX |
Last known City: | |
Last known State: | |
Start/Birth date: | 1871 |
Death/End date: | 1953 |
Samuel Dale Myres was born in a log cabin near Cleburne, Texas in 1871. Sam dreamed of becoming a cowboy but an injury precluded him from taking an active part in range life. Consequently, he apprenticed himself to saddle maker TR James and Sons where he learned about leather, harness and saddle making. With his journeyman’s certificate in hand, Myres drifted around, expanding his talent for drawing and carving his own designs, while taking a special interest in making gun holsters. In 1897 Sam opened up his legendary Sweetwater address incorporating the saddle improvements developed in Pueblo, Denver and Oregon with the early Texas styles. He was an excellent promoter and the business flourished and the reputation of the company grew. Sam’s experience with the Texas Rangers helped him develop the Myres Quick Draw holster, which was quickly adopted by law officers throughout the Southwest, as well as the FBI. His creation of the ornate “101” saddle for Joe Miller’s Wild West Show only further enhanced the Myres fame. The fire of 1919 and changing demographics persuaded Sam to relocate the saddlery to El Paso where it survived through the mid 1980s. When Sam died in 1953, the old west lost one of its last legendary figures.