DESERT DUST

An investigative work examines the murky circumstances surrounding the iconic image of a wild horse in the American West.

On July 12, 1945, in the Red Desert area of southern Wyoming, Frank Robbins captured the stallion famously known thereafter as Desert Dust. Nearly every other element of this story has been disputed, including basic information about the photograph of the horse, taken by Verne Wood, thanks to incomplete records, faulty memories, the passage of time, a lawsuit between Robbins and Wood, and a natural propensity for tall tales. Gillilan, a skilled investigator by profession, deftly navigated countless twists and turns during his 17-year quest for the truth before handing over all of his findings to Papa. This book, written in the third person, painstakingly details Gillilan’s efforts in chronological order, but with flashbacks and detours when appropriate. The authors effectively capture the dogged nature of thorough research as Gillilan sifted through archives, interviewed relevant parties, and attempted to reconcile conflicting accounts. While the overall effect of the project is gripping even for readers unfamiliar with the history of Wyoming, the authors do a great job of highlighting Gillilan’s connections to the area. In the prologue, sure to grab any reader’s attention, his beloved grandfather points out Robbins at a horse auction: “He’s the son-of-a-bitch that caught Desert Dust and he had to use an airplane to do it.” Furthermore, the iconic photo of Desert Dust was prominently displayed in Gillilan’s high school and eventually in his Las Vegas home. In fact, it was his daughter’s inquiry about the photo’s significance that started this entire undertaking back in 1995, and his multiple research trips to Wyoming represent a sort of homecoming. The authors’ writing style has a conversational feel, with occasional sentence fragments in both exposition and dialogue that lend character to the text, as in this characterization of the weather in Laramie: “If it wasn’t snowing, it was windy. Not breezy, windy. The kind that blows young children and animals off doorsteps.” Most critically, the authors connect the fate of the mustangs to the larger issues that arise when wildlife preservation efforts conflict with business interests, presenting all perspectives in the controversy and demonstrating the benefits of a more nuanced approach to the interpretation of history.

Impressive research solves the mysteries behind a lasting symbol of the outlaw spirit.