Description: "In the remote community of Elko, Nevada, the Altube brothers and the Garats started fabled ranches in the early 1870s. These hardy citizens created the foundation of a community that still exists today, rooted in the traditions and cultures of American Basque families. Joxe K. Mallea-Olaetxe presents a modern study focused on the post-1970s, when the retired Basque sheepherders and their families became the dominant Americanized minority in the area"--
Review Quotes:
"More than Sheepherders acts as a form of preservation, valuable for cultural memory. It acts as an archive of experiences and lived memory, providing a point of departure for future research. It is well worth reading for those interested in local history, especially those familiar with Basque families in the area." --Edurne Arostegui, Nevada Historical Society Q"The narrative makes clear that Basques were active participants in many of the developments that forged the county, shaping both its history and identity. . . . The result is a work that combines historical analysis with community memory to produce a narrative that is both scholarly and intimate."--Iker Saitua, Nevada Historical Society Q
"The author contends that the only really meaningful history is local and can only be known through the trifecta of personal experience, interviews with the participants, and the analysis of written documentation. . . . Change is intrinsic to history, demonstrated amply by Mallea's treatment of each subject as more of an on-going video rather than a snapshot of a frozen moment in time."
--William A. Douglass, Euskal Kazeta
--John Bieter, professor of history, Boise State University, author of An Enduring Legacy: The Story of Basques in Idaho "The story of Basque immigrant sheepherders in Elko County has come to life in a book . . . More Than Sheepherders [which] explores the impact of the early immigrants who arrived in the area about 150 years ago."
--Elko Daily Free Press