SHREVEPORT – The cold snap coming next week will be just in time for Louisiana’s duck and deer hunters to need that thermal underwear.
But if bagging a buck isn’t your thing, you can still enjoy what the outdoors has to offer at the James Smith Noel Collection through its exhibit, “In Pursuit of Wild Game.”
The exhibit celebrates Louisiana and North American wildlife through books and illustrations from the Noel Collection, which is the largest private collection of antiquarian books in the U.S.
The exhibit features U.S. President Teddy Roosevelt’s own book “The Wilderness Hunter,” a 1902 printing of the president’s pursuit of various type of game. Two other books that Roosevelt owned are also on display.
“We wanted to do something that honored Louisiana’s place as ‘The Sportsman’s Paradise,’ and this exhibit showcases the wildlife of Louisiana and other parts of North America,” said Rachel Sherman, Noel Collection cataloger. “We put together an exhibit about hunting and trapping a few years ago, but this particular exhibit focuses more on the wildlife itself.”
Colorful illustrations of red, black and silver foxes from naturalist John James Audubon stare back at visitors. Pictures of bears and elk sit nearby.
While most might associate hound hunting with the English culture, local hunters still train hounds to assist in the pursuit. Illustrations of hounds abound as they track large game like bears and moose.
“You’ll find that early settlers here participated in these activities to survive, while in England it was more about sport,” Sherman said.
Readers can explore a collection of Louisiana flora in an autographed version of Caroline Dorman’s “Wildflowers of Louisiana.”
Frontier legend Kit Carson is one of the first famous “Mountain Men” for his exploits in the West during the first half of the 19th century. Carson’s autobiographical memoir and a sampling of the sensationalized versions of Carson’s life are on display.
Or enjoy the more tranquil activity of fishing, which includes an English book from 1714 titled “The Whole Act of Fishing,” offering fishing tips and tricks.
The exhibit will be viewable until Jan. 10 in the Noel Collection, which is on the third floor of the Noel Memorial Library on the LSUS campus.
