Time Travelers

Inspired to bring history to life for others, Tommy and Troy Phillips decided to recreate an accurate 19th century chuckwagon and display it as a living museum. The father-son duo travels to competitions and events, preparing and serving cowboy cuisine just as it was done in the olden days.

Many people find history dull, dry and dismal—a subject gladly left behind in school. What if the past was not simply a bunch of dates, names and events published in a forgotten volume, chock-full of boring, irrelevant information? What if the past were tangible—and edible?

The Phillips family has pulled off that remarkable feat. Theirs is a multi-generational endeavor fronted by Tommy and Troy—a father-son duo—and their wives, Becky and Stephanie. Altogether, four generations are involved, not to mention the support they receive from friends.

It all started because Tommy and Troy were competing in Cowboy Action Shooting competitions in 2001. It was not long before Troy’s son, Daniel, was also involved, becoming a member of the Single Action Shooting Society at 5. While attending one of these events, Tommy and Troy were drawn to a chuckwagon someone had brought to enhance the Old West atmosphere. They soon determined they needed to have one of their own.

Even before they bought a wagon, they began acquiring period-appropriate accessories, including a chuck box, coffee pot, Arbuckle coffee beans, coffee grinder, cookware, dishes, utensils, fire hooks, dinner bell, water barrel, flour, sugar, beans, canned milk and other goods, hair clippers, medical supplies, possum belly (a piece of canvas or cowhide slung under the wagon to store firewood), harness, saddle and a toolbox. Once the Phillips family obtained a late-1880s farm wagon, they had to restore and convert it into a chuckwagon. Some parts needed replacing, which meant fashioning them from lumber. They added the chuck box, the pan boot and the toolbox. Altogether, the family devoted about 16 months and thousands of hours of work to the project. It was so involved that Daniel submitted it as a Future Farmers of America project at the Newton County STEAM Academy.

“True cowboys are the ones who aren’t afraid to get dirty.”
Lane Frost

The cattle-drive era in the American West lasted from about 1865 through 1895. Before the expansion of railroads, cattle had to be driven to market across the landscape. This journey could last weeks or months, and there was not time to support a dozen people by hunting wildlife as they moved through the land, up to 10 miles a day.

The chuckwagon was outfitted, driven and operated by an older team member, whom the cowboys called “Cookie.” The first chuckwagon was built by Charles Goodnight in 1866. He converted an army surplus wagon into a mobile kitchen. It featured a chuck box at the rear with drawers and shelves to store food and tools, along with a hinged door that protected everything inside. When lowered to a horizontal position, it served as a work surface. Tommy calls it “the original tailgate event.” The chuckwagon was the closest thing to home for cowboys on a cattle drive. It sustained them after long, grueling days of work. The foods Cookie prepared remain staples of American cuisine: biscuits, potatoes, stew, campfire beans, cobbler and other one-pot meals.

“What does someone do with a historically accurate chuckwagon?” one might ask. First, you join the American Chuckwagon Association. Then you enter state, regional and national competitions where the quality of your food is judged along with the authenticity of the wagon and equipment. There are strict rules around adhering to period cooking with authentic recipes, ingredients and cooking tools. In 2016, the Phillips family became the Southeastern champions and received an invitation to the American Chuck Wagon Association’s Championship Cook-Off in Fredericksburg, Texas. Theirs was the only wagon to compete from east of the Mississippi River.

Besides competitions, the Phillips family is frequently invited to places like the Booth Western Art Museum in Cartersville, which holds an annual event called West Fest at the end of October. These opportunities require a lot of work, as well as transporting and setting up the wagon. Tommy and Troy make the effort for several reasons. They have a passion for the history and culture of the Old West and can talk for hours about the region in the late 19th century. The Phillips family also does it because of the joy that it brings other people and the opportunity to teach them about the history of our country. They enjoy talking about their chuckwagon and what it meant for the cowboys driving cattle across the plain. Tommy and Troy thrive on preserving a record of what it took for the United States to become the country we know today.

So when riding the range, keep a sharp eye out. If you spy a poster for an Old West event, you will likely find Tommy, Troy, and Daniel fixin’ some grub under the Rocking TP brand. Just sit down, visit a spell and learn about how life used to be.