Program

NYS Historic

Subject

People

Location

42 Livingston St, Warsaw, NY 14569, USA

Lat/Long

42.739309865982, -78.130372390257

Grant Recipient

Warsaw Historical Society and The Gates House Museum

Earl Alonzo Brininstool was born in Warsaw, New York, on October 11, 1870. According to his correspondence, his early life was spent in this home on Livingston Street before his family relocated to two other residences in the area. In 1895, Brininstool and his wife, Estelle, moved to Los Angeles, California. The couple had two children, Merrill and Ellene.

Literary Career

After working several temporary jobs, Brininstool established a career as a freelance writer and historical researcher. He specialized in the history of the American West, focusing on the Indian Wars, frontier life, and cowboys. Over his lifetime, he authored 14 books and numerous articles.

Notable publications include:

• Trail Dust of a Maverick (1914): A well-known collection of cowboy poetry.
• Billy the Kid (1919): A historical account of the outlaw and his death.
• A Trooper with Custer (1925): His most prominent work, which utilized interviews with soldiers present at the Battle of the Little Bighorn to detail the actions of General George A. Custer.
• Crazy Horse (1949): A biographical study of the Oglala Lakota leader.

Brininstool died in July 1957. His professional papers, including original interviews, manuscripts, and correspondence, are preserved in the Special Collections of Brigham Young University and the Briscoe Center for American History at the University of Texas at Austin.