Bradford Angier

Bradford Angier (May 13, 1910 – March 3, 1997) was a wilderness survivalist and proponent of back to earth living. He authored more than 35 books on how to survive in the wild and how to live minimalisticly off the land.

In 1947 Bradford and his new wife, Vena, were living in Boston Massachusetts. They had long romanticized the life of Thoreau and decided to move to Hudson's Hope, a small town in northeastern British Columbia, Canada, to live off the land. Once there, they found an old prospectors cabin. With the few tools and how-to books they brought with them, they were able to repair the cabin. Bradford then set about learning to hunt and gather wild food.^[1]

He eventually started writing survival books. Vena was artistic and hand illustrated several of his books. The couple lived in Canada until the building of the W.A.C. Bennett Dam on the Peace river near their home forced them to move. They moved to Cambria, California and built a house that was less than 1,000 square feet (93 m²).^[2] For decades Angier and Calvin Rutstrum were the two most prominent "how to" authors on living in the wilderness.

In the 1970s Bradford and Vena returned to Hudson's Hope. In 1972 he wrote the book One Acre & Security in which he discusses how to live organically on only 1-acre (4,000 m²) of land. At this time he had become popular with the back-to-earth movement and was sought out by many people wishing to emulate his lifestyle. He was sometimes referred to as "Mr. Outdoors"^[3]

Two chapters in his book, Wilderness Wife, were almost word for word copies of two chapters from the book The Forest by Stewart Edward White, which was published in 1904. There were no references made to White's book or even footnotes included which stated the text's source.

Bradford died in 1997, a few months short of his 50th wedding anniversary.

Bibliography

• At Home in the Woods: Living the Life of Thoreau Today (1951)
• How To Build Your Home in The Woods (1952)
• Living Off the Country: How to Stay Alive in the Woods (1956)
• On Your own in the Wilderness (1958)
• Wilderness Cookery (1961)
• We Like It Wild (1963)
• Home in Your Pack: The Modern Handbook of Backpacking (1965)
• Free for the Eating (1966)
• Free for the Eating (100 Wild Plants, 300 Ways to Use Them) (1967)
• Home in Your Pack: The Modern Handbook of Backpacking (1967)
• Skills for Taming the Wilds: A Handbook of Woodcraft Wisdom (1967)
• The Ghosts of Spirit River (1968)
• The Outdoorsman's Emergency Manual: Being Your Own Wilderness Doctor (1968)
• How to Stay Alive in the Woods: A Complete Guide to Food, Shelter and Self-Preservation That Makes Starvation in the Wilderness Next to the Impossible: Originally Published As Living Off the Country (1969)
• More Free-for-the-Eating Wild Foods (1969)
• A Star to the North (1970)
• The Art and Science of Taking to the Woods (1970)
• Gourmet Cooking For Free (1970)
• Wilderness Cookery: Complete Outdoor Meals (1970)
• How to Live in the Woods on Pennies a Day (1971)
• One Acre and Security How to Live Off the Earth Without Ruining it (1972)
• Skills for Taming the Wilds: A Handbook of Woodcraft Wisdom (1972)
• Survival with Style (1972)
• Wilderness Gear you can Make Yourself (1973)
• Field Guide to Edible Wild Plants (1974)
• The Freighter Travel Manual (1974)
• Home Book of Cooking Venison and Other Natural Meats (1975)
• Looking for Gold: The Modern Prospector's Handbook (Prospecting and Treasure Hunting) (1975)
• Color Field Guide to Common Wild Edibles (1976)
• Wilderness Wife (1976)
• Field Guide to Medicinal Wild Plants (1978)
• The Master Backwoodsman: Wilderness Skills and Campcraft for Ventures off the Beaten Path (1978)
• Home Cookbook of Wild Meat and Game (1982)
• Bradford Angier's Backcountry Basics: Wilderness Skills and Outdoor Know-How (1983)
• Camping-on-the-go Cookery (1983)
• The Competence Factor: Skills That Make the Difference in Outdoor Sports (1983)
• At Home in the Desert: Surviving and Thriving for a Day, a Week, or a Lifetime (1984)

References