My Genealogy Hound

Branson, Missouri, Old Matt's Cabin, Shepherd of the Hills Characters, vintage postcard

A vintage postcard view of Old Matt's Cabin, the setting for the book, The Shepherd of the Hills by Harold Bell Wright and published in 1907. Also pictured are photos of John and Anna Ross and their son Charles who are commonly believed to be the real life persons who were the inspiration of the books' fictional characters of Old Matt, Aunt Molly and Young Matt. The cabin remains today at its original location to the west of Branson, Missouri on Highway 76 near the boundaries of Stone and Taney County. The book, The Shepherd of the Hills is generally credited with the original cause of tourism interest in the Branson region which has developed into one of the top tourist destinations in the United States. This postcard view is dated 1939.

Branson is in Taney County, Missouri.