In his book, "A Diary of 44 Days", Teddy Kearny recounts the Sept. 1899 long journey by covered wagon from Lone Elm, Kansas to Capitan, New Mexico.  The travelers kept a diary.  Here are two recipes from that diary:

Buffalo Jerky 

Slice buffalo meat along the grain into strips 1/8 " thick, 1/2" wide and 2-3 inches long.  Hang them on a rack in a pan and bake at 200 degrees until dry.  To prepare outside, suspend them over a fire or drape them on bushes to dry in the sun.


Sonofabitch Stew

2 lbs. lean beef
Half a calf heart
1 1/2 pounds calf liver
1 set sweetbreads
1 set brains
1 set marrow gut
salt, pepper
Louisiana hot sauce

Kill off a young steer.  Cut up beef, liver and heart into 1 inch cubes; slice the marrow gut into small rings.  Place in a dutch oven or deep casserole.  Cover meat with water and simmer for 2-3 hours.  Add salt, pepper and hot sauce to taste.  Take sweetbreads* and brains and cut in small pieces.  Add to stew.  Simmer another hour, never boiling.

*  Sweetbreads are the thymus glands of veal, young beef, lamb and pork.