Elmer Keith Cause of Death: The Life and Legacy of a Legendary Gun Writer
Elmer Keith was a man of many talents and achievements. He was a rancher, a hunter, a firearms enthusiast, and an author. He was instrumental in the development of the first magnum revolver cartridges, such as the .357 Magnum, the .44 Magnum, and the .41 Magnum. He was also a prolific writer, who contributed to many magazines and books on guns, hunting, and shooting. He was known for his colorful stories, his distinctive style, and his influence on generations of shooters.
Early Life and Fire Accident
Elmer Keith was born on March 8, 1899, in Hardin, Missouri. He grew up in a ranching family and learned to shoot and hunt at an early age. He was fascinated by guns and experimented with handloading and wildcatting cartridges. He also read avidly about firearms and hunting, especially the works of Theodore Roosevelt and W.F. Cody.
In 1911, when he was 12 years old, Keith suffered a terrible accident that would mark him for life. He was staying in a hotel in Missoula, Montana, when a fire broke out. He was trapped in his room and suffered severe burns on his face, neck, and left hand. His left hand was mangled and twisted, and his chin was fused to his right shoulder. He was lucky to survive, but the doctors gave him little hope of recovery. They refused to operate on him, thinking he would die soon.
However, Keith proved them wrong. He endured the pain and the infection, and gradually regained some mobility in his hand and neck. He also learned to shoot with his right hand, and became ambidextrous. He never let his injuries stop him from pursuing his passions. He later wrote: “I have never let it handicap me in any way, and have always been able to do anything I wanted to do, and have done many things that most people never even try to do.”
Career and Magnum Revolvers
Keith moved to Idaho in 1917, where he worked as a rancher, a cowboy, a trapper, and a guide. He also continued to experiment with guns and cartridges, and became an expert marksman. He was especially fond of revolvers, and sought to improve their performance and accuracy. He was dissatisfied with the existing .38 Special and .45 Colt cartridges, and began to load them to higher pressures and velocities. He also modified the bullets to have a larger meplat (the flat nose of the bullet) and a crimping groove (to prevent the bullet from moving in the case under recoil). He called these bullets “Keith-style” or “Keith-type” bullets, and they became very popular among handgun hunters and target shooters.
Keith’s handloads caught the attention of the firearms industry, and he collaborated with Smith & Wesson and Remington to develop the first magnum revolver cartridge, the .357 Magnum, in 1935. This cartridge was based on the .38 Special, but had a slightly longer case and a much higher pressure and velocity. It was capable of firing a 158-grain bullet at 1,500 feet per second (fps), making it a powerful and versatile cartridge for hunting and self-defense. Keith also helped design the Smith & Wesson Model 27, the first revolver chambered for the .357 Magnum.
Keith was not satisfied with the .357 Magnum, however, and wanted a bigger and more powerful cartridge. He began to work on the .44 Special, which was a larger and older cartridge than the .38 Special. He loaded it to higher pressures and velocities, and used his own Keith-style bullets. He achieved impressive results, firing a 250-grain bullet at 1,200 fps. He called this load the “.44 Special Magnum”, and it was a formidable cartridge for handgun hunting. He urged Smith & Wesson and Remington to produce a commercial version of this load, and they agreed. In 1956, they introduced the .44 Magnum, which was based on the .44 Special, but had a longer case and a higher pressure and velocity. It was capable of firing a 240-grain bullet at 1,400 fps, making it the most powerful handgun cartridge in the world at the time. Keith also helped design the Smith & Wesson Model 29, the first revolver chambered for the .44 Magnum.
Keith was not done yet. He wanted to create a third magnum revolver cartridge, between the .357 Magnum and the .44 Magnum in size and power. He worked with Smith & Wesson and Norma to develop the .41 Magnum, which was based on the .38-44, a high-pressure version of the .38 Special. The .41 Magnum was introduced in 1964, and was capable of firing a 210-grain bullet at 1,300 fps. It was intended to be a law enforcement cartridge, but it was also popular among handgun hunters and target shooters. Keith helped design the Smith & Wesson Model 57, the first revolver chambered for the .41 Magnum.
Keith’s magnum revolver cartridges were revolutionary, and influenced the development of many other handgun cartridges, such as the .454 Casull, the .480 Ruger, and the .500 S&W Magnum. They also inspired many shooters to try handgun hunting, a sport that Keith pioneered and promoted. Keith hunted many kinds of game with his revolvers, from varmints to big game. He was especially fond of hunting elk and bear, and claimed to have killed over 50 bears with his handguns. He also made some incredible shots with his revolvers, such as hitting a mule deer at 600 yards with his .44 Magnum.
Writing and Influence
Keith was not only a shooter and a hunter, but also a writer and a storyteller. He began to write articles for gun magazines in the 1920s, and became a regular contributor to American Rifleman, Guns & Ammo, Guns Magazine, and Shooting Times. He also wrote several books, such as Sixgun Cartridges and Loads (1936), Big Game Rifles and Cartridges (1936), Keith’s Rifles for Large Game (1946), Gun Notes (1959), Hell, I Was There! (1979), and Safari (1980). He wrote about his experiences with guns, hunting, and shooting, and shared his opinions and advice on various topics. He also wrote some fiction, such as the novel Alaskan Tales (1969).
Keith’s writing style was distinctive and engaging. He used colloquial language, vivid descriptions, and humorous anecdotes. He was also opinionated and outspoken, and did not shy away from controversy. He often criticized the firearms industry, the government, and other writers, especially Jack O’Connor, who was his longtime rival and nemesis. He also praised the things he liked, such as the .44 Magnum, the .270 Winchester, and the .375 H&H Magnum. He was honest and passionate, and his readers loved him for it.
Keith’s influence on the shooting community was immense. He was one of the most popular and respected gun writers of all time, and his articles and books reached millions of readers. He was also a mentor and a friend to many other gun writers, such as Skeeter Skelton, Jeff Cooper, and John Taffin. He was a founding member of the National Rifle Association’s Handgun Committee, and a member of the International Handgun Metallic Silhouette Association. He was also a recipient of the Outstanding American Handgunner Award, the Weatherby Award, and the NRA Distinguished Service Award. He was inducted into the Handgun Hunters Hall of Fame, the National Cowboy Hall of Fame, and the Idaho Hall of Fame.
Elmer Keith Cause of Death
Keith lived a long and adventurous life, but he also faced some health problems in his later years. He suffered from diabetes, high blood pressure, and heart disease. He also lost his eyesight in his right eye due to a cataract. He continued to shoot and hunt with his left eye, but he had to give up driving and flying. He also had to move from his ranch in Salmon, Idaho, to a smaller place in Boise, Idaho.
On February 14, 1984, Keith died of a heart attack at his home in Boise. He was 84 years old. He was survived by his wife, Loraine, and his son, Ted. He was buried at the Morris Hill Cemetery in Boise, with his .44 Magnum revolver and his Stetson hat. His epitaph reads: “Elmer Keith, A Big Man, A Big Hunter, A Big Writer, A Big Man All The Way Around.”
Keith’s legacy lives on in his writings, his cartridges, and his followers. He is widely regarded as the father of big bore handgunning, and one of the greatest gun writers of all time. He is also remembered as a colorful and charismatic character, who lived life to the fullest. He was a man who loved guns, hunting, and shooting, and who shared his love with the world. He was, in his own words, “a gun crank of the first water.”
