His grandfather had fought in the Civil War and his great-grandfather, had been scalped by the Sioux. These stories laid the foundation for his interest in westerns. When the family moved to Oklahoma in 1923, young Louis left school at the age of 15, to work and travel. He also changed the spelling of his surname back to its original form, from LaMoore to L'Amour.
During what he later referred to as his "yondering" years, L'Amour went through an incredibly varied series of jobs and experiences. He joined the circus and became an elephant handler, he worked as a fruit picker, a gold prospector, a longshoreman, a lumberjack, and a miner. He skinned cattle in Texas, lived with bandits in Tibet, and served on an East African schooner. He was an avid reader and collector of rare books. He also boxed professionally and won 51 out of 59 matches.
Began Writing Career
L'Amour returned to his family's home in Choctaw, Oklahoma briefly in the late 1930s to pursue his dream of a writing career. As he once said, he "wanted to write from the time I could walk." Since 1816, 33 members of his family had been writers, and he was confident he could do it as well.
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