February 1936 – Goliad, TX

“At a certain point the needle began to act up. We began digging at 8 o’clock at night. It was pretty dark and a cold norther was blowing. With picks, grubbing hoes and shovels we kept going down. We were looking for buried gold. There were five of us, we drank coffee and believe me, it was exciting. Along about 2 o’clock in the morning my grubbing hoe hit something with a metallic sound.”

– A.V. Shaw

Our beginnings at Lost Cannon Leather are laced with mystery and intrigue. On what I imagine to have been a clear and frigid night, my grandfather, A.V. Shaw, set out to discover the prize of a lifetime. Under cover of darkness, and with a few million stars to light the way within the walls of the Presidio La Bahia, he was looking for the end of the rainbow as his son used to say.

I often wonder, what garments did he wear to protect himself from the elements on that night? There are few pictures of Grandpa, and in those we have he’s wearing the same outfit – khaki trousers, a white shirt and felt hat. Did he carry an old satchel to hold any muskets he found? Were his leather boots worn with holes from the countless hours he spent digging? Or did he have a favorite portfolio to carry all the notes and maps he believed would lead him to treasure, and eventually to Col. Fannin’s buried cannons?

Our products are made with these utilitarian and rugged concepts in mind – designs that are simple and functional. We hope that once you purchase one of our items it gets used, left out in the rain, acquires a few scratches and maybe even develops a worn spot or two – not for the purpose of having a return customer, but in hopes that it tells a story of who you are and where you have been.