Arbuckles’ Coffee began in the post Civil War Era of the 19th Century. Two brothers, John and Charles Arbuckle, initiated a new concept in the coffee industry; selling roasted coffee in one pound packages. Until that time, coffee was sold green and had to be roasted in a skillet over a fire or in a wood stove. You can imagine the inconsistency of the coffee. One burned bean ruined the whole batch. The Arbuckle Brothers were able to roast a coffee that was of consistently fine quality and the first to be packaged in one pound bags. 
Arbuckles’ Ariosa Blend became so popular in the Old West that most cowboys didn't even know that there was any other. Arbuckles’ Coffee was prominent in such infamous cow towns as Dodge City and Tombstone. To many of the older cowboys, Arbuckles’ Ariosa Blend is still known as the Original Cowboy Coffee.

Cowboy's First Coffee

Cowboy's First Coffee.  When a cowboy had his Arbuckle's in hand, he was enjoying a cup of coffee. 
The Arbuckle Brothers of Pittsburgh made a mighty fine preroasted bean that was so popular in the Old West that Arbuckle's eventually became interchangeable with the actual word coffee, as in "Don't talk to me in the morning until I have my Arbuckle's." The "recipe" for coffee was generally a handful of coffee in a cup of water.

Secret of the Roasting

Up until the close of the Civil war, coffee was sold green. It had to be roasted on a wood stove or in a skillet over a campfire before it could be ground and brewed. A single burned bean could ruin the lot.
In 1865, John Arbuckle and his brother Charles, partners in a Pittsburgh grocery business, changed all this by patenting a process for roasting and coating coffee beans with an egg and sugar glaze to seal in the flavor and aroma.
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More than coffee

The Arbuckle Brothers knew they had a good thing going.  They printed signature coupons on the bags of coffee redeemable for all manner of items including handkerchiefs, razors, scissors and wedding rings, everything a cowpoke or pioneer might come to need. 
To further entice the purchaser, each package of Arbuckles' contained a stick of peppermint candy.   Due to the demands on chuck wagon cooks to keep ready supplies of hot Arbuckles' on hand around the campfire, the peppermint stick became a means by which that steady coffee supply was ground. Upon hearing the cook's call "Who wants the candy?" some of the toughest Cowboys on the trail were known to die for the opportunity of manning the coffee grinder in exchange for satisfying a sweet tooth.