Soogans (and various other spellings) were the quilts that cowboys, especially in the northern tier of the US, used inside their tarp bedrolls. My wife and a friend are currently researching soogans, and I've provided her with several references from my very own personal library (Ramon Adams, "Ten Thousand Goddam Cattle", and some others).

I suspect that because the bedroll was often tied with rope and served as a chair, the word comes from the Irish "sugan."

Does anyone have any other information or, best of all, an actual surviving soogan or two?