[Mr. 16 gauge]

.forgive my ignorance but how did the buckskin come out pure white...some sort of bleaching process?

I don't think it's a bleaching process, but more to do with how it's tanned......brain tanned buckskin is "smoked' as part of the preserving process, and this gives buckskin it's traditional color. I believe this is 'chrome tanned', which is more of a modern process. However, if you look around at various museums, you will see different colors of buckskins, including white/light grey.