Western

Taming the Wild West is a collection of historical events that happened during the settlement of the west. Things were happening fast and furious at that time, with the United States expanding into the territory too fast to tame.

During the Civil War, in New Mexico volunteers helped stop the Confederacy in the 1860’s from expanding in the west with their defeat at Rowe Mesa in northern New Mexico.

In the 1870’s a lady named Catherine McCarty and her two sons came to New Mexico. The sons’ names were Joseph or Joe McCarty and William E. McCarty, aka Billy the Kid. I was able to track them down, and their birthplaces, through U.S. Census records. Billy became involved in the Lincoln County war when the cattle business was king. Billy became an infamous outlaw after he killed two deputies and escaped while waiting to be hanged.

Wyatt Earp and the OK Corral became legends in a few seconds of gunfire in a shoot-out there. This book includes a diagram showing the encounter.

Victorio and Geronimo wreaked havoc on both sides of the U.S. and Mexico border until a lead bullet ended Victorio’s life and the sub-chief Geronimo surrendered at Skeleton Canyon.

Pancho Villa and General John Pershing were a lot more friends than enemies, especially around WWI.

In the Post-Civil War west, Mike Kelly, a veteran of the Union is pursued by the Barrister Brothers. Three confederates who seek his death for impregnating their seventeen year old sister during that conflict. Although the deed was consensual, Jake Barrister and his brothers will never accept that it was anything short of rape. To add insult to injury – for the Barristers – their sister Millicent died not long after giving birth to a son but lived long enough to insist that her child be name Michael, after his father.

With many twist and turns, “They Call Me Kelly”, the first in a series of three volumes, is not your typical western.

The book FROM DESPAIR TO FORTUNE - THE HALL DYNASTY was intended to be a historical novel that traces the Hall and Swango families from the mid-1800’s until the end of World War II.

Although the main characters are fictional, the author has used the true names of notable individuals from that time period. Also, the events occurring in this time frame are factual.

The setting is the barren and wind-swept plains of northwest South Dakota and northern Wyoming. The hardships encountered by these early pioneers who took advantage of the Enlarged Homestead Act of 1909 is documented in detail.

With cattle as their main source of income, the harsh winters would mean that all of the ranches needed to thin their herds and ship most of the cattle to eastern markets in the fall.

In addition to the isolation and weather found in this part of the country, these early settlers had to deal with desperadoes and Indians.

It took the United States Cavalry to bring peace to this region of the country. Often, law abiding citizens who deputized sheriffs found that one or two lawmen could not control their towns.

The author brings to light far-sighted businessmen who believed in their endeavors to bring civilization to the West.

Among the many such men was Seth Bullock, the sheriff who controlled the town of Deadwood, South Dakota, after the shooting of Wild Bill Hickok. Mr. Bullock was also primarily responsible for establishing the town of Belle Fourche.

This book is a review of the life and times of the infamous outlaw known today as Billy the Kid, but in my book I call him Kidd. An explanation is in the book on why I chose Kidd, spelled with two d’s. What makes my version of the Kidd’s life span different from others is that it includes views of history as seen by the Mexican people that knew him at the time; including my great-grandmother. My research indicates that the Kidd died in his nineties in the early 1950s; I have firsthand accounts of people that knew him at the time, including a story of a man who is still alive that met him in l949. Also included is an account of how Pat Garrett met his demise.

I show the connection between my great-grandmother and her husband and the Kidd. I also give an insight on the Lincoln County War correspondence between Fort Stanton and Fort Craig, and Santa Fe; and Colonel Dudley’s exit from Lincoln when higher command shipped him out to Fort Union because of his involvement in the Alexander McSween debacle during the Lincoln County War. The historical value of this book, during the turbulent times in the Territory of New Mexico, will be appreciated by countless western history buffs.

THREE EXCITING NEW STORIES is a collection of distinctive tales of the Old West. These stories are filled with exciting action, adventure and suspense. Each captivating story will provide a wonderfully entertaining reading experience.

5 NEW WESTERN STORIES is a collection of stories in an Old West setting that are filled with action and adventure. This book is sure to entertain any fan of classic Western tales.

What would entice you to risk everything, your very life and those of your wife and sons? Pink Higgins didn’t know either but he did just that when he left his Georgia farm for a God-forsaken place in Texas called Lampasas County.

Staying Alive in Lampasas County follows this determined young man and his family on a treacherous journey by wagon train across the southeastern United States to the wild and cruel frontier of the mid-nineteenth century Texas. There we ride with him through horrifying Indian raids, skirmishes with heartless outlaws, exhausting trail drives, feuds with neighbors, tender moments with a proud but loving wife and the challenges of raising two sons under the harshest of conditions. With grit and determination he took on everything this cruel land and mean people could offer and he bested them all.

In a land where there was no law, he lived by the rules of decency and common sense and expected others to do the same, often with the aid of his Winchester rifle.

Loved by those dear to him, revered by many and feared by many more, Pink Higgins carved his name into the history of central Texas and became the leading character in one of the most remarkable and violent events ever to occur there.

Every reader of western adventure novels and every western history buff wants to read about this sort of man. For everyone raised in the West, this man brings someone familiar to mind and everyone who has ever dreamed about overcoming monumental odds to reach a goal in life wants to be like this remarkable man. The history of central Texas would be incomplete without the mention of Pink Higgins.

There is unexpected action-packed adventure when Dan Leavell, a young gunsmith from 1877 Laredo, Texas, sells his business and travels to Arizona. With only the proceeds from his gunsmith store, he searches for his parents and the mystery of a map he has received. He meets a colorful character that helps him unravel the secret of the map, the whereabouts of his parents, and an inheritance that he is willing to share. He befriends two sheriffs and helps one who loses his deputy in a cowboy wild run of the town. He rescues a man and sister both courageous and handy with guns that back him throughout his search. He meets Nellie, the saloonkeeper in his mother’s absence, and their relationship quickly blossoms into a lasting romance.

When the passion for his job and the passion for his wife conflict a young man must make his choice...should he answer the call of duty or follow his heart?

Powder River Vengeance is a mixture of a love story along with violence, gun play, hangings and key historical information about the real West. After a brutal murder, the victim’s brother begins the long, hard ride of vengeance. Powder River Vengeance is a fast paced, straight forward novel that pulls no punches – a real page turner.