This was the indispensable handbook for American pioneers traveling west in the mid 19th century. Commissioned and published by the U.S. government and written in a straightforward and helpful voice by U.S. Army officer Randolph Barnes Marcy (1812-1887), it offers all the useful and necessary advice overland travelers to the far West needed to ensure a safe journey: the different routes to California and Oregon, how to pack a wagon for the journey,...

Roughing It is a book of semi-autobiographical travel literature written by American humorist Mark Twain. It was written during 1870-71 and published in 1872 as a prequel to his first book Innocents Abroad. This book tells of Twain's adventures prior to his pleasure cruise related in Innocents Abroad. Roughing It follows the travels of young Mark Twain through the Wild West during the years 1861-1867. After a brief stint as a Confederate cavalry militiaman...

On the Border with Crook is considered one of the best firsthand accounts of frontier army life, as the author of the book gives equal time to both the soldier and the Native American. John Bourke, the author of this book was a captain in the United States Army. He served as an aide to General George Crook in the Apache Wars from 1872 to 1883. As Crook's aide, Bourke had the opportunity to witness every facet of life in the Old West-the battles, wildlife,...

John Shefford had found a new life with Fay Larkin. When she was charged with murder, the easy part was breaking her out of jail. After that he had the posse to worry about, violent bands of Indians, a murderous trek across a trackless waste, and a brutal passage through white water hell.

Grandfather Frog tells about when Mr. Bluebird got his coat, Mr. Gopher got pockets, Mr. Hummingbird his long bill, and many other stories.

Set in 1885, The Ox-Bow Incident is a searing and realistic portrait of frontier life and mob violence in the American West. First published in 1940, it focuses on the lynching of three innocent men and the tragedy that ensues when law and order are abandoned. The result is an emotionally powerful, vivid, and unforgettable re-creation of the Western novel, which Clark transmuted into a universal story about good and evil, individual and community,...

Lavishly illustrated account of the lives, religion, customs, sports, homes, horses and history of the Indian tribes of the American West.

With the help of federal loans and land grants the job of getting railroads from Missouri to California, over 2,000 miles of sparsely populated wilderness, was possible.