By Caroline Clemmons
Do you
wonder about what was going on in the world at the time of a series you’re
reading? Okay, I’m a history nut, so I do. Some of those events affect the book’s
characters, even if it’s remotely.
For instance,
so far the books of my current series, The Texas Hill Country Mail Order
Brides, is set in 1876. What a time that was! Part of the Reconstruction era
after the Civil War, it was also a part of the Gilded Age and faced a national
depression. Not the time that comes to my mind when I hear the words “national
depression” a la Grapes of Wrath. However, my mother said that was the one in which her mother’s
family supposedly suffered great financial losses.
As you can
imagine, I am especially interested in what was happening in the West. The answer
is, a lot!
That was the
year Wild Bill Hickock (James Butler Hickok) died in Deadwood. Dakota Territory
in an altercation during a poker game. The cards he held were two pair of black
aces and eights, now commonly known as the “dead man’s hand.” Modern historians
agree Bill greatly “embellished” his accomplishments. Sad that he should die at about 39.
Wyatt Earp started
work as a deputy in Dodge City, Kansas, serving under Marshal Larry Deger.
In
Northfield, Minnesota, Jesse James and the James-Younger Gang attempted to rob the
town’s bank. Must have been badly planned, because they were surrounded by an
angry mob and almost wiped out. You probably know that if your money was
stolen from a bank back then, there was no way to replace it. The Federal Government did
not begin guaranteeing deposits until after 1933.
The Indian Wars were in full force. Crazy Horse led 1500 Sioux and Cheyenne at the Battle of Rosebud on Rosebud Creek in Montana Territory to beat back General George Crooks’s forces of the Army, with Crow and Shoshone allies helping the Army. This was in early June, but in late June, General George Custer suffered over 300 casualties (including himself) when he met the same forces led by Sitting Bull and Crazy Horse at the Battle of Little Big Horn.
In November,
the Army retaliated. General Ranald McKenzie led Army troops to sack the camp
of Chief Dull Knife, at the headwaters of the Powder River. The soldiers
attacked the sleeping Cheyenne’s winter camp. Soldiers destroyed Cheyenne’s winter
clothing and food supply. Some sources say the soldiers slit the throats of
their ponies. Others say they drove 200 horses over the edge of the cliff. I can understand how he came by the name of Black Hand.
I have to
admit I hate what Ranald McKenzie did, but I try to remember that (1) he was
given the job of ending the Indian Wars, and (2) we cannot assign modern principles and points-of-view to the past! I’m
still not fond of the idea that my hometown of Lubbock, Texas named their
lovely city park after the man.
Railroad
travel was finally becoming coast to coast. In June, while Indians were
gathering to defeat the Army, the Transcontinental Express arrived in San
Francisco, California, only 83 hours and 39 minutes after leaving New York City.
Currently, the 2563 miles takes about 77 to 81 hours. I love train travel, but
have never ridden the express train. From Lubbock, we went to join the San
Francisco Chief at Clovis, New Mexico. There, we would always be told it would be 30
minutes before our car joined the Chief, but it was always 5 hours. I haven’t
ridden in decades, so I’m sure travel has improved. I hope so. Somewhere, our railcar
was changed to send us toward Los Angeles, with us debarking at Long Beach, California, where my oldest brother and sister-in-law lived. I miss train travel, even with the delays.
So much
happened in 1876 alone, to say nothing of the decade, that covering it all in
one blog would go on ad nauseum. I
hope you’ve enjoyed the reminder of our past. Don’t forget to read The Texas
Hill Country Mail Order Brides: GENTRY, JESSE, QUINN, LEVI, and KEITH.
Thanks for stopping by. Stay safe and keep reading!
No comments:
Post a Comment