Author Archives: Mustang

About Mustang

Retired Marine, historian, writer.

The North Carolina Regulator War

Posted on January 23, 2023 by Mustang

Introduction In the year 1700, around 200,000 people lived in the British colonies in North America.  In the next 100 years, the population doubled roughly every 25 years (except that migration to the New World slowed during the French & … Continue reading →

Posted in American Frontier, American Indians, British Colonies, British Generals, Colonial America, Corruption, History, Indian War, North Carolina, Regulators, Society, South Carolina | 6 Comments

Battle of the Wilderness (1864)

Posted on January 16, 2023 by Mustang

Background It is possible to argue that the seeds of the American Civil War were planted before the ink was dry on the U.S. Constitution.  Fourteen signers of the Declaration of Independence owned slaves.  The founding fathers’ goal was to … Continue reading →

Posted in American Military, Civil War, Confederate States, Feuds & Rivalries, History, Virginia | 2 Comments

Frank Jones — Texas Ranger

Posted on January 9, 2023 by Mustang

No man in the wrong can stand up to a man in the right who just keeps on a-coming. —The Texas Ranger Creed Introduction The Texas Rangers began with ten men, appointed by Stephen F. Austin in 1823.  He enlisted … Continue reading →

Posted in American Frontier, American Southwest, Feuds & Rivalries, History, Justice, Mexican Border War, Outlaws, Texas Rangers, Vengeance | 4 Comments

The Stones River Fight — Part 2

Posted on January 2, 2023 by Mustang

A Gathering Storm As General Bragg struggled to manage his army at Murfreesboro, Major General Rosecrans prepared his plan.  Despite his curt response to Halleck’s orders to move against Bragg, Rosecrans got the message.  It was in his mind that … Continue reading →

Posted in Civil War, Confederate States, Feuds & Rivalries, History, Tennessee, The Union | 6 Comments

The Stones River Fight — Part 1

Posted on December 26, 2022 by Mustang

Introduction In 1811, the Tennessee General Assembly determined that the location for a new county seat for Rutherford County should be called Cannonsburgh in honor of Newton Cannon, a local politician.  A month later, however, those same politicians renamed the … Continue reading →

Posted in American Military, Civil War, Feuds & Rivalries, History, Kentucky, Tennessee | 1 Comment

Civil War Christmas

Posted on December 19, 2022 by Mustang

Shown right, Christmas Eve is an illustration by Thomas Nast for Harper’s Weekly, January 3, 1863. Introduction There is no worse time to be a soldier than the dead of winter.  Young men, older than their years, so far from … Continue reading →

Posted in American Military, Civil War, History, Pennsylvania, Uncategorized, Virginia | 4 Comments

Master Spy

Posted on December 12, 2022 by Mustang

Background Major John R. Boker, Jr., U.S. Army (deceased), graduated from Yale University.  In May 1941, Boker accepted a commission to serve as a Second Lieutenant in the U.S. Infantry.  After attending the Infantry Officer School, the Army detailed him … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | 1 Comment

America’s Old Northwest

Posted on December 5, 2022 by Mustang

The history almost no one knows Initially, the territories claimed by Great Britain in North America included all of present-day New England, extending southward along the Atlantic seacoast to the northern boundary of Spanish Florida and then westward to the … Continue reading →

Posted in American Frontier, American Indians, American Military, Antebellum Period, British Canada, British Colonies, British Mandate, Civil War, Colonial America, History, Indenture & Slavery, Indian Territory, Indian War, Mountain Men, New France, Northwest Territory, Pioneers | Leave a comment

The Greatest Raid

Posted on November 28, 2022 by Mustang

Introduction Between 1700 – 1875, Comanche, Kiowa, Wichita, Caddo, Bidai, Karankawa, Eastern Pueblo, and Apache Indians dominated a massive swath of land in the area of present-day Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, New Mexico, and Arizona.  The Indians called it Comancheria — it … Continue reading →

Posted in American Frontier, American Indians, Comanche, History, Indian Territory, Indian War, Texas | 1 Comment

The Case of Tom Horn

Posted on November 21, 2022 by Mustang

Background Old West history books are filled with stories about large cattle ranches, the cattlemen that ran them, the long and dangerous trail drives that took months to complete, and the conflicts between cattle barons and small farmers and ranchers.  … Continue reading →

Posted in American Frontier, American Indians, American Military, American Southwest, Apache Indians, Arizona Territory, Cheyenne, Colorado, Corruption, Gunfights and such, History, Indian Territory, Indian War, Montana, Nevada, Northwest Territory, Oklahoma, Outlaws, Pioneers, Politicians, Range War, Texas, Utah, Wyoming | 4 Comments