Category Archives: Uncategorized

Civil War Christmas

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

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Master Spy

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

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The Sioux — Part IV

The Great Sioux War On-going Indian raids and battles on the northern plain region of the United States, which lasted from 1850-90, are collectively known as the Sioux Wars.  These generally refer to the Dakota War of 1862, Red Cloud’s … Continue reading

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The Sioux — Part III

In 1865, Major General Grenville M. Dodge ordered the Powder River Expedition against the Lakota aligned tribes.  Dodge sent three columns into the Powder River country — but in the final analysis, the expedition did little more than increase the … Continue reading

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The Sioux — Part II

The Lakota Sioux Before 1650, the Lakota Sioux lived east of the Red River and lived on the fringes of the prairies in the southern part of present-day Minnesota.  By 1700, they had migrated to the eastern Dakotas.  They were … Continue reading

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The Sutton-Taylor Feud

Introduction People typically speak of culture as a peculiar group within the framework of human populations.  We often hear such terms as “French Culture,” and occasionally applied to much larger areas, such as “Western Culture.” Indeed, the French are unique … Continue reading

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The Indian Killer

The story of Lewis Wetzel, Frontiersman Long before the arrival of Europeans to America’s shores, native cultures moved freely through the Appalachian Mountain chain.  All we know about this region is what the historic record tells us.  William Penn, for … Continue reading

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The Oklahoma Badlands

J. Frank Dobie (1888-1964) was quite a character.  We remember him as an American folklorist, a scholar, and a writer.  He was a liberal who spoke critically about Texas State politics and mechanization, which he believed harmed the American spirit.  … Continue reading

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The U.S./Mexican Border

As U.S. law enforcement continues its struggle against Mexican smugglers and murderers, (popularly referred to as the drug cartels), it may be useful to note that this struggle has been going on since around the mid-1800s.  If practice makes perfect, … Continue reading

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Murderous Rage

The Confederacy was already dead by early April 1865.  With Robert E. Lee’s defeat at Sailor’s Creek, fighting in the Eastern Theater came to an end.  Fighting did continue in Alabama with Nathan Bedford Forrest struggling against James Wilson’s cavalry, … Continue reading

Posted in CIVIL WAR, HISTORY, LONE STAR, Uncategorized | 2 Comments