Wild West Research

The Most Fun You Can Have Doing Western Historical Research

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Hi! Nancy Fraser here! I’m so pleased to return to Petticoats & Pistols for another visit. Just last week, I uploaded my final book for 2025 and now I’m going to take a much needed few week’s off before I begin again working on 2026. Hard to believe we’ve almost reached another year-end, isn’t it?

Today, though, I want to talk about western research. There is a definite skill required to organize the information needed to accurately portray the wild west in the 1800s. So much we take for granted now, or assume is correct, wasn’t even heard of in the 1880s or before.

My favorite searches revolve around the following:

• When did my story’s location ceased to become a territory and attain statehood?
• When did my location first get a railroad? Iceboxes? Dare I say it… electricity?
• How far is my fictitious location from a larger city? (Of course that’s my decision, but I like to find a similar real location and pretend it’s my fake town for distance purposes.)
• What was the population of the territory in 1885?

All of the above are fun and often necessary searches. By far my favorites are these:

• What’s the old west slang word for “a handsome man”? (Answer: Belvidere)
• How would my crusty character say, “the end” or “closed”? (Answer: Eventuate)

I keep an ongoing list of western slang that I’ve sorted three ways: alphabetically, by subject, and by first-used date. Yes, I sometimes over-organize. At the moment, my list is over 150 words long.

I thought it might be fun to share thirty of my favorites in a Word Search. Go ahead and give it a try. Feel free to share your results in the comments below.


OLD WEST SLANG WORD SEARCH

Clothing styles are another fun search. The array of references out there is sometimes overwhelming (and not always accurate). Given I write mostly small-town settings with everyday characters, it’s hard to go wrong with a simple skirt and plain blouse, or a calico dress. Trousers (not jeans) for the men and a gray or off-white shirt. Jeans (specifically Levis) are okay if we’re into the mid to late 1870s. Even though plaid/flannel was created by the Welsh in the 17th century, the fabric didn’t become popular in the western U.S. until the late 19th century.

Because I also create a lot of my own covers, as well as covers for several multi-author series books, one of my biggest frustrations is finding the perfect outfit, but realizing the model is wearing far too much makeup for the time period. I’ve become an expert in removing telltale signs of red lipstick and eyeliner. Still, making that cover perfect is all part of what I consider research.

In this final quarter of the year, I’ve released two sweet, historical romances. Both books required extensive research, and both include a few of those colorful slang words or phrases. (What’s a long list if you don’t use it?”)

I’d love to give you a peek at both of my accomplished and feisty heroines, and the men who fall in love with them.

Addie: Mackinac Bride (National Park Brides Series)

Other than two years of college in Big Rapids, Adelaide (Addie) MacDonald has spent her entire life on Mackinac Island in northern Michigan. Just a child when President Grant designated Mackinac as a National Park in 1875, she and her family were at the dedication.

In the years since, many have left the island for bigger and better things, yet Addie stayed behind as one of the few civilian employees. It’s been her dream to someday leave the island and finish her degree in agriculture and one day own her own farm.

When Jonathan (Jon) Ferris first met Addie, she was only twelve, he was eighteen, and on his way to college. After graduation, his plan was to follow in his father’s footsteps and join the military. Now, ten years later, he’s returning to Mackinac to take over command of the fort and the park. When he first sees Addie again, he can’t believe his eyes. Gone are the freckles and bright red ponytail. In their place is a beautiful and confident young woman.

Will returning to the park be the permanence he wants for his career and for his life? Will verbally sparring with the opinionated Addie lead to something infinitely more interesting? More importantly, will Addie find a way to fulfil her dreams while keeping those she loves close?

You can find Addie and Jon’s story on #KindleUnlimited.



Dumplings by Daria (Old Timey Holiday Kitchen Series)

Doctor Daria Keller arrives in Whistler Falls Montana at the height of their first winter storm. With barely enough time to drop off her luggage, she finds herself whisked off to the clinic to help set broken arms and treat frostbite.

When Rancher Finn MacIsaac arrives at the clinic to claim his injured son, he mistakes Daria for a nurse and dismisses her instructions out of hand, preferring to wait for the doctor. When she informs him that she is a doctor, he still insists on waiting until he can speak to a man. Pegging him as a chauvinist, Daria rushes off to help other patients.

It’s inevitable that they’ll cross paths, especially when Daria and Finn’s housekeeper become fast friends. Daria settles into her new position as head of the town’s clinic and small hospital and earns the respect of all those around her. The only person she’s not become friends with is Finn.
As winter takes a firm hold on the area, Daria must make a house call north of town. A buggy accident causes her and Finn to be trapped in snowbound cabin with only their wits and Finn’s skill with an axe to keep them warm. They do their best to avoid one another until they realize they’re both hiding hurt from their past. Over a tin of beans, they finally open up and share their secrets.

Can two people who started off at odds make up for lost time? Or are they destined to be nothing more than friends?

Finn and Daria’s romance is also available on #KindleUnlimited.


With the holidays fast approaching, I’d love to know your go-to holiday side dish or your family’s favorite activity. I’m also giving away one eBook copy of each of my featured books. Just comment below for your chance to win.

Until next time, I wish you happiness, good health, time to read, and a joyous holiday season!

Nancy

NANCY FRASER is a bestselling and award-winning author who can’t seem to decide which romance genre suits her best. So, she writes them all.

Her preferred genres are sweet western historical and sweet small-town contemporary. However, she has been known to dabble in the most unusual settings.

 

When not writing (which is almost never), Nancy dotes on her five wonderful grandchildren and looks forward to traveling and reading when time permits. Nancy lives in Atlantic Canada where she enjoys the relaxed pace and colorful people.

 

You can follow Nancy here:

 

Amazon Author Page            

Bookbub

Bluesky Social

Goodreads

Justice on the Frontier

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Seems like each state has a storied law enforcement agency. Here we have the Texas Rangers and in Arizona it’s the Arizona Rangers. In early Montana Territory it was a group called the Vigilantes. I recently ran across an interesting story about the Montana Vigilantes that was formed December 23, 1863.

But before you judge, here’s a glimpse of what decent people faced in 1863. Because there was no one to enforce the law, outlaws, robbers and murderers flocked to Montana Territory in droves. What courts that existed had very limited power, especially in remote mining camps. Mostly justice (if any could be had) came about through what was called miners’ courts and was weak and ineffective, unable to enforce the rulings. Basically, there was little law to be had in these rich gold fields. Gold being the accepted form of currency at the time. But transporting it was a huge risk and over time a million dollars in gold was stolen. Gangs, the most brutal of which was the Plummer Gang, was run by the Bannock, Montana sheriff, Henry Plummer. They preyed on all who traveled the roads and over a hundred travelers were murdered in the fall of 1863 alone. Something had to be done.

A group of men from Montana’s major cities held a clandestine meeting in John Lott’s store in Virginia City and formed this secret organization. In two years’ time, their members numbered over two thousand men. The Vigilantes’ main goal was to make the territory safe for families and rid it of crime. To that end, they dispensed harsh justice to undesirables. The organization spread across Montana and into parts of Idaho.

In the first two months of 1864, they hung 24 men. That was the beginning. It seemed quite a deterrent to criminals. There was no safe haven other than the Black Hills of South Dakota where most went.

THE WARNING

Seems the Vigilantes would paint the numbers 3-7-77 on homes, fences, tents and other things as a threat. If the person didn’t leave, they dealt with them violently and swiftly. No one ever got a second threat.

The meaning of the numbers is a mystery. Some say they represented the exact time period that the Vigilantes gave their targets to get out of town – 3 hours, 7 minutes, and 77 seconds. Another interpretation is that the numbers were a grave’s dimensions: 3 feet, by 7 feet, by 77 inches.

Still another school of thought is that it was a code used by the Freemasons.

Whatever the numbers represented, they struck terror in a man’s heart, and he quickly heeded the warning or risked death. These numbers became a potent symbol of law and order. The Montana Highway Patrol still uses the numbers today. The patch on each lawman’s shoulder sports 3-7-77. The department also paints it on the side panel of each patrol car.

To the lawmen of today it represents “Serve and Protect.”

While there’s no justification at all for vigilantes now in the 21st century, neither could a man stand by and let lawless gangs take over without doing something. There has to be law and order so people can thrive. These men simply wanted a safe place for their wives and children and keep rustlers from stealing their cattle.

Montana became the 41st state to be admitted to the union on November 8, 1889. The Montana Vigilantes disbanded around 1870 when the Stockman’s Association was formed.

Do you like a good mystery? While the true meaning of the numbers 3-7-77 has gotten lost, what is your best guess? Is it referencing a grave dimensions, referring to the time they allowed to leave the territory, or something else? I’m going to give two commenters an ebook copy of Love Comes to Christmas so join the chat.

AMAZON

Someone wants Gillian Everly to believe her beloved Christmas shop, the dream she built from nothing, is haunted. Strange events unsettle her, but she refuses to believe in ghosts. With her Christmas Eve piano performance approaching, she can’t afford distractions.

Enter Brett Love, a rugged local rancher who’s as intrigued by Gillian as he is determined to protect her. When he lends her one of his dogs for safety, it seems like the perfect fix, until the nightmare turns real.

A violent confrontation leaves Gillian’s hand maimed, her music performance in jeopardy, and Brett questioning the solitary life he’s always known. This Christmas, it will take more than faith to keep their dreams, and hearts, alive.

America Newton – Successful Western Businesswoman and a Giveaway!

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This week, we’re so happy to welcome Tina Dee! She’s been here many times and her posts are always so interesting. Plus, we love her to death. 

In 1869, gold was discovered by an African American rancher and former slave, Fred Coleman in a creek on his property, which started Julian, California’s gold rush. The town became a tent city, practically overnight, with men and families moving in to stake their claims and strike it rich—or make money off those who hoped to. Quickly, this small gold mining town, located in the Cuyamaca mountains, rivaled the city of San Diego in number of residents. It also boasted up to eleven saloons, and only one small jail house featuring two small cells in the middle of town, no office, just the two cells, no frills.

During this rough and rowdy time, one woman, in particular, stood out. Her name was America Newton (1835 – 1917). An African American pioneer, she was one of the earliest Africa American settlers in the area and helped to found the former mining town of Julian. Formerly from Kansas, where she worked for James Cole, America came to California in 1872 with her daughter and ran a laundry service for miners and residents of Julian, though she could neither read nor write.

America, a former slave, operated her laundry business servicing Julian’s population during its gold rush days. She became of the first African American woman to operate a business in the area.

Water for the laundry was obtained by carrying buckets of water from a nearby creek. She heated her irons by the fireplace, which she kept burning by chopping and carrying her own wood. James Cole supplied her with a horse and buggy, which she drove around town to deliver the clean clothes to residents and gold miners. It’s said that she was right hospitable to those who picked up their laundry from her cabin, serving them a drink and a bit of local gossip, no extra charge. Folks enjoyed her friendly and talkative nature.

The Cole family helped America file to own a homestead of 80 acres outside of Julian. They also built her a cabin next to their home. America lived in Julian for 50 years. It’s said that she had a hearing problem and used an ear trumpet to hear.

She had moved to a small, wild, western gold mining town in the mountains, so very far from where she had gained her freedom. As a former slave, widow, and single mother—and with a little help from her friends—she rose to become an entrepreneur in a time when being a woman, and one with black skin, made it hard to just exist. But not only had she existed, she thrived in the Wild West and was successful in her business venture. And, she made people feel good, not just in the fresh, clean clothes they wore, but because she could make them laugh while living a tough life under harsh conditions.

I think about America Newton often. She has the gumption a lot of my heroines are made of.

Just for fun: Please share about someone who has inspired you (family member, friend, or someone from your life, or from history). A winner will be chosen by one of the Petticoats & Pistols Fillies to receive a pretty coffee tumbler with lid (approximately $20 value).

Thank you all for joining me today! It’s always a treat to spend time with Petticoats & Pistols readers. I’ve made two stories free today and tomorrow. One from each of my pen names, each with a heroine I believe has that same gumption America Newton had:  

Kaitlene Dee: Falling for Tallulah

Tina Dee: Keeper of my Heart

Kaitlene Dee, aka Tina Dee, spends time daydreaming about western romances with spunky heroines who insist on having their own stories written, and the swoony cowboys who love them. She often rescues stray dogs and can’t wait to give a forever home to her next dog or two…or five. Kaitlene enjoys gardening, traveling, writing, watercolor painting, and hanging out with reader friends in her Facebook readers group or with her newsletter readers. She’s an avid coffee drinker—and don’t even think about getting between her and a bear claw pastry. Follow her for updates on upcoming releases on Amazon or for many upcoming freebies, giveaways, and fun on her newsletter, here: Join Kaitlene & Tina Dee’s Newsletter

10 Facts About Stage Coach Travel or Why I’m OK With the Middle Seat

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Read on for a Give Away!

I’m traveling today and as usual I have the middle seat on the plane. Because I do not claim both armrests, I spend most of the flight feeling like my elbows have been glued to my ribs. It’s not particularly comfortable, but after researching stage coach travel, I’ve decided that I’m in no position to complain.

Here are 10 facts about travel in a Concord Stage Coach, the most common coach used in the west during the late 1800s:

1.  The interior of a stage coach was very small, measuring about 4 feet wide, with a ceiling height of about 4 ½ feet. Each passenger had about 15 inches of leg room.

2. A stage coach held up to nine passengers but their knees and legs had to be entwined between one another.

3. Additional passengers could ride on the roof with the luggage. Some luggage was stored in the boot at the back of the stage coach.

4. The interior had three benches. The center bench had no backrest and the people riding there had leather straps to hold for support.

5. The passengers were protected from the elements by leather curtains, that may or may not do their job.

6. The seats were padded but could still be very hard.

7. The average pace of a stage coach was 5 miles per hour. An average person can walk 3-4 miles an hour.

8. A stage coach could travel up to 70 miles a day, depending on road conditions and terrain.

9. If a stage had to go up a steep hill, the passengers might have to walk.

10. If the stage got stuck, the passengers would push and help dig it out.

Doesn’t that put the middle seat into perspective?

To qualify for the giveaway, a $10 Amazon gift card, tell me your favorite way to travel and one reason it can be inconvenient. 

Please Note: I may not be able to answer comments today due to travel…but at least I’m not pushing a stage coach up a hill. 🙂 Winner announced on Saturday.

 

Old Bull’s Heavenly Visitor & Give-away

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Howdy!

Welcome to another tantalizing Tuesday!  Hope y’all are doing well today.  And I have a special story for you today.  A true story — one I ran across in doing research for the story I’m currently working on.  This is from the book, BEAR CHIEF’S WAR SHIRT by James Willard Schultz, who is writing about his own true experience.

In June of 1877, Schultz’s mother had given him permission to go out west into what was then called Indian Territory on a buffalo hunt — he was to return that same year where he would attend a military academy, but he didn’t return until 1880 and even then, he was there for only 3 months before returning to Indian Country.  Indeed, James Schultz stayed with the Blackfeet and married into the tribe and became a white Blackfeet Indian.  There is a book he has written entitled MY LIFE AS AN INDIAN, and oh my, what a wonderful book it is — filled with thrilling stories.

This story is about one of Schultz’s adventures as a warrior going with a war party to retrieve Bear Chief’s War Shirt.  On the way to determining what tribe might have stolen the shirt and a way to retrieve it, he had many adventures.  The story I’m about to tell you he declares in his book is true. and is one he saw with his own eyes.

First let me tell you a little about a Blackfeet war party.  There was a man who led the party and it was his responsibility to sleep and live (to some degree) apart from the others so he could pray for a vision that would tell him what lay ahead of the war party.  Old Bull was part of this war party –he was a “Bringer of Plenty” — a man who called the buffalo to a cliff and over it so the tribe would have enough food to get through the cold winters of Montana.  He had what the Indians called much medicine.

Schultz describes Old Bull as a man about forty winters (years) in age.  Here is what Schultz writes about Old Bull:

“…I liked Old Bull best [of the war party}; in fact, I revered him.  He was a man of about forty winters — tall and well muscled, with long hair, keen eyes, and a pleasant face; calm, dignified, and honest; moreover, he was a sacred pipe man, a medicine man, as the whites say.  Old Bull was possessor of the powerful Eagle Head pipe, master of its long ritual of sacred prayers and songs.”

Old Bull was a man whom the war party needed to have a vision so as to alert the war party as to what they might face and it if would be successful.  But, so far, he had not been able to have a vision.

Old Bull stated that oftentimes he had to go someplace alone so that his spiritual helper would come.  He had told Schultz that often his spiritual helper would come to others as Old Bull prayed to their God, the Creator.  His spiritual helper would then tell the others gathered there the answers to what Old Bull was asking.  And so, not having a vision to help the war party, Old Bull went into a hollow tree and there began to pray.

And, I will quote from the book:

Bear chief was praying — “He had no more than spoken these words when his body stiffened, his face becoming tense and his eye balls rolling upwards in his head.  He leaned back against the inside of the tree.  Bear Chief and I were standing close to the tree when this happened….  Before us a white shadow was forming starting up from the ground and spinning up like a whirlwind, building higher and higher until it reached the height of Bear Chief.  Then the fluorescent white cloud began taking a man’s shape, the ears, nose, mouth, eyes, and the rest of the face forming first, then the body, arms, and legs. The figure took on such details as moccasins, a full head dress to the ground, necklaces, and some face coloring.  As I stood there, it seemed as though I could look through the Heavenly Visitor as one would look through a light colored window pane.

“The Visitor spoke in Blackfeet.  ‘Bear Chief, I am your helper.  I have been helping you all your life.  I have helped you in battles, I guide you and give you good thought.  My name is Gray Eagle.

“‘There is trouble for you ahead.  How much trouble will depend on how careful you are in your movements.  Do not travel this night.  You all will go to the Sand Hills someday, but those who are needed here now will stay for a while; those who are needed over there to help do the work of the Above Ones will go earlier.  Bear Chief, you will be rewarded.’  and with that the almost transparent visitor vanished into the sky in a streak of light.

“As Old Bull awakened from his trance, I asked him if he remembered anything that had gone on.  Said he, ‘I remember only that I slept.  What happened?’ I told him about the ghostly visitor and of his message.

“Old Bull continued, “Ever since I was a young man, there have been times over which I have had little control, when I have been seized by the Above Ones and when, as afterward related to me by my friends, Spirit people have built up and have been seen and heard by all present.  I would much rather have a vision, where I get the message direct, but when day after day has passed and I have received no message, often if I pray in an enclosure, as I did here, I am seized, and Spirit people come forth.”

The war party went on to be successful in regaining the war shirt.  Interestingly, Schultz writes, “After passing through several hands [the war shirt], the shirt came to the collection of Indian Americana at the Denver Art Museum.  No myth, this famed Indian relic is now on display for visitors to marvel at for its color, design, and decoration.”

Well, I hope you enjoyed this story.

Now onto other news:  My latest release, SHE BELONGS IN MY WORLD, is on sale starting today for $.99.  Don’t miss this chance.  Pick up your copy today.

Also, I will be giving away a mass market paperback of the book, Soaring Eagle’s Embrace, to one lucky blogger.  So come on in and leave your thoughts on this blog.  I love hearing from you.

SHE BELONGS IN MY WORLD:  https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FBPKBXBZ?tag=pettpist-20

 

Beaver Dick Leigh, two giveaways, and our guest blogger Charlene Raddon!

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The pack train moved slowly through the remaining snowdrifts of late spring in the Tetons, heading for the mountain valley ahead. The buckskin horses were led by a tall-for-his-time trapper with thick red hair and beard, whom the Shoshone called Ingapumba (redhead), but more often he was known to his neighbors as “Beaver Dick” or “Uncle Dick.”

Trapper, hunting guide, ferryman, Mexican War veteran, and all-around mountain man, Richard ‘Beaver Dick’ Leigh, lived a long life in and around the Teton Mountains. Following behind were his Shoshone wife, Jenny, and his children riding burros. They were leading pack horses loaded with supplies for a long season of camping, hunting, and trapping in the high valley known even then as Jackson’s Hole.

In his 68 years, Beaver Dick Leigh fought in the Mexican War, guided government expeditions through the Yellowstone region, led hunting parties from the East—and enjoyed life among the Shoshone and Bannock tribes. With his red hair, blue eyes, and freckles, he stood out from most of those around him, but despite his rough life, he was an inveterate reader of books, magazines, and newspapers. He kept a diary during his time in the mountains.

Richard Leigh was born in Manchester, Lancashire, England, in 1831, emigrating to America at age 7 with his sister, Martha. Eventually they moved on to Mount Hope, Pa. From there, he left his sister and joined the Hudson Bay Company, which sent him to the Northwest, where his education as a trapper began. He never looked back, nor saw his sister again, but stayed in touch, however, as he later referred to his brother-in-law, Henry Wall.

Beaver Dick joined the U.S. Army toward the end of the Mexican-American War (1846-48), in which he served under Lt. Col. Henry Wilson.

Following his discharge, he travelled to the Salt Lake Valley, where he resumed his trade as an independent trapper. Moving north into what would become Idaho Territory, he chose the Snake River Valley for his homesite. This initially meant long pack trips south for several years to sell his furs in Utah Territory.

On one of these trips to Corrine, in 1862, near the northeast shore of the Great Salt Lake, he camped near a Bannock couple—a man known as Bannock John to the whites, and his wife, Tadpole, a sister of the local Shoshone chief, Taghee. Tadpole was amid a difficult labor and Dick assisted the father in delivering the baby.

The new arrival was named Susan Tadpole. Her parents promised her to Dick to be his wife when she reached maturity, no doubt a kind gesture of gratitude that had little expectation of coming to fruition, since he was 31 at the time.

Before he returned to his base camp at the confluence of the Snake and Teton rivers on the west side of the Tetons, Dick Leigh married a 16-year-old Eastern Shoshone girl from Chief Washakie’s band in 1863. Dick called her Jenny. He often told his friends and wrote in his diary about her many good traits. Five children arrived in the following years. Dick, Jr., 1864, Anne Jane, 1866, John, 1868, William, 1870, and Elizabeth in 1873.

 

Dick’s homestead on the west side of the Tetons continued to expand with additions of milk cows and the buckskin horses he was fond of. When it was time to go on the annual hunting trips over the mountains, Dick took the entire family along. Leigh’s diaries give an in-depth picture of the challenges they faced on the frontier. Whether setting his trap lines, hunting with his son Dick, Jr., leading hunting parties or assisting any of the increasing number of new settlers arriving in the Snake River valley, Beaver Dick Leigh was a busy and well-respected member of the community.

He built a ferry at the Eagle Nest Ford on the Henry’s Fork of the Snake, free for anyone to use. He acted as liaison between the tribes and authorities at the new Fort Hall Reservation, advising them about Indian movements on and off the reservation.

In the winter of 1876, an Indian woman seeking food visited the Leighs. They did not know she had smallpox. All of the Leigh family and another hunter caught the disease. Between Christmas Eve and Dec. 28, all of Beaver Dick’s family died; he and the hunter barely survived.

In 1879, Dick Leigh, age 48, married 16-year-old Susan Tadpole, who had been promised to him at birth. The couple had three children: Emma, 1881; William, 1886; and Rose, 1891.

While camped near Two Ocean Creek on the Continental Divide in the fall of 1891, they were visited by Theodore Roosevelt and his hunting party. Beaver Dick and Teddy conversed for a spell, sharing stories and hunting tales.

Dick continued to guide hunting parties as long as his health permitted. Eventually, he had to turn over this business to his son William. He also kept in touch with the many friends he had made over the years, writing letters to a lengthy list of correspondents.

Beaver Dick Leigh died March 29, 1899, age 68, in the company of family and friends. He is buried beside his family on a high terrace overlooking his ranch near Rexburg, Idaho. His memory and legacy are well preserved in his letters and diaries, as well as the namesake features in the Jackson Hole valley he loved.

Two winners will be chosen for a prize: one for a $5 Amazon gift card and one an ebook from my collection. To enter, all you have to do is tell me something you found interesting about Beaver Dick Leigh’s story. 

The Old West Time-Life Books

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When I was a child of about 12-years-old, my mother subscribed to a then popular historical, science, and cultural book club put out by Time-Life Magazines. There were series such as Voyage Through the Universe and Lost Civilizations. But the one we owned was by far one of the most popular: The Old West.

The books were beautiful constructed and truly collectable. Bound in imitation leather and tooled to resemble saddles or belts, replica authentic artwork adorned the covers. The books – 26 in all – were filled with old photographs, newspaper clippings, letters, drawings, painting, anecdotes, and stories. These truly beautiful books brought history to life for me and helped fueled my love of all things Western.

When my own children were young, my mother gifted me with the books, and I proudly displayed them for years in my living room. When I began writing western historical romances, I used the books for research and “borrowed” many story ideas and plot elements from real life incidents. It’s true what they say about true life being better than fiction. Some of my favorite books were, of course, The Cowboys, The Forty-Niners and The Miners (several of my western historicals take place in mining communities), The Spanish West (because I live in Arizona), The Canadians (my father’s family originally came over from France and settled in northeastern Canada and New England), and The Women – I still marvel at their courage and determination.

My favorite book of all, perhaps, is The Pioneers. From the time I was a very little girl, my mother and grandmother would tell me stories of my maternal family, who came over on the Mayflower. They would often speak about John Bidwell, a relative from New York who, as a young man, was lured by the call of the West in the days when people were crossing the country in droves. According to the stories, John Bidwell did well for himself in California, becoming a prominent and wealthy landowner who eventually served in the California Senate and House of Representative. All this when he arrived with but a few dollars in his pocket. Well, the stories my mother and grandmother told were true. John Bidwell appears in The Pioneers, and quite a few pages are dedicated to him and his contribution.

 

I can’t say I read all the books or even one of them from cover to cover. There was just too much information. But I’ve read something from every one of the books and studied at the pictures. Sadly, some years ago, I lost the books through a series of unforeseen events. These things happen. But I often thought about the books and wished I still had them. Well, thanks to the powers of Ebay and $99, I now do. I was recently able to buy a complete set of the books in pristine condition, and they are once again being proudly displayed on my living room bookcase. And while not the books my late mother gave me, they nonetheless warm my heart when I look at them and run my fingers over the imitation tooled leather covers ?

Goldie Griffith, One of a Kind

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I love colorful women who push boundaries and Goldie Griffith was just such a woman. Born in Illinois in 1893, she perhaps had a head start in the boundary pushing game, her father being a medicine showman and her mother an entertainer.

After leaving home, Goldie joined Blanche Whitney’s Athletic Show, comprised of women wrestlers, boxers and gymnast. Goldie performed as a boxer and a wrestler. Her next stint in the entertainment involved Buffalo Bill Cody, whose Wild West Show she joined as a lady bronc rider. Goldie didn’t know how to ride a horse when she was hired, but she quickly learned.

In 1913, Goldie married Joseph Harry Sterling in a surprise ceremony during a Wild West Show performance in Madison Square Gardens. Buffalo Bill gave the bride away in front of an audience of 8,000 people. She wore a bright red western outfit that is now on display at the History Colorado Center in Denver.

Unfortunately the marriage did not work out. Goldie and Harry had one child before she discovered that her husband was accused of murder in Texas and also had another wife. Goldie did not take the new well. She opened fire on him, in public, with her shotgun. She didn’t hit him but was arrested. Goldie tried marriage again, but this union ended more quietly with a simple divorce.

Goldie’s other accomplishments included being the first female applicant to the San Francisco Police Department; stunt riding in early western films, training dogs for World War II, ranching and owning successful restaurants. Goldie Griffith died in 1976 after a very full life  doing pretty much whatever struck her fancy.  What a gal!

Writing the Historical Western with Nancy Fraser-and a giveaway!

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One of the most difficult tasks an author of historical western romance has is shutting down their modern brain and encompassing the hardships and developments of the past. When the idea for this post first came to me, I was in the middle of finishing my current work-in-progress. So, I tapped a few friends for their thoughts on the content.

Here are the top five historical issues most writers struggle with:

  1. Language. Dang gum it. It’s not easy setting aside everyday words that might not have been used in 1888. I can’t count on both hands the number of times I/we have been called on a word or phrase we used. My favorite comment is… “that word wasn’t recognized in the dictionary until 1902.” As politely as possible, we explain that while it wasn’t “recognized” it had to have been used at least for a decade or two before it’s even considered worthy of the dictionary. Inclusion is quicker now but, back in the late 1800s/early 1900s, it often took 10-15 years, or notoriety, to achieve recognition. Realizing how foreign some of the old words are, one of my favorite things to do is put together word games matching the old-fashioned saying to the meaning. I’ve used the games many times during author/reader parties. One of my favorite resources is this site: https://www.legendsofamerica.com/we-slang/

  1. Transportation. Readers wouldn’t believe the number of times we check train routes, connecting transportation, and schedules. While fleeing her cheating fiancé, my heroine can get from Philadelphia to Saint Louis to Denver on the same route. Yet, Bozeman, MT is out of the question without one stagecoach ride, followed by a northern-routed train. It’s often a well-woven jigsaw puzzle to get your characters from Point A to Point B. My saved historical research sites are filled with links to transportation schedules. One of the most interesting facts about train travel in the late 1800s is that on November 18, 1883, at exactly, American and Canadian railroads begin using four continental time zones to end the confusion of dealing with thousands of local times. The bold move was emblematic of the power shared by the railroad companies.

 

  1. Plumbing. I was surprised how of the other authors hated writing about plumbing. It was definitely in my top five. In my Land Run book, Lily’s Luck (2022), I made a big deal of my heroine’s particulars for her outdoor privy. Indoor plumbing, even crudely done, was out of the question for a young couple building their home on newly claimed land. However, my feisty heroine wasn’t going to be satisfied with a hole in ground. For the most part, I stick to time periods where I can give my characters indoor plumbing, with boilers fired by wood to heat their bathwater. Only as they travel across the land in wagon trains, or on land runs, must they avail themselves of outdoor facilities.

  1. Communication. Written communication is tricky. How long can it take for the mail-order bride letters to get from Gold Rush California back to proper Boston as our miner hero searches for a bride? As part of a multi-author series based on heroines who quilt, I’ve written books for three straight years, and set all three in the same town in Oregon. My heroine’s father is the town’s postmaster, so I did my due diligence on when and how their postal services came to be. Trickier even than the intricacy of the mail is the cost of sending a telegram… assuming the remote western town even has the necessary capability. At one point the cost was as high as two-bits a word. Needless to say, telegrams were only used in the most important of situations. The job of a telegraph operator was so vital there were schools and even so-named colleges to teach the skill of operating the equipment.

 

  1. Faith. Not as complex as some of the other issues, incorporating one’s faith, and the faith of their characters, into a story can be challenging depending on when and where your story is set. While the majority of inspirational historical romances are Christian based, there is a fine line to acknowledge and celebrate the inclusion of all religions. Most authors, while acknowledging other beliefs, will center their book and characters solely on what they know and practice rather than run the risk of insulting readers of other religions/faith systems.

 

While these aren’t the only challenges, they made the most Top 5 lists of the ten or so authors I’d queried.

 

Writing, for me at least, is a joy. Creating strong, yet vulnerable, characters challenges both my emotions and my skill. It keeps my senior brain active. I admit, I laugh (a little) when I see all these advertisements for games (like mahjong) and spelling/word association touted to help ward of loss of memory and strengthen brainpower. You want to strengthen brainpower? Try researching and writing a book. It doesn’t have to be a romance, but putting thoughts to paper can be cathartic in a way that beats Wordle hands down.

In my April 3rd release, The Bride Who Keeps Running Away, I utilized a number of my train schedules, a couple of stage routes, and both mail and telegraph communications to get my heroine from Philadelphia to the small town of Union Flat, Washington Territory. You can bet, my three-time runaway bride led the Pinkerton detective hero on a merry chase.

Here’s a bit about the book:

Lenora (Leni) Pennington really hopes her third attempt at getting married will be different.

First betrothed at the age of sixteen to a man twice her age, she ran away the night before her arranged marriage and sought refuge with her maternal grandmother. Her second engagement wasn’t any better. Believing her intended chose her as his future wife on his own, she was shocked when she overheard her father and her fiancé talking about the value of their business merger, so she went on the run again.

Now, just hours short of walking down the aisle to marry her mail-order husband, a young man she admires, Leni discovers her groom in a compromising position with her best friend. Humiliated, she’s out the door and miles away before anyone realizes she’s gone. This time, however, Leni’s father is not willing to put up with what he considers spoiled and childish behavior. At the urging of his solicitor, he hires a Pinkerton’s detective to track his daughter down and bring her home.

Jackson (Jake) Taylor has been working for the Pinkerton Agency for the past six years. His area of expertise is private protection, be it a person or a train car filled with gold and cash. When he’s tasked with finding a runaway heiress, he’s tempted to refuse the assignment.  His boss convinces him it’ll be a nice break from being shot at from time to time. After all, how difficult can it be to track down a spoiled young woman and deliver her back to her doting father?

Given he’s matching wits with an expert at running away, Miss Lenora Pennington might be more than he bargained for. In more ways than one.

You can find Leni and Jake’s adventure here: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DQP2ZJHW?tag=pettpist-20

As always, it’s been fun visiting today. I hope to come back again soon. In the meantime, here’s some information about me, along with my social media links.

What are some things you’ve read in historical romance that presented real challenges to the characters? Nancy will give away two ebook copies of The Bride Who Keeps Running Away to be drawn from those who comment.

NANCY FRASER is a bestselling and award-winning author who can’t seem to decide which romance genre suits her best. So, she writes them all. Her preferred genres are sweet western historical and sweet small-town contemporary. However, she has been known to dabble in the most unusual settings. When not writing (which is almost never), Nancy dotes on her five wonderful grandchildren and looks forward to traveling and reading when time permits. Nancy lives in Atlantic Canada where she enjoys the relaxed pace and colorful people.

Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/~/e/B09FTH655Z?tag=pettpist-20

Bookbub: http://bookbub.com/profile/nancy-fraser

Bluesky Social: https://bsky.app/profile/nancywritessweet.bsky.social

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7206382.Nancy_Fraser

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Legends of Gold–and a giveaway

by

In my current series

Golden State Treasure

next up is

Legends of Gold

Here’s the thing about writing books…sometimes the research for them is JUST SO INTERESTING!

I started the series thinking of lost treasure, or a lost mine, in the Rocky Mountains, similar to The Lost Dutchmen’s Mine.

The Lost Dutchman’s mine…the story goes a man comes stumbling out of the mountains in Arizona with gold in his saddlebags. He was dying (I can’t remember exactly the story and rather than look it up I’ll just do my best to repeat it…which is how all wild tales of lost gold go, so why not continue that tradition?)

He ranted and raved about his gold mine, then died.

Thus began a wild search for this gold mine, using the man’s location, the nearby mountains and the man’s ravings as clues. No gold mine was ever found. But there was the gold in his saddlebags so it HAD to be true, right?

It’s said the west was full of such stories so I thought why not write my own?

A garbled journal with dubious clues. An obsessed man who ruined his family by abandoning them to search. Two of his three children are caught by thrill of this treasure hunt.

And my first book, Whispers of Fortune, begins with that third child, an older brother, bitter about his father’s abandonment, and determined to save his brothers from the same obsession, catches up with his treasure mad little brothers. In the course of book #1, we find out that there is SOMETHING out there. The journal, vague and hard to decipher, is definitely a guide to something. Now, finally, mainly because he can’t control his brothers, the older brother agrees to join in the hunt.

The thing about the research is, it starts to turn up very cool true historical facts that can weave their way into my book and there was some really interesting things going on historically at this time and in this place. Or before…which explains the gold.

This is Josh and Tilda’s story. Tilda, who came west searching for the same boys the older brother was, because they lied their way onto an orphan train SHE was in charge of, (they weren’t orphans for heaven’s sake) then ran away from the train, leaving her in a bad position with the people who sent her with the orphans…we can’t just LOSE children, Tilda.

So here she is and she rediscovers knowledge she has about old California and the history of Conquistadors that explored the California coast, and why is it so fascinating to her? And did Captain Cabrilla really come inland? And why is her old boss at the orphanage in New York City so insistent she comes back, when she’d been on the verge of firing her? And did–

Well you get it. So much stuff to read about and research and LOVE that it’s a wonder I can get a book written. And unexpected discoveries about times and places are their own kind of treasure!

Leave a comment to get your name in a drawing for a $25 Amazon gift card.

Legends of Gold

Book #2 of Gold State Treasure

After years of solitude, Tilda Muirhead’s life takes an unexpected twist when she takes a position teaching at the orphanage on Two Harts Ranch following her cross-country pursuit of two brothers obsessed with a treasure map left by their adventurous grandfather. Tilda is now tasked with educating the mischievous brothers, who are bent on remaining out west until they find the hoped-for treasure. Then a man named Ben arrives, claiming to be her own long-lost brother. Raised as an orphan with no memory of her family, Tilda is both fascinated and wary of Ben’s sudden interest in finding her.

When Ben’s motives grow increasingly suspect, rancher Josh Hart suggests Tilda and the brothers set off on a quest with him that aims to protect Tilda while unearthing the map’s secrets. As they navigate the rugged wilderness, Tilda becomes captivated by the history behind the map, though she doubts it leads to anything more than old artifacts. Yet danger looms ever closer, and Tilda and Josh must rely on faith and their blossoming love to navigate the treacherous path ahead.

An action-packed Western of family, faith, and the quest to belong.

http://www.maryconnealy.com