Fool's Paradise

So, against all odds, I finished another book.

To be fair, this is about the third time I have read it, but with master's coursework, a new school year, and all of the responsibilities of adulting, this was quite a feat, in my humble opinion.

This one is Fool's Paradise by John Gierach, and it manages to be a fishing book while not being a fishing book.  Equal parts fishing, traveling, philosophy and humor, this is a book that can be read without thinking too much and you still manage to think.  Confused yet?

Gierach is a prolific writer with a bibliography that includes works like Sex, Death, and Fly-Fishing; Death, Taxes and Leaky Waders; and Standing in a River Waving a Stick.  Without really trying (it would seem) he manages to write about fishing without taking himself too seriously.  

From Simon and Schuster's webpage.

I enjoy Fool's Paradise everytime that I pick it up.  I bought it on a whim not long after it was published on a visit to the fly shop at the nearest Bass Pro Shops (over 2 hours away, I might add) and read through it when life was simpler. Let's take a look at the book.

Ringing in at just under 200 pages, this is a sit-on-the-porch-with-your-coffee book.  Gierach is an old hippy living what would amount to an old hippy's life - seven months of the year fishing and the remaining five writing about it.  And since he lives on the west slope of Colorado, he was plenty to write about.  And his topics are scattered, seemingly random, but in the end, it is a love of fishing, nature, and the quiet camaraderie of "standing in the river waving a stick" to rising trout or bass or whatever, that ties the book together.

I have a number of his books on the shelf with a few more on my Amazon wishlist (hint, hint) but for some reason, I keep coming back to this one.  Perhaps it is nostalgia, perhaps not, but I always end it satisfied but with a deep desire to string up a fly rod, wet a line, and just enjoy the sound and smell of water.  

I suppose that is really the truth - I get to go there without being there, but with plenty to add to my bucket list.

GTT (Gone To Texas)

A few days ago I made a post about the plight of William Alexander Russell.  I cannot help but think that this, in an indirect way, can allude to his story! 

Texas is a unique place, and it has been made more unique by the souls that came to Texas in the wake of the War Between the States.  

The 1861 Project is a collection of 3 albums that include stories from both sides of the war.  I decided long ago that more history can be learned from period music from the war as well as newly-written tunes that attempt to 1) tell stories from the past and 2) help the songwriter come to grips with the reality of the war that changed our national direction.   

If you haven't given it a listen, please do!

W.A Russell - Civil War Veteran

History books tell us that the Civil War ended in 1865.  For those who lost property, loved ones or were injured during the fighting the post-war years proved just as grueling.

William Alexander Russell was born July 7, 1831, near Baton Rouge, but was raised in Mississippi.  From historical records, it appears as though young W.A.'s father died at some point before 1849 because in that year his mother Mary "Polly" (Knight) Russell remarried to Henry Roberts.  In 1850 "Alexander" resided with the Roberts' family in Clarke County, Mississippi, just to the south of Meridian.  He was 19.

On April 17, 1858, W.A. married Catherine Colleen Miller in Choctaw County, Alabama.  Catherine was the daughter of Ross Miller, an immigrant from Ireland before the birth of his daughter.  Family stories tell that Mr. Miller's brogue was so strong his grandchildren could not understand him.

In the 1860 Census W.A. lists his occupation as a farm laborer and since his real estate value is not listed it can be assumed that he worked for others.  A son William is also listed on the census.

When the Civil War came William A. Russell enlisted in Co. D, 36th Mississippi Infantry.  Based on the pension records held in the Texas State Archives his enlistment date of March 12, 1862.  He served until the end of the war.  The unit's history can be found HERE.  Another good bit of information can be found HERE.

When General Lee surrendered his Army of Northern Virginia on April 9, 1865, 3rd Sgt. W.A. Russell was still fighting.  He was captured at Spanish Fort, Alabama, in the defense of Mobile Bay, and was taken to Ship Island Prison Camp along with 561 other soldiers.  The numbers would swell less than a week later when Confederate defeat at Blakely, Alabama, would open Mobile Bay to Federal occupation.  3,056 more soldiers would be transported to Ship Island on April 15, 1865.

             (above is W. A. Russell on the morning roll call while at Ship Island)



It is hard to believe that this spit of land once held 20,000 Union soldiers and a major supply base, as well as a POW camp.  Today, Ship Island of 1860 is now two islands, having been cut in two in by Hurricane Camille in 1969.  The gap between the two islands - Camille's Cut - was the location of the Confederate cemetery on the island.

Russell's stay was not as long as some.  By most accounts, the majority of the Confederate soldiers were paroled and allowed to go home by the middle part of May 1865.  A 1984 National Park Service study, which controls the island today as part of the Gulf Islands National Park is a fascinating read: find it HERE - SHIP ISLAND.  The National Park Service's page dedicated to Fort Massachusetts, Ship Island, and Gulf Islands National Seashore can be found HERE.

When the war was over Russell returned home to Newton County but quickly moved the family back to Baton Rouge where he was born, and hence it can be assumed, had relatives.  Newton County is just south of Meridian, and General Sherman's destruction of that town is legendary.  According to family oral histories what property the family had was burned with nothing left to them but a single chicken. It stands to reason this played a large part in their migration. They did not stay in Baton Rouge for long, however, continuing the trek to Texas. The date of their migration can be somewhat deduced from family stories.  Around 1873 their oldest daughter Catherine (born in 1861) moved with her husband to Texas (Daughter Catherine seems to be around the age of 14 when she married, which was not uncommon).  W.A. and Catherine followed in covered wagons. Wife Catherine was pregnant at the time.  In the summer of 1873, they reached the Sabine River, which as swollen from rains. Their last child John Bunyon Russell was born on the Louisiana side of the river on August 31, 1873. In 1880 the family was in Madisonville, Madison County, Texas. William A. Russell was 49 and their youngest son, John Bunion, was 8.  He was listed as a farmer.

William Alexander Russell died on April 15, 1907, and a year later his widow applied for a pension in his name.  It was accepted and issued by the state of Texas.  He is buried in Willow Hole, Madison County, Texas, as is his wife Catherine.  

(Russell's Grave with Masonic honors at Willow Hole Cemetery)

In studying the history of the Civil War we tend to get caught up in the grand politics, social causes, and rhetoric of "great men."  It is easy to forget the average people who, as in the apparent case of W. A. Russell, had virtually nothing but marched to war to fight in a cause that was very real to him and anything but "Lost."

Sources:

Cotton, Mildred Russell. Background of a Family, Unpublished manuscript. N.D.

Various Census records recovered through Ancestry.com

The National Park Service

Little House in the Big Woods

In the absence of time for adventures and travels, and with graduate coursework underway, the source materials for my Wanderings are limited now at best.  That does not mean, however, that this blog cannot go in other directions.

Mitchell Pass below Scott's Bluff

While traveling this summer, we had not really packed any bedtime stories or picture books for sake of space (to be honest we forgot them) so while visiting Scott's Bluff National Monument we bought a copy of Little House on the Prairie by Laura Ingalls Wilder.  I remember as a kid watching reruns of the TV show, but I had never read it, but it became obvious as we went along that my daughter was into this book. While visiting Fort Laramie National Monument as a part of our trip, Sadie worked on the Junior Ranger booklet, and one of the questions was something like, "Why would people want to go west on the Oregon Trail?"  Sadie's answer might as well have been channeling young Laura: "There were too many people in the East!"  The ranger commented that he'd never heard that answer before, but he liked it.  It is possible that she has been listening to her Mom and Dad as well - just saying!

Fort Laramie

So just before we finished it I went on the hunt for the next book.  

Unknown to us at the time, Little House on the Prairie is not the first book - it is actually the 3rd. Covering the Ingalls family's journey west to Indian Territory, Praire makes mention several times of their time in the "big woods" of Wisconsin.  The first book in the series is called Little House in the Big Woods, so I added this to my order and started to read it when it came in as part of our good-night rituals. 

This is truly more of a commentary on Big Woods than Prairie.  If you want a look at the life of pioneer stock and the way life was ordered in the western woodlands, Little House in the Big Woods is a fascinating how-to on wilderness survival.  Stephanie commented it was Carla Emery for kids. Written from the point of view of a young child for other young children, cultural history, and social history, comes alive in microcosm.  At one point, Pa (Charles) makes a smokehouse out of an old log, and Laura describes how the hams get smoked and the sausage was stored.  At another point, Laura helps her mother make cheese. (Want to know what "green cheese" is?  Laura will tell you).   Maple sugaring and oat and wheat threshing, too.  

In current days there have been those that have criticised the writings of Laura Ingalls Wilder as being politically incorrect and therefore inappropriate for children.  For generations, the Little House books have been loved by adults and children alike.  As a society how many of us could have survived the world of the good sturdy pioneer stock that Laura came from?  Coming from a family of living historians I know some of the skills but I question just how long I would last placed in the position of self-reliance that these western pioneers found themselves (and placed themselves freely).  If you homeschool or just simply have a child that you read to, I highly recommend Little House in the Big Woods and Little House on the Prairie.  If not for the history, do it to tick off those that want us to forget about Laura Ingalls Wilder and the time from which she came.

Reflections: Yellowstone 2017

As the summer vacation of 2018 draws ever nearer to a close, I revisited some photographs of last summer's circuit of the west.  I will be perfectly honest:  I want to head back to Yellowstone, and sooner than later.  2017's vacation was a whirlwind, but an enjoyable time.  Below are some photographs with commentary, many taken by my daughter (6 yo at the time). Stephanie had a point-and-click digital camera that she gave to Sadie to capture what she wanted, and so far she has shown a bit of talent.  Stephanie took the others.  

The vast plains of South Dakota! There is a Spartan beauty here! (Stephanie took these, hereafter marked with a **)

Near Camp Pleasant on the Missouri River.  Beautiful! **

The plaza at Mount Rushmore. On the columns are the state flags of each of the 50 states.  Photo by Sadie - after this marked by a *.

General Washington.  There are two figures in American history that fascinate the young one: George Washington and Stonewall Jackson.  Good role models, both.*

We didn't get to stop but viewed it from a distance.  Devil's Tower, or as the tribes call it, Bear Lodge.**

We happened to visit during the annual reenactment of the Battle of Little Bighorn.**

A young brave near the Little Bighorn River at the location of the battle.**

Part of the Cheyenne Memorial on the battlefield.**

Liberty Cap Geyser, near Mammoth Hot Springs.*

A really good likeness of the Mammoth Hot Springs, near Gardiner.*

One of the many valleys that exist in the bounds of Yellowstone.*

The distant Absaroka Mountains, if memory serves.*

The pinnacles at the top of Tower Falls.  The trail to the base of the falls was closed and has been for some time, apparently.  It was on my list of things to do.  Disappointment, sadly.*

The Lower Falls in the Yellowstone Canyon.*

Was this Artist's Point? or Inspiration Point?  I can't remember.*

Old Faithful.*

The Geyser Basin near Old Faithful.  If you like geysers, you'll love this place.  If you don't like crowds, you will not.*

Petrified tree near Specimin Ridge.  Near here we saw our first black bear of the trip.*

This is like many of the places in Yellowstone; lakes, trees, rivers, geothermal features - truly God's handiwork.*

American Bison.*

Bison amongst one of the geothermal features.**

Yellowstone Lake.**

Grotto Geyser.**

Dragon Mouth Spring.  It really did sound like a dragon in there! **

Morning Glory Pool.  This one used to be much more vibrant, but thoughtless tourists in years past threw coins and other things into the pool.  It is amazing how many people do not think!**

After leaving Yellowstone, on our way home we stopped at several national parks and monuments.  This one was Colorado National Park.  We happened on this one and decided to stop.  It was well worth it.*

High desert.  Beautiful!*

She wanted me to pose for one!*

Near one of the lookouts.*

A few more at Colorado NM.**

Colorado NM.**

A mine near Silverton, Colorado.**

Pueblo ruins in Aztec Ruins National Monument.  Named for the town nearby, and not the tribes that lived here.**

Cliff dwellings in Bandolier National Monument near Los Alamos, New Mexico.**

A view out from one of the cliff dwellings. Notice the later Pueblo ruins in the valley below**

In the end, we traveled through 13 states and visited 7 national parks and monuments.  Over 5,000 miles.  And I would do it again, only I would take a bit more time to explore all of them further.  Our trusty Subaru Outback took it like a champ!

Book Review: Empire of Shadows

When I contemplated starting a blog the reason was pretty simple:  To share my family's adventures in the written word.  The problem, however, is a combination of geography and employment.  Living in central Texas the weather is hot and dry in the summers when there is time to do things, and pleasant during the spring and fall when I am back to work with limited opportunities to get in the car and drive.  As a school teacher, taking off work for a few days is often harder than the responsibilities of the day.

Therefore, much of the time adventure must be found in the 400 or so pages of a good book.  I had not intended to branch beyond travel and personal escapades, but the truth is, a book can take you places when time and money is in short supply.

As such, my summer reading included a nonfiction work entitled Empire of Shadows: The Epic Story of Yellowstone by George Black.  Last summer we made a trip that covered 13 states, 7 national parks and over 5000 miles, with Yellowstone the highwater mark of the trip.  We spent the bulk of the time there seeing the sights (and we still did not see them all).  While there, one of the souvenirs we picked up was the above-mentioned book.  Stephanie read it while on the trip and told me then how good it was but I was reading one I had picked up at the Little Bighorn Battlefield, and after getting home graduate coursework loomed.  So Empire of Shadows went on the shelf.  

Until we returned from the Rockies this summer, and a wanderlust to spend more time there could not be satisfied with loading the car again.  So transportation would have to come with the printed word.

From the dust jacket:

Empire of Shadows is the epic story of the conquest of Yellowstone, a landscape uninhabited, inaccessible, and shrouded in myth in the aftermath of the Civil War.  In a radical reinterpretation of the nineteenth century West, George Black casts Yellowstone's creation as the culmination of three interwoven strands of history - the passion for exploration, the violence of the Indian Wars, and the "civilizing" of the frontier - and charts its course through the lives of those who sought to lay bare its mysteries:  Lt. Gustavus Cheyney Doane, a gifted by tormented cavalryman; the ambitious former vigilante leader Nathaniel Langford; scientist Ferdinand Hayden, who brought photographer William Henry Jackson and painter Thomas Moran to Yellowstone; and Gen. Phil Sheridan, Civil War hero, architect of the Indian Wars, and the man who finally succeeded in having the new National Park placed under the protection of the US Cavalry.  The exploration of Yellowstone is a quintessentially American story of terrible things done in the name of high ideals, and of high ideals realized by dubious means.  George Black's Empire of Shadows is a groundbreaking historical account of the origins of America's majestic national landmark.

All told, this is an excellent summary, although I would argue that Hayden plays second-fiddle to the other personalities in the book.  Also neglected in the blurb is the early history of the region, particularly the mountain men and trappers who were the first Anglos to set foot in the region called Yellowstone. Equally important was a thorough discussion of the various tribes of the Northern plains and their unique interactions with the White man, and how those relationships changed, from the time of Lewis and Clark to the ultimate end of the Indian Wars.  

Click for the source of the image here.

If you are interested in a specialized history, be it Yellowstone, the American West, the National Park system, or the American Indian, this book is an enlightening read.  

Books can take you places you have never been or back to places that you want to see again.  This is the case for me.  Yellowstone was a memorable experience for us, and the expanse of the park was such that it was impossible to see it all in the time we had set aside.  Empire of Shadows took me back to notable landmarks, and has set in me a deep desire to go back again!