The Territory

The Territory: The Memoir of a Friendship in Earliest Iowa, is a lighthearted but serious work of fiction in the form of a memoir by one of a pair of generally serious, sometimes comical pioneer settlers in pre-territorial and territorial Iowa. Its inspiration is a number of now little-known local and region-wide events described by prominent longtime resident and scholar Benjamin F. Gue in his 1903 History of Iowa. The setting and details of conditions and events, thoroughly researched are portrayed accurately from scores of sources. The intended readership is anyone interested in a reliable information about Iowas pioneer past, the foundations of the present state, and the many issues, large and small, current at the time-span addressed its also written for anyone who enjoys a rip-roaring story full of passages of subtle and sometimes not so subtle humor. Though the work is not lengthy, it portrays virtually every event of relevance for early pre-Civil War Iowa, as well as the tribulations and progress of its two featured pioneers and their families, who get involved in practically everything. The book highlights in particular the opening and development of the land, early settlements and towns, the march of the frontier across the territory and raw new state, the feel of the new land, the way the people were, and the sound and subjects of their daily conversation. The Territory will provide reliable and interesting context for general readers, genealogists, and students of all ages.