The Frontiersmen
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4.6 • 115 Ratings
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- $12.99
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- $12.99
Publisher Description
The frontiersmen were a remarkable breed of men. They were often rough and illiterate, sometimes brutal and vicious, often seeking an escape in the wilderness of mid-America from crimes committed back east. In the beautiful but deadly country which would one day come to be known as West Virginia, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois, more often than not they left their bones to bleach beside forest paths or on the banks of the Ohio River, victims of Indians who claimed the vast virgin territory and strove to turn back the growing tide of whites. These frontiersmen are the subjects of Allan Eckert's dramatic history.
Against the background of such names as George Rogers Clark, Daniel Boone, Arthur St. Clair, Anthony Wayne, Simon Girty and William Henry Harrison, Eckert has recreated the life of one of America's most outstanding heroes, Simon Kenton. Kenton's role in opening the Northwest Territory to settlement more than rivaled that of his friend Daniel Boone. By his eighteenth birthday, Kenton had already won frontier renown as woodsman, fighter and scout. His incredible physical strength and endurance, his great dignity and innate kindness made him the ideal prototype of the frontier hero.
Yet there is another story to The Frontiersmen. It is equally the story of one of history's greatest leaders, whose misfortune was to be born to a doomed cause and a dying race. Tecumseh, the brilliant Shawnee chief, welded together by the sheer force of his intellect and charisma an incredible Indian confederacy that came desperately close to breaking the thrust of the white man's westward expansion. Like Kenton, Tecumseh was the paragon of his people's virtues, and the story of his life, in Allan Eckert's hands, reveals most profoundly the grandeur and the tragedy of the American Indian.
No less importantly, The Frontiersmen is the story of wilderness America itself, its penetration and settlement, and it is Eckert's particular grace to be able to evoke life and meaning from the raw facts of this story. In The Frontiersmen not only do we care about our long-forgotten fathers, we live again with them.
Researched for seven years, The Frontiersmen is the first in Mr. Eckert's "The Winning of America" series.
Customer Reviews
Fabulous
I read this book the first time as a 10 year old in 1986. I have since read it countless times. It is one of the best books I have ever read. This era is nearly forgotten and too many people today do not recognize the strife between Native American and whites east of the Mississippi. This book is a real page turner and offers a glimpse into the settling of Americas first west. The authors ability to remain factual while not boring makes this a wonderful read.
The frontiersman
Living my entire life in and around the tri state area do WV,PA,OH I have found numerous stories and history I wasn't aware of for the late 1700's. Early 1800's. The was my first exposure to how the native tribes and Americans communication was lacking to the point where one had no idea how to relate pertinent information related to treaty's and such beyond the boundaries of there claimed land. And also how with a solid form of government without greed could have resulted in peoples living together from then to present. Oh how much knowledge was lost and had to be regained, when the information was there and readily available. Great book.
Amazing
Amazing, heart-wrenching, like you are there through every moment. I got this as a gift and never would have thought to read it, but I am so thankful I did! I grew up in Ohio so I knew a lot of the landmarks, but still learned a lot. Don't be intimidated by the size of the book~it is an amazing journey. Love this book!
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