Showing results by author "Alton Pryor" in All Categories

Western outlaws terrorized the country during the late 1800s and early 1900s, robbing stagecoaches, banks, trains, and merchants. While they were fearsome, some became folk heroes and legends.

Women discovered gold in California a full year before James Marshall announced his discovery. There have been repeated attempts to split California into two or more states. Wheelbarrow Johnny was one of the gold seekers who came west searching for gold. Instead, he built wheelbarrows and then went on to become one of the nation's great automobile magnates.

Hawaii was not always a paradise. Hawaii's history was turbulent and soul wrenching. Taboos placed on commoners by Royalty were harsh and cruel. But Hawaii also has its wonderful historic lore, such as the Menehunes, or Hawaii's "little people". Listeners will also learn the true history of the ukulele and its origin may be a surprise.

Sally Stanford was a bawdy house madam like no other. She put her houses of prostitution in the most upscale area of San Francisco and charged her customers accordingly. She paid her girls the top wages of the industry and helped them deal with their problems along the way. Sally didn't hesitate to fight the powers that be in city hall and other branches of government. 

The listener should not be conned into thinking Nevada is only desert and casinos. Nevada gained its statehood because of its incredible wealth in gold and silver mines. Many mining towns in Nevada are now ghost towns but interesting pieces of Nevada's history and well worth a visit. The state's geology dates back to the Stone Age and its tales of train robberies, lynchings, and Indian battles are all explored here in this book.

Here are women who were first in their accomplishments, often conquering odds far and above the conditions that men had to meet. Take Donaldina Cameron, who braved hazardous opposition to rescue more than 3000 Asian slave girls that had been sold to become prostitutes in cities such as San Francisco. Listeners will also learn about several other women that helped make California what it is today.

Lawmen in the old west played a juggling act as far as the law was concerned. It was necessary for a successful lawman to be both tougher and smarter than the outlaw. In reality, the lawman was guilty of committing offenses that would be punishable if committed by the outlaw.

There is so much about Texas that few people know. Who knows about the lawless Horrell Brothers, who feuded for years with "Pink" Higgins. What is the oldest town in Texas? Learn about the Jaybird-Woodpecker War, or about the Texas Enchanted Rock. Then there was the fence-cutting war along with the usual Texas favorites, the Alamo, Cattleman Charles Goodnight, Texas' First Navy, and the San Elizario Salt War. If that not enough, you can learn more about Pirate Jean Lafitte.

Western writer Alton Pryor has brought forth a collection of important moments in history. These vignettes present a virtual digest of historical happenings that are fun and educational as well. Listeners will learn about the poignant story of the Seven Little Indians. When a tribe stole a band of horses, Indian fighters killed the Indians that stole them. In doing so, they found seven little Indian babies on their hands.

John Sutter, who left Switzerland to escape debtor's prison, came to California and built a giant land monopoly. Again, he became heavily in debt and died destitute. The entire Sacramento and San Joaquin valleys were inundated for 300 miles long and 20 miles wide by the flood of 1862. The cholera epidemic killed more than 1000 citizens, including doctors and others who were caring for the patients.

Many of the brothel madams were kind hearted. For instance, Madame Pauline, on hearing of a desperate family in dire straits, provided them a house and a job for the father. In the west, the bawdy house girls filled an obvious need or they wouldn't have survived. Many girls left the trade as soon as they could, usually by marriage. Others became hooked on drugs or committed suicide.

After traveling 60 miles on horseback through snow to the Crawford cabin, Dr. Ephraim McDowell examines his patient. He realizes that he is not dealing with an overdue pregnancy, but an enlarged ovarian cyst. He gives the patient the grim news that he can do nothing to save her. She begs him to try to remove the life-threatening tumor.

This is an inclusive depiction of the American cowboy and how he arrived and departed the western landscape. While cowboys are still in existence, the trail drivers of the old west are a long-gone breed.

San Francisco grew from a tiny burg of 1,000 persons in 1848 to its present-day population of 825,863. The city was founded in 1776 when Spain built a fort at the site of Golden Gate Park. After World War II, San Francisco became a magnet for America's counter-culture. Hippies flocked to Haight-Ashbury in 1960 and peaked out with the Summer of Love in 1967. San Francisco's China Town is the oldest and largest in North America.

This book has 41 different chapters on California's gold rush and development history. Learn about the Lost Spanish Galleon, Pegleg Smith's Lost Gold Mine, Joaquin Murrieta, and railroad titans.