John Langellier moved to Arizona as a child. From then on his fascination with the West, particularly with the U.S. Army…
Westward from the White House Review of Glenda Riley and Richard Etulains’ Presidents Who Shaped the American West.
Glenda Riley and Richard Etulains’ Presidents Who Shaped the American West is a highly satisfying narrative spanning two…
From Frontier Soldier to Peacemaking President U.S. Grant and the West.
On March 4, 1869, a rather unlikely candidate took his oath of office as the eighteenth president of the United States. …
Sand Creek Complexity Review of Gregory F. Michno's The Three Battles of Sand Creek.
Sand Creek, like Little Bighorn or Wounded Knee, serves as a lightning rod evoking polemic responses. Gregory F. Michno …
Modernization of Mexico’s Army Review of Stephen B. Neufeld’s The Blood Contingent
Stephen B. Neufeld’s The Blood Contingent: The Military and the Making of Modern Mexico, 1876-1911 (University of New Me…
Johnny Lingo: Tis the Season
Celebrating Christmas in today’s American West essentially follows similar trends found around the country. One notable …
Johnny Lingo: Rot Gut, Sheep Wash, Chain Lightning
Belly up to the bar pards and bend an elbow. Any friendly barkeep at the local cantina or saloon, some of which became l…
Franciscan Trailblazers Review of Robert A. Kittle's Franciscan Frontiersmen.
For many, the mention of Spanish padres evokes images of bucolic missions stretching far and wide across the Borderlands…
Johnny Lingo: Nothing That Glitters Is Gold
Pretty much everyone knows what “just joshing you” means, but how did this common substitute to “pulling a leg” or teasi…
Johnny Lingo: What’s in a Name?
“Cowboys is a generic term designation, originally applied to cow drivers and herders of Western Texas, but the name has…