It is always great news to hear of a new book, written by one of our members. Mike Tower, a long time member, has finally published his work on Fred Waite, entitled: "The Outlaw Statesman: The Life and Times of Fred Tecumseh Waite," published by Authorhouse. I am sure this will be a positive addition to anyones collection of "Old West" history from New Mexico and Oklahoma. I can't wait to get a copy for myself.
Thanks, Mike, I've spent 25 years working on Waite, who has been listed by most as a drifting halfbreed gunfighter who was the boon companion of the infamous Billy the Kid. My studies lead me to believe Waite has been badly and falsely represented by most other writers dealing with the Lincoln County War because Waite has never been properly researched. For instance, it’s more likely he was an adventurer, who arrived just in time to get caught up in John Tunstall's scheme to control southeastern New Mexico and found himself in a shooting war. The book is currently available in paper back and dust jacket hardcover at the AuthorHouse book store and within a month or so will be in the major bookstores and at Amazon. And, for those of you who don’t read well, there are maps and photographs; many never before published and at least one naming the correct characters depicted.
Mike, your Waite book is great! I'm on pg. 170. I've learned lots of things, including the lengths non-Natives were willing to go to to push the railroad through. I'm enjoying reading every page. Excellent, excellent book.
History is by no means fair about whom it chooses to remember. Who would have ever predicted that among the most celebrated figures of the Wild West would be a young hoodlum whose only apparent talent lay in killing? But oceans of ink have been spilled about Billy the Kid, a criminal who has since mysteriously attained almost mythic status. A seemingly endless series of books and articles (and surely more will follow) recite, examine, and debate the minutiae of his short, violent life. Billy the Kid has become a literary industry, and it is there that many readers will first become aware of Fred Tecumseh Waite, who also was involved in the infamous Lincoln County War. Mike Tower has set as his task to demonstrate that Waite was a far more interesting and complex man than his role as an associate of Billy would suggest. And in this Tower succeeds admirably. We get a thorough and interesting analysis of the background behind the events in Lincoln County plus a definitive biography—the first book-length one yet to appear—of a man whose accomplishments certainly deserve greater recognition. Best of all, Tower presents a clear and readable account of one of the most exciting but confused periods in American history: the final days of the twin territories (the Indian and Oklahoma Territories). Imagine a vast space peopled with dozens of different Indian tribes, many of them the victims of forced removal. Throw into this mix some of the most violent outlaws and gangs in the nation’s history. Season this stew with many thousands of boomers, sooners, freedmen, and others, all promoting their own interests. Add a judicial system that was at best a patchwork of confused authorities. Finish this off with huge political controversies: would Oklahoma be one state or two? Would the tribes own land or only their individual members? It was in this challenging environment that, as Tower shows, the outlaw Fred Waite became a true statesman. I highly recommend Mike’s book. --meursault (also posted on Amazon.com)
