From Library Journal
Chalfant ( Without Quarter , Univ. of Oklahoma Pr., 1991) has added another well-researched work to Western historical literature: a detailed history of the Santa Fe Trail during the Mexican War. Focusing on the latter part of the 1840s, the work provides an intimate look at the travelers and soldiers on the trail, especially at Fort Mann, or the Middle Passage. Initially opened as a civilian stop, Fort Mann was quickly abandoned because of devastating Indian raids. It eventually became the headquarters for the Indian Battalion. The book explores the events and circumstances leading up to the Indian wars and its battles. As with most works written on this subject, it is extremely detailed. It would be valuable for collections on the West and especially the Santa Fe Trail.
- Terri P. Summey, Emporia State Univ. Lib., Kan.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.
- Terri P. Summey, Emporia State Univ. Lib., Kan.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From Booklist
Here's a detailed account of the Santa Fe Trail during the Mexican War. Chalfant manages a good balance between analysis and narrative in covering this period when whites' use of the trail increased to the point of arousing active Indian hostility that eventuated in much more fighting than took place on account of declared war. He also affords a gallery of fascinating personalities ranging from the trader who rode the trail at the rate of 140 miles a day to an army officer who enrolled his disguised mistress in the garrison of his fort. Neither romantic nor aggressively revisionist, Chalfant's effort is readable throughout. Roland Green
