Westering Man: The Life of Joseph Walker [Paperback]

Bil Gilbert (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 15, 1985

Joseph Walker (1798-1876) had probably the longest and most distinguished career of any frontiersman in American history. This first biography of this great frontier hero is based on years of research and many previously unpublished and neglected sources. It gives a rousing and authoritative picture of Walker-his pioneering heritage, his many accomplishments, and his exceptional personality.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Bil Gilbert is an award-winning journalist whose articl

Product Details

• Paperback: 352 pages
• Publisher: University of Oklahoma Press (March 15, 1985)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0806119349
• ISBN-13: 978-0806119342
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.1 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #329,643 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Exploration, adventure and excitement, March 9, 2001

By 

William J Higgins III (Laramie, Wyoming United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Westering Man: The Life of Joseph Walker (Paperback)

I really enjoyed this book a lot. A page turner! It is hard to believe someone could have done so much, seen so much, and accomplished so much in a lifetime. Totally amazing! Mountain man, explorer, trail blazer, and much, much more, from the early 1800's thru the 1870's. A true American icon. I would have given it five stars but, I didn't much care how others in the book such as Jed Smith, Jim Bridger, etc. were belittled by the author. We all have our heroes but cutting down others when it is not really necessary or deserving is, I believe, crude.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A lucky find at the library, March 5, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Westering Man: The Life of Joseph Walker (Paperback)

I came across Westering Man while browsing at the library. It's one of the best books I've ever read. Mr. Gilbert unearthed the life of Joseph R. Walker and what he writes about him rings true. If you are an enthusiast for the American West - and not for the phony glory stuff but for the history of the exploration of The West - don't miss this book. Since it was published in 1983 I've wondered if others who have read it have further information to offer-up about Joseph R. Waker and if so if Mr. Gilbert will write another book. It's been two years since I read it, I've missed it and now I'd like to buy my own copy. It's a gem.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An Honest Picture of How the West was Won, December 15, 2010

By 

Preston - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Westering Man: The Life of Joseph Walker (Paperback)

Two things struck me about this book before I was halfway through reading it: Joseph Walker, and his family, were at once superlative and yet exemplary of the white pioneers who made the American journey west the singular cultural remembrance in American society, and that story - "How the West was 'Won'" - is very different than the one we are told in school.

This book is masterfully written by Bil Gilbert, who leaves no stone unturned and masterfully segues each paragraph end into further fleshing out of the details in a way that is highly informative and fascinating. I found any five-minute interval I could to read this amazing work, which combines the history of the Scotch-Irish in Appalachia, the economic and social realities of life on the "old frontier" before the American Revolutionary War, and the circumstances of an extraordinary man whose legacy sheds a new light on the things we consider "American" to this day.

The most poignant character contrast comes when Gilbert introduces and details the interactions of Walker with "The Pathfinder" John C. Frémont. Frémont (or the stories Frémont tells about himself) characterizes what we typically think of when we think of the old West: running roughshod over unseen lands, standing nobly atop high peaks and declaring the glory of the Republic and Manifest Destiny, interspersed with violent intentions for the native peoples. He was (mostly) the total opposite of Walker, who held a deep fascination with exploring but not "civilizing" new lands and had a real respect and camaraderie with Native Americans. He was generally kind to those he guided, favored an overriding commitment to diplomacy over guns, and made it a point to not tell tall tales about himself.

This book, though a historical work, makes me ponder the kinds of imagery and justifications our leaders today take when they authorize gunship diplomacy, unilateral intervention and a conflict-based "survival of the fittest" mantra. What Gilbert makes clear through Walker's pioneering and leading of the westering movement is that violence did not win the West. Of course, neither was the process completed via some kind of idealistic peace-waging with the natives. But Walker was a man the likes of which we miss in our characters today; a respectful, understanding, and eager explorer, not a conqueror.