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The westerners : mythmaking and belonging on the American frontier / Megan Kate Nelson.

Summary:

"The Westerners tells two richly detailed and interwoven stories. The first reveals the captivating lives of women and men moving through the American West -- Indigenous peoples, Black Americans, Mexican Americans, and Canadian and Asian immigrants -- in the 19th century. The second tracks the attempts of many Americans to erase these westerners from history, through a frontier myth that lionized individualism and conquest and celebrated white settlers traveling west in search of prosperity. Nelson's vivid, eye-opening account centers on seven extraordinary individuals whose lives capture the true history of the frontier: Sacajawea, not just Lewis and Clark's guide but an explorer who forged her own path; Jim Beckwourth, a biracial fur trader whose sharp cultural insight made him indispensable; María Gertrudis Barceló, a Hispana gambling saloon owner who broke every stereotype to become the wealthiest woman in Santa Fe; Ovando Hollister, a gold miner, soldier, and newspaper man who championed Western expansion; Little Wolf, a Northern Cheyenne chief whose courageous leadership secured his people's future; Canadian immigrant Ella Watson, who strove to become a ranch woman in a male-dominated world; and the defiant Polly Bemis, a Chinese immigrant who carved out a life in Idaho despite federal expulsion efforts." -- Provided by publisher.

Record details

  • ISBN: 9781668004340
  • ISBN: 1668004348
  • Physical Description: xxiii, 439 pages, 8 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations (black & white), maps ; 24 cm
  • Edition: First Scribner hardcover edition.
  • Publisher: New York, NY : Scribner, an imprint of Simon & Schuster, LLC, [2026]

Content descriptions

Bibliography, etc. Note:
Includes bibliographical references (pages 341-419) and index.
Formatted Contents Note:
Prologue -- Curiosity in motion -- The bringers of change -- A good time to be in the pick and shovel business -- Violence pushed to its limits -- It will bind them together and tear us apart -- Survival is a presence and an absence -- Epilogue
Subject:
Immigrants > United States > History > 19th century.
United States > Emigration and immigration > History > 19th century.
West (U.S.) > History.
Genre:
Informational works.
Biographies.

Available copies

  • 10 of 22 copies available at NC Cardinal.
  • 0 of 1 copy available at Brown Library System. (Show)

Holds

  • 0 current holds with 22 total copies.
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Location Call Number / Copy Notes Barcode Shelving Location Status Due Date
George H. & Laura E. Brown Library 978.02 Nel (Text) 30308101376987 Adult New Nonfiction Checked out 08/25/2026
Bordeaux Library CMB1969406 (Text) CMB1969406 Technical Services In process -
Cleveland County Main Library 978.02 NEL (Text) 22281500164537 Adult Nonfiction Checked out 08/11/2026
Columbus Library 978.02 NEL (Text) 31250200096427 Adult New Nonfiction Checked out 08/14/2026
Dunn Public Library 978.02 Nel (Text) 33436001857967 Adult Nonfiction Available -
Harnett County Main Library 978.02 Nel (Text) 33630005506568 Adult Nonfiction Available -
Haywood County Main Library 978.02 Nelson (Text) 33115007738037 Adult New Nonfiction Available -
Henderson Main Branch 978.02 N (Text) 33258035520151 Adult New Nonfiction Checked out 08/17/2026
Hudson (Fontana) 978.02 NEL (Text) 39493108880123 Adult New Nonfiction Available -
Jackson County Public Library 978 N (Text) 39493109563769 Adult New Nonfiction Checked out 08/18/2026