Statistics

In preparing the manuscript of the book for submission to our prospective publisher, co-author Gene Armistead has run some statistics. Just to let you know that this is indeed going to be a substantial work with a huge amount of research behind it, here are some of those statistics as the manuscript now stands:

Total pages: 253

     (This does not yet include additional pages for illustrations to be inserted
       nor the index yet to be generated)

Of the 253 pages, 202 are text, 29 are endnotes, and 22 are bibliography.

Included in the bibliography are:

     26 official records and publications

     12 manuscript and photo collections

     11 pieces of correspondence

     65 historical newspapers

     148 articles

     148 books

Throughout the research process for this book, we were amazed to find how much of the "history" surrounding Dan Showalter was unsubstantiated (even when citations were provided!) and often just a continuation of misinformation from prior researchers. I'm proud to say that every endnote in this work goes to material that actually deals with the referenced text.

I'll periodically update here as the submission and publication process continues!

Just About Done!

With apologies for being so long away from this site, I am pleased to announce that the Dan Showalter book has been completed! Co-author Gene Armistead and I are now in process of doing all the last-minute editing, annotating, and other detail work in connection with having a complete manuscript for presentation, and then it's off to the potential publisher. Our prospective publisher has been told all will be to them by month's end, so then it will be up to their good graces as to if and when it is finally in print.

Needless to say, great excitement on our end over all this -- and will post again once any significant word comes!

Latest News

Happy New Year, anyone out there who might be following this blog!

The news for this new year is that the Showalter book is progressing and may not even been that far from readiness to submit to prospective publishers. While there's still editing to go, Gene and I are down to the last two or three chapters and that should wrap it up.

So please check back and I will update as we continue further in this great project.

Again, a great 2014 to all!

Update

Just thought I'd put up a little update on things for anyone -- is there anyone? -- who might actually be following this blog.

Gene Armistead and I continue to make progress on The Book. It goes in fits and starts around all of the necessities of life and labor, but it's progressing. There should be some really great history in this book -- I'm surprised at how much information there really is on a seemingly obscure historical character, and how more keeps popping up! A work like this, dealing with a man whose story literally spans states and even countries, would have been tremendously difficult to put together not that many years ago; it's truly amazing the information we still come across thanks to the Internet.

And descendants! I am continually amazed at the contacts I've made through this whole process. Gene, of course, is one of those who I most likely never have met had it not been through Internet publication of this blog and the earlier publication of the Drum Barracks exhibit from which this blog stems. But thanks to the Internet, I've now had contacts from descendants from no less than five Showalter lines, from F.E. Kavanaugh, from Lt. Chauncy Wellman, and two from Miss Anna Forman (later Mrs. Peters). It really is remarkable. So a big shout out to Susan and John, Ed, Kenton, Bob, Fannie, Shirley, Larry and Bruce!

Gene and I think there will really be some remarkable history -- and some ground-breaking history -- in our work, so we're really looking forward to completing it and getting it on to a publisher. We're very fortunate in that we've had expressions of interest early on from two publishers, so it looks like this thing may actually happen. I will periodically update as progress continues.

A Big Announcement!

THE BOOK! That's right, THE BOOK!

I mentioned some time ago that I'd been contacted by Southern California historian Gene Armistead. In the time that's passed we've struck up such a good friendship and realized that we both share such a pathological love for research that I posed the big question, Gene has foregone writing the article for which he'd originally contacted me for material, and we are now solidly at work to co-author what will undoubtedly be the authoritative work on Dan Showalter.

I can already tell you that there will be some important, perhaps even startling new information based on recent research. And we've even come up with yet another photo of Ol' Dan, so there will certainly be worthwhile reasons for taking a look at the book if and when it is published (we're hoping next year, 2014).

In the meantime, given the tremendous amount of work that I'm now finding goes into planning and writing such a tome, please forgive me if there are few or any new postings between now and when it's finally done. I don't seem to have a flood of interest in this blog anyway, but if someone out there really has been frantically checking in in anticipation of a next posting -- please forgive.

But do keep checking in because I'll certainly post periodically on the book's progress!

Need I Say More?

Just came across another newspaper clipping that I really have to post in light of my recent discussions about what really happened at Palmito Ranch. This one is so good that I'm going to blow it up here so it can be read just as it appeared in the Houston Tri-Weekly Telegraph of October 5, 1864:

Even discounting for hyperbole, I think it should now be obvious that Dan Showalter has come down through history with the proverbial "bum rap," and one that would seem to be completely undeserved. Ditto with his regiment, the 4th Texas Cavalry, Arizona Brigade, at least as to those of its members who remained loyal and under Showalter's command throughout.

"My Dear Friend Anna"

I seem to be in another of these periodic moments when unexpected things come flying at me. By that, I mean the sudden connection with descendants of the various dramatis personae in the life of Dan Showalter and, more and more it seems, obtaining old, never published family photos.

This has happened again. I've now become acquainted with one Larry Vermeulen, the great-great grandson of none other than Anna Forman, the young woman to whom that wonderful letter of February 1864 was written by Showalter -- the one that she never received, but has been consigned to posterity, by virtue of it being recovered from the body of the Confederate spy, shot by Union soldiers, who had been entrusted with carrying it back to California from Texas. I refer you to my earlier postings for the text of that magnificently impassioned letter.

Anna, about ten years after the date of that ill-fated letter, married a J.D. Peters (actually Giuseppe di Pietri). Mr. Peters was the wealthy owner of a steamship line. Twenty-two years Anna's senior, he died in the early 20th century, leaving Anna a well-to-do widow who spent her time between living in an elegant San Francisco hotel and her father's home in Stockton, California. She died in 1921 in San Francisco. She was the founder of the Daughters of the American Revolution chapter in Stockton. She was born in Vandalia, Illinois, in September of 1845 -- so was only 18 years old at the time of Showalter's letter.

And now, as best I know for the first time ever outside of family records, courtesy of Mr. Vermeulen, is the copy of what appears to be a newspaper photo from an old Vandalia, IL, newspaper with none other than Anna Forman Peters to the left of her aunt, Tabitha Booth:

As best I know, this is the only known photo of Mrs. Peters.

Another surprise: With the help of fellow historian and friend Gene Armistead, it appears that there may actually be a second photo of Dan Showalter! Inquiry has been made and I am awaiting reply as to the availability of a copy and permission to publish.