PREV ARTICLE
NEXT ARTICLE
FULL ISSUE
PREV FULL ISSUE
NEW BOOK: SAVING THE OREGON TRAILGary Greenbaum passed along information about a new book relating to a classic U.S. commemorative coin - the Oregon Trail Memorial half dollar.-Editor Gary writes: "This is Dennis M. Larsen's final volume in his biographical series on pioneer Ezra Meeker (1830-1928), "Saving the Oregon Trail", covering his final years and the origin of the Oregon Trail Memorial half dollar (he does me the courtesy of using my two published articles in The Numismatist on the subject as sources). He picks up on my theme that that long-lived half dollar was not about greed or fraud, but at worst incompetence and over enthusiasm, and criticizes some of what has been written on the subject by people like David Bowers." Here's a description from the publisher's site with some additional photos from Gary. -Editor 
Ezra Meeker lived ninety-eight highly productive years. At times endearing and captivating, he could also be exasperating and irrational. Once he committed to a cause, he was an unabashed promoter. Meeker devoted his final three decades to commemorating the Oregon Trail. A part of his story no one has previously told, this volume begins in 1901 and completes an epic biography. One of Washington Territory's earliest pioneers, Meeker first came west on the overland trail in 1852. He became a Puyallup community builder, agricultural tycoon, and world traveler before hop lice and the Panic of 1893 devoured his fortune. He dallied in mining and joined the Klondike gold rush, spending four years as a Yukon store proprietor. At age 75 he trekked east over the Oregon Trail with oxen and a covered wagon, setting markers along the way, and became a national celebrity. He visited New York, Washington, D.C., and the White House, and managed to convince regular citizens, the rich and famous, governors, legislators, and even three U.S. Presidents to support his trail preservation schemes. Never one to shy away from adventure, his other exploits included publishing books, lecture tours, additional Oregon Trail expeditions (one in a bi-plane), attending the Alaska Yukon Pacific Exposition, experimenting with motion pictures, founding societies, cruising in what may have been the first motorized RV, performing in a Wild West show, and roaming the country selling commemorative coins. In the end, Meeker's extraordinary efforts were crucial to saving the trail. "Ezra Meeker was inspirational, charismatic, and beloved but also arrogant, aggravating, cantankerous, and obnoxious. Dennis Larsen's biography sings his praises, exposes his flaws, and shows why without Meeker, America might have forgotten the Oregon Trail's epic story."—Will Bagley, Independent Historian Illustrations / maps / notes / bibliography / index / 278 pages (2020) 
For more information, or to order, see:
Wayne Homren, Editor The Numismatic Bibliomania Society is a non-profit organization promoting numismatic literature. See our web site at coinbooks.org. To submit items for publication in The E-Sylum, write to the Editor at this address: whomren@gmail.com To subscribe go to: https://my.binhost.com/lists/listinfo/esylum All Rights Reserved. NBS Home Page Contact the NBS webmaster 
|