Valuable Addition to Literature of Southeastern Arizona September 25, 2012
By Roy B. Young
John D. Rose, widely acknowledged historian of southeastern Arizona, has provided a wealth of new information in his latest offering, On the Road to Tombstone. This is Rose's second book, the first being 2011's Charleston & Millville, A.T., Hell on the San Pedro. The second logically follows the first and is a continuation of Rose's important and groundbreaking work on the history of the towns and sites that were peripheral to Tombstone.
Students of early Arizona history, the territorial period, especially Pima and Cochise counties, fall, typically, into one or the other of two categories: those who simply love the Earp/Tombstone stories - both real and fanciful - and those who want to know the facts and the stories behind the facts. John Rose is a fact finder as well as a good story teller.
There is much about territorial Arizona that is unique to the western migration of America. And, while all of Arizona Territory has exciting, even spellbinding, stories, southeastern Arizona - in the minds of many historians - stands out for its widely divergent history. From the haunts of the Apaches and other tribes, to mining, to gambling and gunfights, Pima and Cochise counties offer it all.
Now, John Rose, whose middle name should be "accuracy," has tackled the important history of locales that would otherwise be little more than asterisks in most Arizona history books. He tells us about Drew's Station, using previously unacknowledged primary sources to pinpoint its founding, its location, and its importance in understanding some of the events that took place at or near there - such as the Benson stage robbery in 1881. The location of this robbery, which has become so integral to the story of the Earps, Bob Paul, and Wells Fargo, has long been disputed, but Rose deftly draws together facts and figures to clarify the murky history of this place.
No less important are Rose's accounts of the founding and history of Contention City and Fairbank - Fairbank being the only one of the three that survives to any degree today. The proximity of these small communities to Tombstone - then the county seat of Cochise County - brought about an intertwining of people, businesses, courts, and events that must be understood to fully comprehend the history of the area.
The book is replete with illustrations of items from John Rose's personal collection, many of which are shown for the first time.
From the mundane, such as the establishment of schools, to the thrilling accounts of robberies and posse chases, this book has it all. Every student of the history of Arizona Territory will find something new here. This is an important book and we can only hope from more from Rose's vast knowledge of southeastern Arizona.
Roy B. Young
Editor, Journal of the Wild West History Association
Author John Rose reveals (and revels in) the history of more Tombstone satellites September 7, 2012
John D. Rose, author of "Charleston & Milleville, A.T.: Hell on the San Pedro," has published a second volume on the stage stops and communities that have long appeared to serve little purpose except to provide spots on a map for Wyatt Earp-related events to happen. But "On the Road to Tombstone: Drew's Station, Contention City, and Fairbank" enriches the oft-narrated, perhaps overly familiar stories by placing them, no longer on top of a spot on the map, but now firmly within well-described environments. Wyatt and Doc pass through the pages, to be sure, but the longer lives of these communities on the San Pedro give Rose an opportunity to include other hard men with stories of their own, such as Jeff Milton, Burt Alvord, and Jerry Barton, as well as the hardy men like Ed Landers Drew and Sandy Bob Crouch who strove to build and run businesses amidst what Rose calls a "nice landscape, bad neighborhood."
As with his previous book, Rose makes good use of newspaper accounts and pioneer memoirs, but the real goldmine is his collection of photographs and documents of this remote stretch of American agriculture, industry, and thievery. The images in this second CreateSpace publication are much improved over the grainy quality in Rose's first book.
For those who delight in controversy, or at least expect to see it in a book about Contention City, the author obliges. With both feet, he jumps into the current argument over the exact location of the wash where the Drew's Station attempted stage robbery of March 1881 took place. He takes on the evidence submitted by other historians and researchers who place the spot further north. Personally, I think that wherever Old West enthusiasts are gathered in Wyatt Earp's name, no question will ever be settled. But Rose does a good job in attempting to do just that. What's his evidence? Buy the book and find out.By Paul Cool
Bringing the voices of the past to life! November 10, 2012
By William Struse
John Rose has done it again! Using the voices of the past, Rose takes you on a ride through the thrilling history of one of the Southwest's great mining booms. You'll be swept up into the history of desperados and lawmen; miners and gamblers; cowboys and Apaches, and a host of people in between. He retells the story of these amazing men and women by letting those who know the story best share their thoughts, hopes, and fears. This was a great book written by a talented historian whose knowledge and love of the subject clearly shows. Five stars!
By Roy B. Young
John D. Rose, widely acknowledged historian of southeastern Arizona, has provided a wealth of new information in his latest offering, On the Road to Tombstone. This is Rose's second book, the first being 2011's Charleston & Millville, A.T., Hell on the San Pedro. The second logically follows the first and is a continuation of Rose's important and groundbreaking work on the history of the towns and sites that were peripheral to Tombstone.
Students of early Arizona history, the territorial period, especially Pima and Cochise counties, fall, typically, into one or the other of two categories: those who simply love the Earp/Tombstone stories - both real and fanciful - and those who want to know the facts and the stories behind the facts. John Rose is a fact finder as well as a good story teller.
There is much about territorial Arizona that is unique to the western migration of America. And, while all of Arizona Territory has exciting, even spellbinding, stories, southeastern Arizona - in the minds of many historians - stands out for its widely divergent history. From the haunts of the Apaches and other tribes, to mining, to gambling and gunfights, Pima and Cochise counties offer it all.
Now, John Rose, whose middle name should be "accuracy," has tackled the important history of locales that would otherwise be little more than asterisks in most Arizona history books. He tells us about Drew's Station, using previously unacknowledged primary sources to pinpoint its founding, its location, and its importance in understanding some of the events that took place at or near there - such as the Benson stage robbery in 1881. The location of this robbery, which has become so integral to the story of the Earps, Bob Paul, and Wells Fargo, has long been disputed, but Rose deftly draws together facts and figures to clarify the murky history of this place.
No less important are Rose's accounts of the founding and history of Contention City and Fairbank - Fairbank being the only one of the three that survives to any degree today. The proximity of these small communities to Tombstone - then the county seat of Cochise County - brought about an intertwining of people, businesses, courts, and events that must be understood to fully comprehend the history of the area.
The book is replete with illustrations of items from John Rose's personal collection, many of which are shown for the first time.
From the mundane, such as the establishment of schools, to the thrilling accounts of robberies and posse chases, this book has it all. Every student of the history of Arizona Territory will find something new here. This is an important book and we can only hope from more from Rose's vast knowledge of southeastern Arizona.
Roy B. Young
Editor, Journal of the Wild West History Association
Author John Rose reveals (and revels in) the history of more Tombstone satellites September 7, 2012
John D. Rose, author of "Charleston & Milleville, A.T.: Hell on the San Pedro," has published a second volume on the stage stops and communities that have long appeared to serve little purpose except to provide spots on a map for Wyatt Earp-related events to happen. But "On the Road to Tombstone: Drew's Station, Contention City, and Fairbank" enriches the oft-narrated, perhaps overly familiar stories by placing them, no longer on top of a spot on the map, but now firmly within well-described environments. Wyatt and Doc pass through the pages, to be sure, but the longer lives of these communities on the San Pedro give Rose an opportunity to include other hard men with stories of their own, such as Jeff Milton, Burt Alvord, and Jerry Barton, as well as the hardy men like Ed Landers Drew and Sandy Bob Crouch who strove to build and run businesses amidst what Rose calls a "nice landscape, bad neighborhood."
As with his previous book, Rose makes good use of newspaper accounts and pioneer memoirs, but the real goldmine is his collection of photographs and documents of this remote stretch of American agriculture, industry, and thievery. The images in this second CreateSpace publication are much improved over the grainy quality in Rose's first book.
For those who delight in controversy, or at least expect to see it in a book about Contention City, the author obliges. With both feet, he jumps into the current argument over the exact location of the wash where the Drew's Station attempted stage robbery of March 1881 took place. He takes on the evidence submitted by other historians and researchers who place the spot further north. Personally, I think that wherever Old West enthusiasts are gathered in Wyatt Earp's name, no question will ever be settled. But Rose does a good job in attempting to do just that. What's his evidence? Buy the book and find out.By Paul Cool
Bringing the voices of the past to life! November 10, 2012
By William Struse
John Rose has done it again! Using the voices of the past, Rose takes you on a ride through the thrilling history of one of the Southwest's great mining booms. You'll be swept up into the history of desperados and lawmen; miners and gamblers; cowboys and Apaches, and a host of people in between. He retells the story of these amazing men and women by letting those who know the story best share their thoughts, hopes, and fears. This was a great book written by a talented historian whose knowledge and love of the subject clearly shows. Five stars!