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There are many reasons for the success of America. Some are explored in this work of historical fiction, Where Eagles Fly Free, set during the most transformational decade of American history. But America is more than a country. It’s an ideal.  Unlike any other country before it, America was founded on one fundamental principal: to promote the success of the individual. The American Constitution is uniquely crafted-- of the people, by the people, and for the people. For two centuries, most Americans thought it was by Divine Providence that America was established - an American covenant with the Almighty intended to serve the best interests of each and every individual citizen. The first of its kind, there are 116 countries who over the centuries have tried to replicate the ideas America’s founders had in mind; still, none have reached any success comparable to the American experiment. 

We are a nation of immigrants. We have always welcomed immigrants and will continue to do so. Although it is imperative we do so in a responsible manner. There are many around the world who would do harm to America. It is incumbent upon our leaders to do everything in their power to protect the individual citizens.

Absolutely! That is what the story of Where Eagles Fly Free is all about. Only in this country can you start with nothing and through strength of character achieve tremendous success -financial, social, political, and in interpersonal success.

My mother was an orphan. In the final weeks of her life, she told me much about her birth family in Wyoming and asked to be buried in the family plot. When we buried her, I found that the largest tombstones in the entire cemetery were of our relatives, Thomas and Annie right. I spent time researching who they were and discovered the absolutely fascinating story of their lives in both England and America. It is the story of immigrants in America that has been repeated over and over again by so many. It is a part of our national heritage and most every individual American citizen today is related to families not unlike this one.

I’m afraid sometimes we forget how lucky we are to be citizens of this great country. The passion shown in their love for each other and of their new country was probably not that uncommon for European immigrants in the 1860s. I did my best to show the intensity and the emotion that these two loves can have to influence what we do with our lives. It was written with all the intention of making our own lives better, of helping us appreciate the love for family, our friends, and the country that has been such a blessing in our lives.

This historical fiction encompasses one of the most pivotal decades in American history. The Wright’s story is an example of the thousands of men and women who came to America’s shores, searching for liberty and land after the Civil War. Within the decade of the 1860s, not only was the 13th Amendment passed to free the slaves, but the 14th Amendment as well, guaranteeing equal application of the Bill of Rights - life, liberty property, civil rights, freedom of religion, freedom of speech, assembly, press, privacy, the right to bear our arms and the right to equal protection, legal, and voting rights, etc. These rights became more than just a federal recommendation, but as championed by Abraham Lincoln, the 14th Amendment extended those rights to every state and to all individual citizens. It bolstered equal opportunity, helping to drive expansion of America. And eventually, the 14th Amendment led to making women, black citizens and other minorities equal under the law. Of course, the full implementation of those rights and freedoms remain an ongoing struggle.

I was especially fascinated by the technological advancements in the building of the transcontinental railroad and telegraph system in the mid-19th century. Abraham Lincoln was prophetic in his description of the future of America. He did everything in his power to tie the North to the South--one of the outcomes of the Civil War—and to tie the East to the West with the transcontinental railroad and telegraph line that brought instant communication from San Francisco to New York and reduced the six-month dangerous travel-time to a comfortable one-week adventure. This great technological advance leapfrogged America a hundred years into the future and fast-tracked the elimination of the cultural divide among the many nationalities, races, and faiths across America.

Unfortunately, people throughout the ages have been critical and distrustful of others not of their faith, race, ethnicity, or political outlook on life. In the American experiment, it is incumbent on each of us to overlook these differences and celebrate our common interests that bring us together. As a people, we have more in common than in our differences. That is the beauty of the American experiment-- to make the most of our individuality, to collectively make us better individual citizens, a greater country, and even greater in the future.

I did my best to paint an accurate picture of the growing pains of America in order to show that leaving the aristocratic brutality of the Old World to the wondrous benefits of the New World was not without its challenges. I tried my best to show that America has its flaws and that over the centuries it has been up to us, as its citizens and beneficiaries, to work to resolve our differences and remove those flaws. Of course, this is still an ongoing process even today.

It is true that women have had a difficult go of it over the centuries. And like most women of that era, did lose children and worked very hard in a brutal American frontier. I did my best to reflect the emotional challenges, as well, that women went through to do their part. Much has changed in the last 250 years and I am happy to see fellow writers like Kristin Hannah and others focus their work on the contribution of women in our American heritage. It is all a part of our continued effort to show respect and value the contributions of women, minorities, and people of different faiths to furthering our American covenant.

Most people are reluctant to look at the warts on the underbelly of society. I made an effort in this new book and in the first of this series, Out Of The Darkness, to show warts and all in painting the picture of the greatest country of all time. Unfortunately, persecution because of faith, opposition to slavery and support of indigenous peoples had some very dark sides in the 19th century. The stories of abuse of this particular religious sect, as well as blacks, Indians, Irish, and other immigrants, etc., are sobering. But brought to light, they make us all want to be better men and women, better Americans.

Despite the great leaps forward in human rights during the 1860s, the American Indians, not considered citizens of America, were driven from their lands and slaughtered indiscriminately. To tame the Wild West, the 1862 “forced” Indian Treaty and Land Grant Acts were used to push Indians off the land in order to offer this hostile frontier to desperate young city dwellers in the East, encouraging them to move west.

An Indian chief who plays an integral part in this historical fiction ultimately leads a Shoshoni rebellion against the U.S. government in their fight to retain their heritage. He was killed in the battle of Salmon River by the US Calvary in August 1879, some years after the end of the story. Those who sided with the Indians, like the Wright family, suffered greatly in part because of this. They were considered unsuitable for military service because of their relationship with the Indians. In the delicate balance between white man and Indian, it was the Indian who would lose the battle in the end, but not before killing many of the settlers along the way.

I am happy to say that in recent decades we have made leaps and bounds in an effort to preserve our natural surroundings. The characters in Where Eagles Fly Free felt a strong tie to the natural world. Spring Hollow, where they ultimately end up in Wyoming, not too far from the great Tetons and Yellowstone in Park City, is an example of the best nature has in store for mankind anywhere in the world. This book celebrates the grandeur of the natural world. In the last paragraph of Where Eagles Fly Free, the main character describes their future home this way: “As far as Tom was concerned, for as long as the waters flowed, and the grasses grew, there would never be a clear separation between the natural beauty of this sacred place and the hallowed ground of religious expression.”

There are always examples of corporate abuse in a capitalistic society. All forms of government have their flaws. But 400+ years has shown that capitalism is the most successful cure for the poor in the world. It has proven a better elixir for the ailment of poverty than any other social program or form of government. The key is to ensure we as individual citizens do our part to keep the playing field fair. Our country is governed by the rule of law. But sometimes, as in the case of this novel, even the rule of law is not enough without citizens stepping up to make a difference, change laws, and stand for the right. Of course, we still have problems to solve, a reason for free speech to debate the answers across this country.  But good people can, and hopefully will, do their best to get it right. Where Eagles Fly Free shows the best of the American spirit in the fight to champion individual rights.

Of course you can’t speak of the 1860s without mentioning Abraham Lincoln. He played a role in so much of what is covered in this book-- the Civil War, the transcontinental railroad tying East to West, negotiations with Brigham Young, who led the first large group west, interaction with Native Americans. Of course, all those that we consider a part of the Gilded Age were young at the time--Andrew Carnegie, Mark Twain, Rockefeller, Alexander Graham Bell, Thomas Edison, JP Morgan, and so many more. This book focuses primarily on the building of the transcontinental railroad, specifically through the Wyoming and Utah territories, but there is much of the growth of America that is touched on in various ways.

Abraham Lincoln was prophetic and accomplished great strides in reaching the goals set with the Declaration of independence 100 years earlier. He leaves a large footprint in this historical fiction. There is still work to be done, but America is the greatest country in the world has ever seen. It’s up to us now as individual citizens to do what we can to fill those shoes-- to fulfill our American covenant.