Cave-in-Rock
Near the southern tip of Illinois, Cave-in-Rock has a storied history. Both a state park and small town now bear its name. A fifty-foot circumference opening marks this natural cave on a bluff overlooking the Ohio River.
Stories abound from the early 1800s of gangs of thieves and pirates with notorious leaders using the cave as a home base for their illicit activities. Unsuspecting travelers along the Ohio River were their primary victims. Crimes ranged from thefts and extortion to even suspected killings. Discovery nearby of buried tooling and dies seems to validate claims that counterfeiting was one of the many byproducts of that place and time in history.
Robinson Crusoe
One of the most highly renowned novels of all time, Robinson Crusoe was first published by Daniel Defoe in 1719. It depicts the 1650s life of an adventure-seeking Englishman who ends up shipwrecked on a tropical desert island. Carving out a mostly solitary life of introspection, Crusoe eventually connects with a slave named Friday, whom he saves from cannibals. Crusoe teaches Friday English and about Christianity. The two island-dwellers highly respect and love each other; however, Crusoe is clearly the “master.”
Sewing Machine
In 1832, the first lockstitch sewing machine was invented by Water Hunt. He neglected to patent it, however, until 1854.
Boat Names
Many of the boats referenced in the story were actual riverboats of the time, although dates may not align. The Tecumseh was a wooden-hulled sidewheeler built in 1826 in Cincinnati. It was 174 feet long with 6 boilers, a gentlemen’s cabin forward, and ladies’ cabin aft. A boiler did not, however, explode as per the story.
Bibliography
Andrews, William L. From Fugitive Slave to Free Man: The Autobiographies of William Wells Brown. Columbia: University of Missouri, 2013.
Gillespie, Michael. Come Hell or High Water: A Lively History of Steamboating on the Mississippi and Ohio Rivers. Stoddard: Great River Publishing, 2001.
Simon, Paul. Freedom’s Champion: Elijah Lovejoy. Carbondale: Southern Illinois University Press, 1994.
Twain, Mark. Life on the Mississippi. Chicago: Dover Publications, 2000.
About the Author
Doug is retired from business careers at Target, Amex, and 3M. He has been married over forty-three years to Leslie, and they have two children, Brian and Cristina, as well as grandchildren, Carissa, Luke, and Gabriella. Except for two short years teaching in Alabama, Doug is a lifelong resident of the Twin Cities, where winters are far more tolerable than common folklore dictates. His love of writing historical fiction came late in life—no doubt from creative urges fostered early by his inventive father, and now unbound from the shackles of the business world.
As a youngster he was a slow reader (OK, still is). So unlike many other authors, Doug can’t say he devoured books (barbeque, yes). Although books with heavy description and literary flourish are appreciated, he gravitates to story. A fast-paced tale with strong characters revealing a loving and gracious God triumphs any day. If one can learn a bit of history along the way, so much the better. Hence, with his own writing, Doug tries to provide quick reads with meaningful glimpses of times past—stories of faith and life that transcend their historical timelines. Hopefully they will linger in minds longer than the time it takes to read them, as therein lies success.
A graduate of Cornell University, Doug currently serves on the Board of the Minnesota Inventors Hall of Fame, and when not writing, may be found in middle-school classrooms, inspiring kids to become inventors, or speaking on behalf of Feed My Starving Children.
Two of Doug’s previous books are award-winners:
2018 Illuminate—Juvenile/YA Fiction Silver Award for The Baker’s Daughter: Braving Evil in WWII Berlin (LPC Publishing).
2017 Moonbeam Children’s—YA Fiction-Religion Silver Award for Da Vinci’s Disciples.
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