We made a mistake. In our previous blog post, optimistically titled "We Met a Deadline!" we included the following update on one of our upcoming projects: "And Homer Nelson, our resident crusty old man and Wild West nerd is compiling annotations for an American Wayfarer edition of the early American autobiography classic: "Narrative of the Life of David Crockett," written by the legendary frontiersman himself."
This, as it turns out, was jumping the gun a bit. While good old crusty-throat Homer is working on a project, it's not about Davy Crockett. In actuality, its about a different early frontier hero: the legendary frontiersman Daniel Boone.
But don't let our mistake disappoint you. Before Davy Crockett was crowned the "King of the Wild Frontier," Daniel Boone was the undisputed hero of the back country. Among the first Americans to brave the wilds of the Kentucky wilderness, Boone became the archetype for generations of frontier legends to follow.
Called the great pathfinder, Daniel Boone opened the frontier for settlers by founding the Wilderness Road and earned his legend by leading the defense of the fort of Boonesborough against an army of over 400 Shawnee warriors during the revolutionary war. We'll probably gush over Daniel Boone's adventures more in the coming weeks, but for now that old Homer Nelson is working on supplemental articles for a publication of the aptly titled "The Life and Adventures of Col. Daniel Boone," originally published in 1784 by Kentucky historian and fellow pioneer, John Filson. Compiled from interviews with the man himself, Filson's book is the closest thing we have to a genuine autobiography from Boone.
For you Crockett fans, sorry to disappoint, but knowing Homer, old Davy will probably be next on the docket.
- The American Wayfarer Team
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