Product Description

The mélange of works dealing with personalities emerging from the Lincoln County, New Mexico War have treated Fred Waite shabbily. Although many writers have termed him the best friend of Billy the Kid, he has never been properly researched. From the earliest work Waite has been portrayed as a minor character drifting into Lincoln just in time to get hired into a shooting war, and who then faded into obscurity. The truth, as presented in this book, is far different for Waite was a wealthy adventurer drawn into the conflict by circumstance rather than a rogue hireling. It's even probable he was an investor in John Tunstall's grand design for dominating Southeast New Mexico. Moreover, after this adventure he did not pale into the background. Rather, Fred Waite, the outlaw, while battling Federal attempts to dismantle his people's government, brightened into the dynamic and respected statesman F. Tecumseh Waite. It's a remarkable story, one you owe to yourself to read.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #2369347 in Books
• Published on: 2007-10-07
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 248 pages

About the Author
Mike is a historian whose Indian Territory articles have appeared in: The Chronicles of Oklahoma; Oklahombres Journal; Oklahoma Outlaw and Lawmen Historical Association Journal; the Western Outlaw-Lawman History Association Journal and Wild West magazine.

Customer Reviews

A Fine Biography and Social History
History is by no means fair about whom it chooses to remember. Who would have ever predicted that among the most celebrated figures of the Wild West would be a young hoodlum whose only apparent talent lay in killing? But oceans of ink have been spilled about Billy the Kid, a criminal who has since mysteriously attained almost mythic status. A seemingly endless series of books and articles (and surely more will follow) recite, examine, and debate the minutiae of his short, violent life. Billy the Kid has become a literary industry, and it is there that many readers will first become aware of Fred Tecumseh Waite, who also was involved in the infamous Lincoln County War.

Mike Tower has set as his task to demonstrate that Waite was a far more interesting and complex man than his role as an associate of Billy would suggest. And in this Tower succeeds admirably. We get a thorough and interesting analysis of the background behind the events in Lincoln County plus a definitive biography--the first book-length one yet to appear--of a man whose accomplishments certainly deserve greater recognition.

Best of all, Tower presents a clear and readable account of one of the most exciting but confused periods in American history: the final days of the twin territories (the Indian and Oklahoma Territories). Imagine a vast space peopled with dozens of different Indian tribes, many of them the victims of forced removal. Throw into this mix some of the most violent outlaws and gangs in the nation's history. Season this stew with many thousands of boomers, sooners, freedmen, and others, all promoting their own interests. Add a judicial system that was at best a patchwork of confused authorities. Finish this off with huge political controversies: would Oklahoma be one state or two? Would the tribes own land or only their individual members? It was in this challenging environment that, as Tower shows, the outlaw Fred Waite became a true statesman. I highly recommend Mike's book.

--John Kinney, author, Captain Jack and the Dalton Gang

A welcome biography
Readers interested in the lives of Lincoln County War secondary figures and in pre-state Oklahoma will welcome this study of Billy the Kid associate Fred Waite. For those who only know young warrior Waite's several confrontations during the war that made Billy the Kid famous, surprises are in store. After leaving southern New Mexico a wanted man, Waite went on to Indian Territory and entered Chickasaw Nation politics, achieving high public offices. Before his untimely death at age 42, he was heir apparent to the state governorship.

For those looking for new insights into the Lincoln County conflict, this book is not the place, with only eighteen pages directly addressing it. The reverse is the case, as this feud would influence how Waite handled later confrontations in the often-violent world of Oklahoma territorial politics. The Lincoln County War pages are not without reward, however, as they weigh Waite's involvement in the killings of Morton, Baker and McCloskey and the assassinations of Brady and Hindmann. They also examine Waite's involvement in the Blazer's Mill shootout, and his participation in rustling with Billy the Kid up to the Tascosa period.

The vast majority of the text covers Waite's development from New Mexico "Regulator" into respected statesman. The author's prodigious research is evident throughout, and the descriptive writing of the region's geography, from Fort Arbuckle to Indian Territory, is evocative. Chickasaw culture is respectfully observed. Various gunfights and killings arising out of factional and personal conflicts are clearly narrated. Indian and mixed race politics in Oklahoma in the years before statehood are given proper context, with conclusions drawn by the author measured and properly qualified. The reader misses a table of contents for the nine chapters, and chapter headings would be welcome. The endnotes are organized more appropriately for an essay than a book. Better mechanical editing would be welcome for future editions. Biographies of worthy western historical figures are always welcome, and this book is a fine edition to the genre.