Thomas Jackson Slaybaugh

Mojave Thomas Jackson Slaybaugh

The author of Mojave is a storyteller who takes the reader along on a wagon train from Independence, Missouri, to Sutter's Fort, California in the 1840's. The reader, young or old, male or female, can share the hardships, the dangers, the humor, the monotony and the beauty of the California Trail in Mojave. The writer, who grew up on an Ohio farm, never lost his love of the outdoors, travel and American history. This book reflects that love. His ancestors played a part in the early settlements and the westward movement. He recalls that, as a small boy at a family reunion, a newspaper clipping was read telling of one ancestor who set a record by driving a Conestoga wagon from Philadelphia to Pittsburgh in the dead of winter in 100 days. Following a varied career as a newspaperman, pilot, magazine editor, and world traveler, the author fulfilled the life-long ambition by traveling the California Trail, researching pioneer records, and examining the still-visible marks left by the emigrants - wagon wheel ruts, names and dates scratched on landmarks, rebuilt forts and diary pages. The result - Mojave, a novel about great Americans.