{"product_id":"1876-the-year-of-the-gun-9781610885812","title":"1876: The Year of the Gun","description":"\u003cp\u003eVeteran journalist, prolific author, and much-lauded historian Steve Wiegand takes readers across the post-Civil War Wild West in his \u003cem\u003e1876: The Year of the Gun\u003c\/em\u003e. Wiegand introduces--or re-introduces--us to lawmen such as Bat Masterson and Wyatt Earp and outlaws such as the Younger and James Brothers, as well as larger-than-life figures such as Buffalo Bill and George Custer. He details the stories of these real-life legends, their legacies, and the innumerable myths frequently attributed to them. Juxtaposing their real lives with the often-outlandish accounts of their exploits, \u003cem\u003e1876\u003c\/em\u003e swings from lighthearted humor to cliff-hanger suspense. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIt also portrays how the Wild West's initial, tantalizing promise of fame and glamour often disintegrated. But \u003cem\u003e1876\u003c\/em\u003e also offers readers a unique element noticeably absent from most Wild West books: historical context. Wiegand expands his contemporary spotlight on America's 100th birthday year to encompass what was going on in the rest of the country. On the very same day George Armstrong Custer was dying on a parched hill in southeastern Montana and immortalizing himself as both hero and villain, for example, Alexander Graham Bell was at America's first World's Fair in Philadelphia, demonstrating his new invention--the telephone. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAnd even as the James Boys and Younger Brothers were robbing banks, Democrats and Republicans were conspiring to steal the White House from the American voter. This book brings all this together in one place. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eFueled by the author's childhood interest in cowboys, train and bank robberies, and high noon shootouts, and their portrayal in iconic TV shows, \u003cem\u003e1876\u003c\/em\u003e is not only a well-researched, highly readable account of a pivotal centennial year in America's history, but also a delightful homage to famous Wild West figures who, with media help, helped shape the American character.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eBinding Type:\u003c\/b\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Bancroft Press\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 11\/04\/2025\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN:\u003c\/b\u003e 9781610885812\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 496\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 9.00h x 6.00w x 1.50d","brand":"Steve Wiegand","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":52107856806069,"sku":"9781610885812","price":18.66,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0473\/0804\/6492\/files\/img_26f95e80-a1ce-4481-8c7f-738d2e1b7d3f.jpg?v=1765862743","url":"https:\/\/pastforward.org\/products\/1876-the-year-of-the-gun-9781610885812","provider":"Past Forward","version":"1.0","type":"link"}