{"product_id":"portrait-of-a-prospector-edward-schieffelins-own-story-9780806157733","title":"Portrait of a Prospector: Edward Schieffelin's Own Story","description":"\u003cp\u003eEdward \"Ed\" Schieffelin (1847-1897) was the epitome of the American frontiersman. A former Indian scout, he discovered what would become known as the legendary Tombstone, Arizona, silver lode in 1877. His search for wealth followed a path well-trod by thousands who journeyed west in the mid to late nineteenth century to try their luck in mining country. But unlike typical prospectors who spent decades futilely panning for gold, Schieffelin led an epic life of wealth and adventure. In \u003cem\u003ePortrait of a Prospector\u003c\/em\u003e, historian R. Bruce Craig pieces together the colorful memoirs and oral histories of this singular individual to tell Schieffelin's story in his own words.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eCraig places the prospector's family background and times into context in an engaging introduction, then opens Schieffelin's story with the frontiersman's accounts of his first prospecting attempts at ten years old, his flight from home at twelve to search for gold, and his initial wanderings in California, Nevada, and Utah. In direct, unsentimental prose, Schieffelin describes his expedition into Arizona Territory, where army scouts assured him that he \"would find no rock . . . but his own tombstone.\"\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eUnlike many prospectors who simply panned for gold, Schieffelin took on wealthy partners who invested the enormous funds needed for hard rock mining. He and his co-investors in the Tombstone claim became millionaires. Restless in his newfound life of wealth and leisure, Schieffelin soon returned to exploration. Upon his early death in Oregon he left behind a new strike, the location of which remains a mystery.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eCollecting the words of an exceptional figure who embodied the western frontier, Craig offers readers insight into the mentality of prospector-adventurers during an age of discovery and of limitless potential.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003ePortrait of a Prospector\u003c\/em\u003e is highly recommended for undergraduate western history survey courses.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAbout the Author\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eCraig, R. Bruce:\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e - \u003cb\u003eR. Bruce Craig\u003c\/b\u003e is an independent historian and biographer. A former national park ranger and second winner of the prestigious Freeman Tilden Award for Outstanding National Park Interpretation (1982), Craig also served as Northeast Regional Director of National Parks Conservation Association, and in stints as Executive Director of the Association of National Park Cooperating Associations (now Association of Partners for Public Lands), the National Parks Trust, and the National Coalition for History. Today he lives in Atlantic Canada, where he teaches American History at the University of Prince Edward Island. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e Craig is the editor of the fiftieth anniversary edition of Freeman Tilden's classic work, \u003ci\u003eInterpreting Our Heritage\u003c\/i\u003e, and author of \u003ci\u003eTreasonable Doubt: The Harry Dexter White Spy Case\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eThe Apprenticeship of Alger Hiss\u003c\/i\u003e. \u003cbr\u003e","brand":"University of Oklahoma Press","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50413126942994,"sku":"9780806157733","price":24.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0831\/4771\/8930\/files\/img_07d4cf7d-5e19-4057-a509-ca2beb22900b.jpg?v=1729347998","url":"https:\/\/surprise-castle.myshopify.com\/products\/portrait-of-a-prospector-edward-schieffelins-own-story-9780806157733","provider":"Surprise Castle","version":"1.0","type":"link"}