Beginning with the epitaphs of Civil War veterans in his California home town's cemetery, author Jim Gregory traced fifty veterans to the battlefields of their youth--Shiloh, Antietam, Gettysburg, Missionary Ridge, The Wilderness and finally to the pursuit that led to the surrender at Appomattox. Using primary as well as secondary sources--including diaries, letters and official reports--Gregory describes the sights and sounds of battle, the leaders and the private soldiers, the excitement young men felt in combat and the profound depression many experienced in adjusting to postwar life in...

California was a wild and lawless place in the 1850s, and San Luis Obispo County was no exception. Outlaws and bandits passed along the El Camino Real, now Highway 101, leaving a trail of victims. Despite attempts to stem the tide of crime with a vigilante committee and a string of executions, notorious men continued to be drawn to the central coast well into the next century. The James brothers, the Daltons and even Al Capone made their mark here, while lawmen worked to tame this piece of the western frontier. Author Jim Gregory details nefarious activities lost to time.