Mollie: The Journal of Mollie Dorsey Sanford in Nebraska and Colorado Territories, 1857-1866 - Softcover

Sanford, Mollie Dorsey

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9780803258266: Mollie: The Journal of Mollie Dorsey Sanford in Nebraska and Colorado Territories, 1857-1866

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0803258267 ISBN 13: 9780803258266

Publisher: Univ of Nebraska Pr, 1976

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Mollie is a vivid, high-spirited, and intensely feminine account of city people homesteading in the raw, new land west of the Missouri. More particularly, it is the story of Mollie herself—just turned eighteen when the Dorseys left Indianapolis for Nebraska Territory—of her reaction to the transplanting and such vicissitudes as rattlesnakes, blizzards, Indians, and the hardships of pioneer life.

After her marriage to Byron Sanford, a romantic young blacksmith from New York State, Mollie's life took a new turn. Catching "Pike's Peak Fever," the Sanfords crossed the plains to Colorado and the gold diggings. In mining camps and later, after the outbreak of the Civil War, in forts and army posts, Mollie's strength and endurance were tried to the uttermost, but she reports her trials and tribulations with the same gaiety, courage, and common sense which she displayed in living through them.

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From the Inside Flap:

"Mollie is the best and most readable western journal I know this side of Francis Parkman’s. . . . It is important as a document of social history, and vital and alive as the record of one honest, sharp-eyed, and appealing pioneer woman." —Rocky Mountain News.

Mollie is a vivid, high-spirited, and intensely feminine account of city people homesteading in the raw, new land west of the Missouri. More particularly, it is the story of Mollie herself—just turned eighteen when the Dorseys left Indianapolis for Nebraska Territory—of her reaction to the transplantation and to her new life which included rattlesnakes, blizzards, Indians, and the hardships of pioneer life.

Mollie describes her nearly three-year engagement to Byron Sanford, during which time she worked as a seamstress, teacher, and cook. Following her wedding Mollie’s life took a new turn. Catching "Pike’s Peak Fever," the Sanfords crossed the plains to Colorado to join others digging for gold. In mining camps and later, after the outbreak of the Civil War, in forts and army posts, Mollie’s strength and endurance were tried to the uttermost, but she reports her trials and tribulations with the same gaiety, courage, and common sense that she displayed in living through them. Lillian Schlissel’s introduction discusses the Sanfords’ courtship, marriage, and their steadfast loyalty to each other.

About the Author:

Donald F. Danker is a professor emeritus of history at Washburn University. Lillian Schlissel is a professor emerita of English and American studies at Brooklyn College–CUNY. She is the author of Women’s Diaries of the Westward Journey and the coauthor of Far from Home: Families of the Westward Journey, which is available in a Bison Books edition.

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