James Alexander Thom
Encyclopedia
James Alexander Thom is an American
author, most famous for his works in the Western
genre and colonial American history; known for their historical accuracy borne of his painstaking research. Born in Gosport
, Indiana
, he graduated from Butler University
and served in the United States Marine Corps
. He taught one course in journalism
at Indiana University
, and was a contributor to the The Saturday Evening Post
. He and his fifth wife, Claudia "Dark Rain" Thom, presently live in the "Indiana hill country" near Bloomington
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
author, most famous for his works in the Western
Western (genre)
The Western is a genre of various visual arts, such as film, television, radio, literature, painting and others. Westerns are devoted to telling stories set primarily in the latter half of the 19th century in the American Old West, hence the name. Some Westerns are set as early as the Battle of...
genre and colonial American history; known for their historical accuracy borne of his painstaking research. Born in Gosport
Gosport, Indiana
Gosport is a town in Wayne Township, Owen County, Indiana, United States. The population was 826 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Bloomington, Indiana Metropolitan Statistical Area.-Geography:Gosport is located at ....
, Indiana
Indiana
Indiana is a US state, admitted to the United States as the 19th on December 11, 1816. It is located in the Midwestern United States and Great Lakes Region. With 6,483,802 residents, the state is ranked 15th in population and 16th in population density. Indiana is ranked 38th in land area and is...
, he graduated from Butler University
Butler University
Butler University is a private university located in Indianapolis, Indiana. Founded in 1855 and named after founder Ovid Butler, the university offers 60 degree programs to 4,400 students through six colleges: business, communication, education, liberal Arts and sciences, pharmacy and health...
and served in the United States Marine Corps
United States Marine Corps
The United States Marine Corps is a branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for providing power projection from the sea, using the mobility of the United States Navy to deliver combined-arms task forces rapidly. It is one of seven uniformed services of the United States...
. He taught one course in journalism
Journalism
Journalism is the practice of investigation and reporting of events, issues and trends to a broad audience in a timely fashion. Though there are many variations of journalism, the ideal is to inform the intended audience. Along with covering organizations and institutions such as government and...
at Indiana University
Indiana University Bloomington
Indiana University Bloomington is a public research university located in Bloomington, Indiana, in the United States. IU Bloomington is the flagship campus of the Indiana University system. Being the flagship campus, IU Bloomington is often referred to simply as IU or Indiana...
, and was a contributor to the The Saturday Evening Post
The Saturday Evening Post
The Saturday Evening Post is a bimonthly American magazine. It was published weekly under this title from 1897 until 1969, and quarterly and then bimonthly from 1971.-History:...
. He and his fifth wife, Claudia "Dark Rain" Thom, presently live in the "Indiana hill country" near Bloomington
Bloomington, Indiana
Bloomington is a city in and the county seat of Monroe County in the southern region of the U.S. state of Indiana. The population was 80,405 at the 2010 census....
.
Works
- Spectator Sport
- Staying Out of Hell
- Long Knife (a novelized biography of General George Rogers ClarkGeorge Rogers ClarkGeorge Rogers Clark was a soldier from Virginia and the highest ranking American military officer on the northwestern frontier during the American Revolutionary War. He served as leader of the Kentucky militia throughout much of the war...
, Revolutionary War Hero, victor of the Battle of Fort Sackville in Vincennes, IndianaVincennes, IndianaVincennes is a city in and the county seat of Knox County, Indiana, United States. It is located on the Wabash River in the southwestern part of the state. The population was 18,701 at the 2000 census...
, and conqueror of the Northwest TerritoryNorthwest TerritoryThe Territory Northwest of the River Ohio, more commonly known as the Northwest Territory, was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from July 13, 1787, until March 1, 1803, when the southeastern portion of the territory was admitted to the Union as the state of Ohio...
) - From Sea to Shining Sea (a novelized biography based on the lives of the John and Ann Rogers Clark family, their 10 children which included brothers General George Rogers ClarkGeorge Rogers ClarkGeorge Rogers Clark was a soldier from Virginia and the highest ranking American military officer on the northwestern frontier during the American Revolutionary War. He served as leader of the Kentucky militia throughout much of the war...
, Revolutionary War Hero, and Captain William ClarkWilliam ClarkWilliam Clark was an American explorer, soldier, Indian agent, and territorial governor. A native of Virginia, he grew up in prestatehood Kentucky before later settling in what became the state of Missouri...
of the Lewis and Clark expeditionLewis and Clark ExpeditionThe Lewis and Clark Expedition, or ″Corps of Discovery Expedition" was the first transcontinental expedition to the Pacific Coast by the United States. Commissioned by President Thomas Jefferson and led by two Virginia-born veterans of Indian wars in the Ohio Valley, Meriwether Lewis and William...
to the Pacific) - Panther in the Sky (a novelized biography of TecumsehTecumsehTecumseh was a Native American leader of the Shawnee and a large tribal confederacy which opposed the United States during Tecumseh's War and the War of 1812...
, the Shawnee Indian chieftain) - Follow the River (based on the Draper's Meadow massacreDraper's Meadow massacreOn July 8, 1755, a small outpost among the rolling ridges of southwest Virginia, was raided by Shawnee Indians. Rising tensions between the natives and western settlers were exacerbated by fighting in the French and Indian War and the encroachment on tribal hunting grounds. Recent victories by the...
of 1755) - Red Heart
- Sign Talker (a novelized biography of George DrouillardGeorge DrouillardGeorge Drouillard was a civilian interpreter for the Lewis and Clark's Voyage of Discovery.-Biography:George Drouillard was born in 1773 at the Detroit River region, son of Pierre Drouillard and a Shawnee woman of the Flat Head sept named Asoundechris...
) - Warrior Woman, co-written with Claudia Dark Rain Thom (a novelized biography of NonhelemaNonhelemaNonhelema was a Shawnee chieftess during the 18th century and the sister of Cornstalk, with whom she migrated to Ohio and founded neighboring villages....
) - The Children of First Man
- St. Patrick's Battalion (a novel about Saint Patrick's BattalionSaint Patrick's BattalionThe Saint Patrick's Battalion , formed and led by Jon Riley, was a unit of 175 to several hundred immigrants and expatriates of European descent who fought as part of the Mexican Army against the United States in the Mexican-American War of 1846 to 1848. Most of the battalion's members had...
in the Mexican-American War of 1846) - The Art and Craft of Writing Historical Fiction