Here is a great addition to our Pike’s Peak unit! Lost With Lieutenant Pike is a free eBook by Edwin Sabin. We’ve really enjoyed Sabin’s historical fiction accounts over the years.
This title covers the event from the perspective of a Pawnee Village boy. The rather extensive subtitle gives you the flavor of the book:
HOW FROM THE PAWNEE VILLAGE THE BOY NAMED SCAR HEAD MARCHED WITH THE YOUNG AMERICAN CHIEF CLEAR INTO THE SNOWY MOUNTAINS; HOW IN THE DEAD OF WINTER THEY SEARCHED FOR THE LOST RIVER AND THOUGHT THAT THEY HAD FOUND IT; AND HOW THE SPANISH SOLDIERY CAME UPON THEM AND TOOK THEM DOWN TO SANTA FÉ OF NEW MEXICO, WHERE ANOTHER SURPRISE AWAITED THEM
Action. Adventure. And a great way to learn history.
Sabin always based his fictional accounts on real events. To accurately cover events he moved West and followed the trails. He took pride in his historical accuracy.
The years from 1913 to 1931 were the fruitful ones—the time when Sabin perfected his craft, when he developed skills and intuitions, when he learned some research techniques, and when one book followed another. He possessed the eye of a scientist, the patience of a research historian, and the flair of a romantic novelist. The more he learned of the West and its history, the more he loved it and wrote about it….
“Edwin L. Sabin, Literary Explorer of the West,” Philip D. Jordan
The story of the Pike expedition is a favorite:
No braver soldiers ever marched than Lieutenant Pike and his little platoon. They lost their way; they struggled with cold below zero and snow to their waists, in the bleak high mountains. They had left home with only summer clothing; they were ragged and lean, and their feet froze until the bones came out. They went days at a time without food. And they were utterly lost, in a winter country; alone, one thousand miles from home.
But only once did a single man complain aloud. Their wonderful leader sternly silenced him, by reminding him that they all were sharing and suffering alike.
Lost With Lieutenant Pike
Great read and simple but effective way to learn more about the American West!
Free eBook
Additional Resources
Pike’s Peak: A Unit Study
Resources to flesh the book out … or vice versa.
Map
For a notebook, from the book.
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