The Westers: Into The Unknown

by John Bennett

This is the second book in "The Westers" series. The first, "The Westers: Upheaval" saw the western North Carolina wilderness shaken by the news that Andrew Jackson would likely be the new President of the United States. And that key to his presidency would be the forcible removal of native tribesmen, primarily Cherokee, to a yet-to-be-determined reservation. This would likely include those married to white settlers.
A group composed of these settlers and tribesmen determined to migrate far away from his clutches and locate a home where they could live in peace. They made their plans and began to prepare for the move.
In "The Westers: Into The Unkown", the move has begun. The Benit clan has left early, journeying into the Holston River country (present day Bristol, Virginia) to spend what will likely be the last time they will see their family there.
The Tipton clan, along with several mixed families, has also begun the trek, traveling westward to The Boat Yard (present day Kingsport) en route to the Cumberland Gap. A large contingent of Cherokee from the Quallah will follow, leaving enough space between the parties that they do not overwhelm the available campsites and forage.
The Benit and Tipton parties meet north of the Boat Yard and continue through Kentucky, crossing the Ohio River north of Louisville. They continue to the northwest through Missouri, crossing the Mississippi River near Alexandria. There they decide to follow the Iowa River northwest into uncharted country; they delay long enough for both parties to merge before they continue.
As they travel they will encounter hostile tribesmen, even more hostile white renegades, uncharted territory, even unknown rivers and waterways. They will also interact peacefully with the Pawnee and Ponca tribes.
They are well aware they will not reach their new homeland this year. With that in mind, they locate a place to spend the winter near present Sergeant's Bluff, Iowa. They locate a place they feel will make a good winter camp and erect Cherokee longhouses in which to spend the winter. Then they engage in supplying their camp with food and fuel for the coming winter.
Oh, yes, and Cebrum and Maggie Benit become the proud parents of a bouncing baby girl!
Join them on what will be a long and eventful journey of experienced pioneers. Pioneers who are well able to endure the hardships and hazards of such a project as this, and to find at its end a new homeland that will be...well, to answer that you will just have to come along and see for yourself!

406 pages, Kindle Edition

Published April 21, 2017

About the author

Librarian note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.

John^Bennett