Welcome to YesterWest – the website for author and historian, Gary Ledoux.                                                                                                                                      Thanks for stopping by my web page!  You are just in time to help me celebrate a grand event!   Effective September 1, 2008, Nantan: The Life and Times of John P. Clum  Volume 2  Tombstone to Los Angeles 1882-1932, is available in both hard cover and paperback.  Together with Nantan Volume 1, this 416 page sequel will provide the most complete biography of one of the west’s most colorful characters, and Tombstone's most famous Mayor, John P. Clum!   I’m really excited about Volume 2 because it covers parts of Clum’s life that have received little or no attention by previous authors and historians.  What’s more, thanks to the generosity of Clum family members, and other historians (to whom I am most grateful) Volume 2 contains many heretofore unseen photos, of John P. and other family members.   From the legislative chambers of Washington, D.C., to the frozen tundra of Alaska, to the sandy beaches of Hawaii, John P. Clum saw America as it was healing from a bloody civil war, and graduating to adulthood.   He established postal service in Alaska, quelled illegal lottery operations in Texas, and helped settle southern California.  He spoke in hundreds of public speeches, about his love of America, and his time on two frontiers.  And when he wasn’t talking about America and his personal adventures, he was writing about them, leaving a rich legacy of first-person accounts about an era that is long since gone.   Now, you can re-live his adventures, and see the dawning of the 20th century through his eyes, in Nantan Volume 2.  Coincidently, the launch date of this final volume, September 1, coincides with with John Clum's 157th birthday.   For more information, and ordering instructions, click on the “Nantan Volume 2” tab above.   Happy Trails!