Electa
A Historical Novel
by
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"We’re well armed. We’ll be all right," he said, grinning reassuringly. "There are no guarantees out here, are there James?" "None but the Lord’s, my dear." She contentedly slipped her arm through his. Behind them, Electa arranged her seat blanket as a cushion. "How I miss our Dearborn," she sighed. "Yes, but your one-horse Dearborn would never carry what these buckboard wagons can. I wonder if you will ever see a Dearborn in Idaho Territory," Francis said. "If I do it will only serve to remind me of home." "Electa, this place, all of it," he said, making a great sweeping gesture, "this is your home now, and the sooner you consider it to be so, the happier you’ll be." He wondered how she would take his unasked-for advice, but thought he had known her long enough to take the liberty. "But how does one do that?" she said. "Can I, in one moment, erase an entire lifetime of memories? Of home, and family, and friends, and instantly make a new life here? No, I’m afraid it will take much longer than I care to think about." "But what if you found someone you cared for, someone who could take your mind off the past?" he asked. "Well, if that man is alive I would certainly like to meet him," she said, and they laughed. She thought, "Who and what might such a man be?" "I can’t imagine marrying a miner," she said, "or a man who has lived in these mountains for years, and what sort does that leave?" "Well, maybe you’ll meet someone sooner than you think."
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About the Book
This is a work of historical fiction. I have endeavored to balance the historical accuracy of places, dates, and characters with a reasonable portrayal of how the actual people might have lived their lives in what we now recognize as Montana’s history. Using fictional liberty, I have depicted the character’s personalities through their words and actions, just like in "real life." That, I believe, is the key to reconciling and understanding what really happened in southwest Montana in the early 1860s. The Vail family, Electa Bryan, Francis Thompson, Joseph Swift, and Henry Plummer among others in this story were actual people. We should understand that due to the complex natures of people and history, people made decisions based on equally complex motives and acted accordingly, just as they do now. We can regret that Electa never kept a diary, or, to our knowledge, never communicated to anyone why she left what was then Idaho Territory. The fact is that no one knows. Only God understands what motivated those who have lived before us. To judge them based on obviously biased writings, especially of their own time, seems unfair at best, if not criminal. The same Constitution that guarantees our rights should have protected those hung by so-called "Vigilante Justice." Today, few can appreciate the hardships of that wilderness life. But we can and should honor the endeavors of those who lived then by realizing and remembering that they were probably not as they have been represented in any book of history or fiction. Of course, there are no living witnesses to testify of what they were truly like. Only the land itself and a few buildings remain as mute observers of those who lived a very real, dangerous, yet exciting adventure in America’s early West.
About the Author
Since 1978, Dennis Fabel, his wife Carolyn, a Montana native, and their children have been intermittent Montana residents, having lived in Clinton, Frenchtown, Missoula, and Stevensville. Their last Montana residence was in Sheridan, near Bannack in southwest Montana. They have walked the streets of Bannack many times, and return every year to reflect on Montana’s early history and the lives of those who lived there. Dennis holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Pacific Coast Baptist Bible College and a Bachelor of Liberal Science degree from Montana College of the University of Montana, Western. Since 1996, he has been pastor of the First Baptist Church of Sligo, near Wilmington, Ohio. The Fabels raised four children in Montana, where their son, Will, still lives.