Podcasts Culture Mountain & Prairie with Ed Roberson Peter Stark - Tales of Adventure, Exploration, & Epic Battles

Peter Stark - Tales of Adventure, Exploration, & Epic Battles

Published: Sept. 9, 2022, 4:37 a.m.

If you\u2019re a long-time Mountain & Prairie listener, then I\u2019m sure you\u2019ve heard me reference the author and historian Peter Stark. He\u2019s written some of the most memorable books I\u2019ve ever read, including one of my all-time favorites about the early history of the western United States\u2013 a thrilling tale of adventure and exploration called \u201cAstoria: John Jacob Astor and Thomas Jefferson's Lost Pacific Empire: A Story of Wealth, Ambition, and Survival.\u201d Peter has also spent years working as a correspondent for Outside and has written extensively for magazines including Smithsonian, Men\u2019s Journal, The New Yorker, and more.

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I\u2019ve been a fan of Peter\u2019s for more than twenty years, so when I was offered the chance to chat with him, I jumped at the opportunity. The focus of this conversation is Peter\u2019s newest project, an e-and-audio book titled \u201cSins of the Founding Father: George Washington, the Indigenous Tribes, and the Decisions that Shaped America\u2019s Future.\u201d\xa0 It\u2019s an in-depth exploration of an often-overlooked battle in 1791 between American troops and Indigenous tribes\u2013 a violent fight that was decisively won by the Native Americans, and resulted in three times more American deaths than the Battle of Little Big Horn. The e-book also covers the life and personality of George Washington, America\u2019s insatiable hunger for land, and the United States\u2019 uncertain future in the years just after the Revolutionary War.

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You might be wondering, what does George Washington have to do with the present-day American West? Back then, the term \u201cAmerican West\u201d described a region now known as Ohio. Well, as you\u2019ll hear in this conversation, this specific battle set the course of action for the next hundred+ years regarding the United States\u2019 policies toward Indigenous tribes. The American\u2019s crippling defeat led Washington and other leaders to ramp up their violent tactics against Native tribes and hold nothing back in their quest to claim as much western land as possible, as quickly as possible. It\u2019s an eye-opening story that gave me a much better understanding of the ambition, egos, and economic realities that laid the foundation for the modern-day West.

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"Sins of the Founding Father" is available exclusively at Scribd, and there\u2019s a link in the episode notes that will give you a free 30-day trial. Scribd is a really cool app that I\u2019ve enjoyed using for e and audiobooks, so go to Scribd.com to check it all out.\xa0 \u201cSins of the Founding Father\u201d is a\xa0 great read and at only 70 pages, you can enjoy it in one sitting. I hope you\u2019ll check it out, and I hope you enjoy this conversation.

TOPICS DISCUSSED:

  • 4:00 \u2013 Peter describes young George Washington
  • 7:15 \u2013 Peter discusses Washington\u2019s lust for land acquisition\xa0
  • 19:30 \u2013 Peter talks about how Washington\u2019s land speculation set the playbook for greedy land acquisition seen throughout US history
  • 23:00 \u2013 Peter jumps ahead to Washington\u2019s life in 1791
  • 40:00 \u2013 Peter talks about writing history in an engaging way\xa0
  • 46:00 \u2013 Peter discusses his own writing process
  • 51:15 \u2013 Peter discusses the historical parallels between our recent sociopolitical turmoil and that of the late 1700s following the Battle with No Name \u2013 or -discusses the fallout of the Battle with No Name
  • 1:01:15 \u2013 Peter\u2019s book recommendations

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