Michael J. Makley

Western Nevada was a very rough and dangerous place in the 1850s according to this short history of a notorious hanging that took place in Carson Valley, in the eastern Sierra Nevada foothills very close to the Nevada/California border in 1858. William "Lucky Bill" Thorington, so named because of his invariable success as a gambler, was lynched by a vigilante group after a kangaroo court trial for supposedly taking part in a murder he actually had nothing to do with.

While the story of Lucky Bill and his sad fate is an interesting one, what's even more interesting is the picture of the time and place painted by the author, who does a good job of setting the scene and providing background and history.

I bought this slim, locally published volume last year when my wife and I spent time in Markleeville, a small Sierra County, CA, town close to Carson Valley. The book, signed by the author, was on sale at the local history museum.… (mais)