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I thought I'd share this email with others on the Fourm, in case anyone was interested. Mr. Howell had said that he would gladly send me a copy of the manuscript that he was working on. I had voiced some concerns over the line that he was taking, and wanted it to be correct. I never got a manuscript.
The message I sent to him is on this Forum, 7-24-08, wondering what had happened.
"Ms. Basaldus,
In reply to your message below. I apologize for not getting back to you. Since we last communicated, I have co-authored a book focusing on Benjamin F. Bickerstaff with Dr. James Smallwood and Carol Taylor. It is titled The Devil's Triangle: Ben Bickerstaff, Northeast Texans, and the War of Reconstruction. My interest in Ben Bickerstaff is purely professional. I am a university professor at Prairie View A & M University and I have only one remaining copy of the book, or otherwise I would mail you a copy. If interested, however, the East Texas Historical Association (who sponsored the publication of the work) still has copies available for sale at the following link:
<http://www.easttexashistorical.org/publications/
bowmancatal>
However, I would warn that Our interpretation of Ben Bickerstaff's actions after the Civil War is not favorable to him. Our account of his activities is accruate to the extent that the historical records reveal, but what we found in our research was that Ben turned in a cold blooded murder, (left email just as it was worded), when he return to Texas after the War. He indeed was a hero to many people in the North Texas region: Unfortunately, these people tended to be unrepentant ex-Confederates, former seccionists, white supremacists, and conservative Democrats. A coalition that did all they could to thwart the Reconstruction process in Texas. Nevertheless, I think given the nature of the topics and our views on Reconstruction in the state, we have provide a balanced view of Benjamin and those who rode with him.
Ken
Kenneth W. Howell, Ph. D.
Assistant Professor of History"
I'm not a descendant of this line of the Bickerstaff family. However, I thought I'd pass this along to anyone that was interested. I have not read the work.
My Bickerstaff line of the family, Rev. William S. Bickerstaff, Smith and Cherokee County, Texas, was aware that Ben Bickerstaff turned into an outlaw. It was related to me that he was gunned down in the streets of Alvarado. As far as I know, through my own research, and personal information, Benjamin F. Bickerstaff had no descendants, whether wife, or children.
Gayle Bickerstaff Basaldu
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