Cumberland Blood: Champ Ferguson's Civil War

Acknowledgments

xi Acknowledgments THIS WORK IS BUILT UPON THE WORK OF MANY OTHERS , and it is to them I am very grateful. In Albany, Kentucky, Mr. Jack Ferguson has chronicled the history of his community and the Ferguson family. He welcomed me and permitted me to photocopy his unpublished manuscript on the history of Clinton County. Luther C. Conner Jr. of Albany also provided valuable assistance. The staffs of the Western Kentucky University Department of Library Special Collections, the Tennessee State Library and Archives, and the National Archives all did a commendable job in pointing me in the right direction. I’m indebted as well to friends and colleagues who over the years have also done much to keep this project alive. My Tennessee cousin Alison Dykes and her husband Dr. James Dykes helped a great deal. I’m grateful to David Coffey for his support and to my colleagues in the History Department at Humboldt State University and especially Linda Wilson for all her help. I’m also indebted to Michael Boruta and Dennis Fitzsimons of the Geography Department at Humboldt State University. In addition, Mr. Nicholas Miles freely sent me a copy of his recent master’s thesis on Champ Ferguson. At Texas Christian University faculty members were exceptionally helpful in proofing this work, and I’m especially indebted to Kenneth Stevens for his keen eye for detail. Sylvia Frank Rodrigue, Barb Martin, Wayne Larsen, and Keith Poulter at Southern Illinois University Press were instrumental in bringing this project to fruition. This work is dedicated to the memory of my parents, Robert Lee Mays and Sylvia Bragg Mays. My father, acting as my research assistant, traveled with me and shared the adventures of researching this work that included camping in the mud in Kentucky and riding the Metro in Washington, D.C. Dad was a real trooper and constant companion. Also, my editor and wife Carrie Mays patiently put up with me through all stages of the work. I would also be amiss if I did not mention the late Grady McWhiney and his wife, Sue. Grady freely offered sound direction and advice, and something more, genuine friendship. xii Acknowledgments 8JB7:GA6C97ADD9 ...