Along the Trail to Freedom — John Duncklee

Escaping the Civil War and slavery, three young men go West in search of freedom. Arriving in Independence, Missouri, they meet a teamster who hires them for his wagon train to Santa Fe, New Mexico. The teamster admires and becomes friend with the three. In Santa Fe they decide to keep heading westward to Tucson. Once there, they go their separate ways but eventually experience warm reunions. This is a story of adventure as the fascinating characters search for freedom in their separate, yet together, ways. Many of the characters they encounter are true historical people and the landscape descriptions throughout are authentic, especially the Altar Valley of Sonora where the author once leased a ranch and bought and sold cattle. The same is true about other locations in southern Arizona where the author lived most of his life.