From Crown to Glory

About the Book

The journey of a family from being steeped in the loyalty to the Crown to the agony of separation to protect their freedoms is the theme of this work. Through three generations the family struggles with the wilderness, the Indians, the French, and fictional adversaries. Clashes over individual rights, slavery, and relationship with the Cherokee Indians as well as the Crown advance the plot. The fictitious character of the trail driver, Zeke Proctor and his giant freedman, Alexander, provide the family's contact with the outside word as well as some comic relief. Learning to survive on the Carolina frontier envelops the story.

About the Author

The author was born in Oklahoma the son of a railroad telegrapher and accountant. He spent his first fourteen years in and around the Osage Indian reservation where he lived a "Huck Finn" existence among the Osage hills and creeks.

At the age of fourteen the family moved to Los Angeles and then to Arizona where he attended several high schools and met for the first time the wonders of a multi-cultural environment.

Later Attended Arizona State College and finally the University of Southern California where he completed a Doctor of Education Degree. He worked as a teacher, consultant, and local and state administrator before retiring.

The author is married to Betty Simmons Neel. They have five children and ten grandchildren.