David,

Here's a brief review of the Osprey book, "Native American Mounted Riflemen" by Ken Martin, my cousin, and owner of the History of the Cherokee website at http://cherokeehistory.com. The second review is of the Civil War in Indian Territory book by Lar Gjertviet, a noted Norwegian, American Civil War historian.

Re: Osprey book

Posted By: Ken Martin
Date: Friday, 24 November 2006, at 3:54 p.m.

In Response To: Osprey book (Stephen B. McCartney)

I purchased the Native American Mounted Rifleman book published by Osprey. The text contains numerous factual errors. The description of the Battle of Honey Springs says basically that the Union troops were on a scout from Ft Gibson and were ambushed by Confederates while crossing Elk Creek. There are quite a number of other factual errors including a couple of maps containing glaring errors such as placing Ft Gibson on the west side of the Grand River. There are many more subtle errors. Persons who read and rely on the text will be significantly misinformed.

I must assume, and I have been advised, that this is typical of Osprey. The artwork is very good which is a big selling point for Osprey but little consideration is given to qualifications of the author or historical accuracy of the text.

Re: Osprey book

Posted By: Lars Gjertveit
Date: Sunday, 26 November 2006, at 1:38 p.m.

In Response To: Re: Osprey book (Ken Martin)

Ken,

While I agree with your assessment of the Native American Mounted Rifleman book, the second title, The American Civil War in the Indian Territory, is significantly better. Very few errors, and actually as good a short overview of the war in that region as there is at this point. Detail is sparse on many aspects, of course, but that is a common feature of all Osprey titles. As regards the artwork, however, it is uneven with an overemphasis on the unusual. I would have preferred to see the art from Native American Mounted Rifleman paired with the text from the ACW in Indian Territory. Anyway, I would give the latter title a conditional recommendation, as an introduction to the subject.

Hope this helps.

Jim