Down Darkness Wide: U.S. Marshals and the Last Frontier by: James H. Chenoweth
Down Darkness Wide Art
Alaska (12/22/2004)
Down Darkness Wide provides chilling excitement, plus a sprinkling of humorous episodes, of how U.S. Marshals led the vanguard of law and order in Alaska, our last frontier; not in Hollywood style, but with nerve challenging, methodical, law enforcement procedures directed by America’s seldom recognized protective agency. For the history buff and students of criminology, this is a Klondike!
Down Darkness Wide Judith
Alaksa (12/22/2004)
I love a good story, and I have heard many of them in the years I have been with the Fraternal Order of Alaska State Troopers. The Alaska Trooper Museum has photos of Chenoweth and artifacts about the days of the Deputy Marshals, Alaska Highway Patrol, and Alaska Territorial Police. James Chenoweth brings those photos to life with an excellent memoir about his experiences as a Chief Deputy U.S. Marshal in the Territory of Alaska. It's hard to imagine the sweet-faced charmer shown in our photos, as the tough Chief Deputy Chenoweth, but the retired volunteers in the Trooper Museum are the same people depicted in Chenoweth's stories, and they have vouched for the authenticity of his tales. It is a rare treat to be able to glimpse the lives of those adventurers who came to the Territory of Alaska and helped to bring law and order to those living in our nation’s Last Frontier. Chenoweth has captured the nostalgic longing to be part of some big adventure. Alaska provided the setting, and the United States Marshal's service provided the men to complete the saga of the last days of the American frontier spirit. Alaska was where the closing curtain came down for the legendary frontier marshals. Chenoweth’s stories will fill in the details left blank by other histories, which overlooked the unique adventures of territorial Alaskans in the United States Marshal Service. I loved the book! Anyone interested in frontier law enforcement or Alaska before statehood will learn a lot while they enjoy reading it.
Down Darkness Wide Steven
Alaksa (12/22/2004)
One of the real gaps in Alaskan historical literature is the era between the end of the Second World War and the start of the oil industry. Roughly between 1948 and 1960, these were the last days of rough and tumble Alaska. DOWN DARKNESS WIDE is a memoir of this sunset of the frontier by a Chief Deputy U.S. Marshal. This work is an excellent snapshot of the era and offers personal insight to the law enforcement dilemma of the era. This was in the days before DNA testing, video cameras and even the rudimentary forms of forensic detection offered on days-gone-by TV programs such as HIGHWAY PATROL, or even FBI STORY. Alaska had a population 1/5 of what it does today and law enforcement meant becoming involved with any crime anywhere in the Territory. Chenoweth’s career took him all over Alaska. He chased armed criminals on the run in the bush, broke up prostitution rings, arrested gamblers, transported prisoners to the Lower 48 and even acted as a chauffeur for then-Vice President Richard M. Nixon - to whom he gave an Alaskan gift: moose nugget cuff links. DOWN DARKNESS WIDE is a fine, first person narrative of the gritty day-to-day reality of being a U.S. Marshal in the Last Frontier and what that really meant. The book finishes where it should, in 1959, when statehood transferred the job of the United States Marshals to the Alaska State Troopers. A good book and a good read - particularly for historians of this era.
U.S. M