Ron Horton

Carrie Nation's Hatchet Ron Horton

Jessie James and Carrie Nation probably never met, but their chance encounter in Beaver, Arkansas in 1909 would take young Mark Halladay, some 80 years later, into a world of intrigue with the discovery of cryptic directions to Jesse's treasure and an apparent murder confession. Fifteen-year-old Mark thinks life will be pretty boring in Beaver until he meets J. R. and Penelope. As their friendship develops, they explore the town on the banks of the White River and walk in the footsteps of Jesse James. Carrie Nation and Jesse James would both be dead within two days of their chance encounter in Beaver. With more than twenty historic photographs of the period, young readers will delight in this work of historical fiction and a look back at what might have been.