I found this softcover in this Little Free Library in Dunstable MA while dropping off some books of my own. As per the title, it's about the lives of wives of military personnel, mostly from the 1860s through the 1890s. (The author notes that most of the women mentioned here were wives of officers, mainly because they were more likely to write letters and journals describing their experiences, but other women are cited here and there.)

The book details the ways in which the women coped - or struggled - with their new lives, which included privation and hardship, strange new locations, and often a near-complete breakdown of the societal structure they'd been raised in. Many of the wives came to appreciate all this, to the point where going back to their homes in the cities of the East felt constricting to them. Others had a harder time, seeing their husbands killed or facing captivity or death themselves. The author doesn't shy away from the violence of the West at that time, but also highlights the unexpected joys. And the author also tries to remind readers just how isolated people could be then, with no easy way to look up information about their new surroundings, or even to hear news of their loved ones short of weeks or months of waiting... "To go west in 1869 was not simply a journey, it was an adventure similar to a lunar landing a century later."

There's a section of photographs, featuring many of the women whose writings form the basis of the book, plus some of the late-1800s forts and dwelling places.

I left this book in the Little Free Library; hope someone enjoys it!

[See other recent releases in NH here.]

** Released for the 2023 June Brides challenge. **