Description

An original dime novel edited by award-winning author John D. Nesbitt. In the latter part of the nineteenth century and into the earlier part of the twentieth century, the dime novel was a popular form of mass-market entertainment. Many people refer to dime novels of that era, but not many people have actually read one. Solid Sam, the Boy Road-Agent is the genuine article. Here you can meet Solid Sam, Wild Meg, Santa Fe Syd, May Miner, Nobby Nell, and others, all in an action-packed tale of twists, turns, disguises, and surprises. “Solid Sam was abandoned as an infant and raised by his grandparents, who where then cruelly dispossessed of their land by ruthless miners. Will the Boy Road-Agent come back to confront his father? Will he ever meet his long-lost sister? Will he be able to find justice in a society ruled by greed and corruption? The answers can be found in … Solid Sam, the Boy Road-Agent.

Solid Sam, The Boy Road-Agent, was originally published in 1880 by Beadle’s Half Dime Library. It was reprinted in 1899 by the Deadwood Dick Library.

The author, Edward L. Wheeler, created such dashing protagonists as Solid Sam, Deadwood Dick, Rosebud Rob, Nobby Nick, Sierra Sam, Buckhorn Bill, and many others.  My friend and colleague Angie Babcock and I first reprinted Solid Sam in 1990, as part of a literary project to celebrate the centennial of Wyoming’s statehood. We wanted to contribute to our state’s sense of literary heritage, and we thought it would be fun to reintroduce this early and now obscure fictional treatment of Wyoming. For our text we followed the 1899 edition, adhering to the original and sometimes peculiar practices in spelling, punctuation, and format. For the current reprinting I have reset the type in a larger font, and I have re-checked several oddities in the text. I hope the modern reader is entertained by this early “Tale of Wild Wyoming.”

~ John D. Nesbitt Eastern Wyoming College

More about: John D. Nesbitt