From shootouts on the Upper Frisco, to the Indian Wars and Outlaw hideouts William French experienced it all on his ranch in Western New Mexico.

An immigrant from the old country—Ireland—Captain William French reached California in 1883. Nearly penniless he rested his fate and fortune on the flip of a coin; heads California, tails New Mexico. He landed on Alma New Mexico. Little did he know then what fate and fortune held in store for him.

Recounting his time on the WS Ranch near Alma New Mexico, Recollections of Western Ranchman reads like a Dime-Store Western, and contains firsthand accounts of the infamous Elfego Baca Affair, the Indian wars under Geronimo and his war chief Nana, unintentionally harboring and abetting the famous Butch Cassidy of the “Wild Bunch”, and much, much more, this volume is a wealth of the history and humor of the true frontiersmen as told from the point of view and with the dry wit of a “Cussed Englishman”.

Reviews. . .

"When I want to learn what the frontier Southwest was really like, I consult William French's Recollections, Whether writing about the region's daily happenings or its natural history, Captain French presents an objective, yet lively, portrayal of his observations in the best tradition of that unique genre of British explorer-participants that includes Sir Richard Burton and continures with Wilfred Thesiger. Recollections of a Western Ranchman is a must for any library on Southwest Americana."
David E. Brown, Author of The Last Grizzly, and Arizona Game Birds.

"Let me recommend as the best Western book I have read, Recollections of Western Ranchman, New Mexico, 1883-1899, by Captain William French. It is written in first hand, with humor and insight. . ."
Eugene Manlove Rhodes, from The Hired Man on Horseback

"Western history fans will find this volume an interesting portrayal of life in the Southwest in the late 19th Century. People lived, got married, planted gardens, broke horses, played jokes, branded cattle, chased rustlers and sometimes were murdered, but life went on. Some got drunk, some robbed trains, some chased indians, and some were hanged. This is a book that tells it like it was."
Larry S. Sterett, in Gun Week Magazine