James Alexander Craig Thom (born May 26, 1933 in

Gosport, Indiana Gosport is a town in Wayne Township, Owen County, in the U.S. state of Indiana. The population was 826 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Bloomington, Indiana Metropolitan Statistical Area. History Gosport was platted in 1829, and named for ...

) is an American author, best known for his works in the

Western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...

genre and colonial American history which are noted for their historical accuracy borne of his painstaking research. Thom graduated from

Butler University Butler University is a private university in Indianapolis, Indiana. Founded in 1855 and named after founder Ovid Butler, the university has over 60 major academic fields of study in six colleges: the Lacy School of Business, College of Communic ...

in 1961 with a BA in Journalism after serving in the

United States Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through combi ...

in the

Korean War , date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...

. He taught a course in

journalism Journalism is the production and distribution of reports on the interaction of events, facts, ideas, and people that are the " news of the day" and that informs society to at least some degree. The word, a noun, applies to the occupation (pro ...

Indiana University Indiana University (IU) is a system of public universities in the U.S. state of Indiana. Campuses Indiana University has two core campuses, five regional campuses, and two regional centers under the administration of IUPUI. *Indiana Universi ...

, and was a contributor to ''

The Saturday Evening Post ''The Saturday Evening Post'' is an American magazine, currently published six times a year. It was issued weekly under this title from 1897 until 1963, then every two weeks until 1969. From the 1920s to the 1960s, it was one of the most widely ...

''.

Works

* ''Let the Sun Shine In (a collection of short stories)'' (Gibson Publishing, 1976) * ''Spectator Sport'' (a novel about the tragic events of the

1973 Indianapolis 500 The 57th 500 Mile International Sweepstakes was held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana, on Wednesday, May 30, 1973. The race was held over three days due to rain and suffered two major accidents. Three competitors - two dri ...

auto race) ( iUniverse, 1978) * ''Staying Out of Hell'' (Ballantine Books, 1985) * ''Long Knife'' (a novelized biography of General George Rogers Clark, victor of the Battle of

Fort Sackville During the 18th and early 19th centuries, the French, British and U.S. forces built and occupied a number of forts at Vincennes, Indiana. These outposts commanded a strategic position on the Wabash River. The names of the installations were change ...

Vincennes, Indiana Vincennes is a city in and the county seat of Knox County, Indiana, United States. It is located on the lower Wabash River in the southwestern part of the state, nearly halfway between Evansville and Terre Haute. Founded in 1732 by French fur ...

, and conqueror of the Northwest Territory) (Avon, 1979) * ''From Sea to Shining Sea'' (a novelized biography based on the lives of the John and Ann Rogers Clark family, their 10 children which included brothers General George Rogers Clark and Captain

William Clark William Clark (August 1, 1770 – September 1, 1838) was an American explorer, soldier, Indian agent, and territorial governor. A native of Virginia, he grew up in pre-statehood Kentucky before later settling in what became the state of Miss ...

of the

Lewis and Clark Expedition The Lewis and Clark Expedition, also known as the Corps of Discovery Expedition, was the United States expedition to cross the newly acquired western portion of the country after the Louisiana Purchase. The Corps of Discovery was a select gr ...

to the Pacific) (Villard Books, 1981) * ''Panther in the Sky'' (a novelized biography of Tecumseh, the Shawnee Indian chieftain) (Ballantine Books, 1989) * ''Follow the River'' (based on the

Draper's Meadow massacre In July 1755, the Draper's Meadow settlement in southwest Virginia, at the site of present day Blacksburg, was raided by a group of Shawnee warriors, who killed at least four people including an infant, and captured five more. The Indians brough ...

of 1755) (Ballantine Books, 1981) * ''Red Heart'' (Random House, 1997) * ''Sign Talker'' (a novelized biography of George Drouillard, who was with Lewis and Clark and the Corps of Discovery expedition) (Ballantine Books, 2000) * ''The Children of First Man'' (a novelization of the genesis and the demise of the

Mandan The Mandan are a Native American tribe of the Great Plains who have lived for centuries primarily in what is now North Dakota. They are enrolled in the Three Affiliated Tribes of the Fort Berthold Reservation. About half of the Mandan still re ...

Indian Tribe) (Fawcett, 1995) * ''St. Patrick's Battalion'' (a novel about Saint Patrick's Battalion in the

Mexican–American War The Mexican–American War, also known in the United States as the Mexican War and in Mexico as the (''United States intervention in Mexico''), was an armed conflict between the United States and Mexico from 1846 to 1848. It followed the 1 ...

of 1846) (Ballantine Books, 2006) * ''Warrior Woman'' (with Dark Rain Thom, a novel about the life of Shawnee peace chief

Nonhelema Nonhelema Hokolesqua (–1786) was an 18th century Shawnee leader and sister of Cornstalk. She was a participant in Pontiac's War and advocated Shawnee neutrality during the American Revolutionary War. Following the war, and despite her support ...

, born ca. 1720) (Random House, 2007) * ''The Art and Craft of Writing Historical Fiction'' ( Writer’s Digest Books, 2010)

Personal life

Thom married Dark Rain in 1990. Dark Rain is co-author with Thom of the books ''Warrior Woman'' and ''The Shawnee: Kohkumthena's Grandchildren''. His website describes her as the Water Panther Clan Mother of the East of the River

Shawnee The Shawnee are an Algonquian-speaking indigenous people of the Northeastern Woodlands. In the 17th century they lived in Pennsylvania, and in the 18th century they were in Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana and Illinois, with some bands in Kentucky a ...

of Ohio.

Film adaptations

* ''Tecumseh: The Last Warrior'' (1995), TV-movie based on his novel ''Panther in the Sky''

References

External links

Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Thom, James Alexander 1933 births 20th-century American novelists American male journalists American male novelists Living people Writers from Bloomington, Indiana Butler University alumni 20th-century American male writers Novelists from Indiana 20th-century American non-fiction writers 21st-century American male writers 21st-century American novelists 21st-century American non-fiction writers Journalists from Indiana People from Wayne County, Indiana United States Marine Corps personnel of the Korean War