Summary of Dean King's The Feud

By IRB Media

Please note: This is a companion version & not the original book. Book Preview:

#1 Before the Civil War, the Tug River Valley was largely ignored by the outside world. There were no roads, no rails, no schools, and no churches there. The transcontinental telegraph system, which crossed the country in 1861, bypassed the area.

#2 Anse had set out to hunt the last known stag in Virginia, but when he reached the top of the ridge, the buck had vanished. He was alone, with his gun empty, bullets lost, and a spike buck aleadin’ every dog he had clean out of the county.

#3 Anse’s hunt was cut short when he came across a huge black bear. He began yelling and flailing his clothes, trying to scare it away. The bear climbed a tree and waited out the night. The next morning, the dogs found him and gave him food. He returned home with a panther he had shot.

#4 The Hatfield and McCoy families were both in the Tug Valley in the 18th century. The Hatfields lived on the Kentucky side of the Tug, and the McCoys lived on the Virginia side. The families were friendly with each other, and were intermarried on both sides of the river.

• Language: English
• Publisher: IRB Media
• Release date: Jun 15, 2022
• ISBN: 9798822542952

IRB Media

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Insights on Dean King's The Feud

Contents

Insights from Chapter 1

Insights from Chapter 2

Insights from Chapter 3

Insights from Chapter 4

Insights from Chapter 1

#1

Before the Civil War, the Tug River Valley was largely ignored by the outside world. There were no roads, no rails, no schools, and no churches there. The transcontinental telegraph system, which crossed the country in 1861, bypassed the area.

#2

Anse had set out to hunt the last known stag in Virginia, but when he reached the top of the ridge, the buck had vanished. He was alone, with his gun empty, bullets lost, and a spike buck aleadin’ every dog he had clean out of the county.

#3

Anse’s hunt was cut short when he came across a huge black bear. He began yelling and flailing his clothes, trying to scare it away. The bear climbed a tree and waited out the night. The next morning, the dogs found him and gave him food. He returned home with a panther he had shot.

#4

The Hatfield and McCoy families were both in the Tug Valley in the 18th century. The Hatfields lived on the Kentucky side of the Tug, and the McCoys lived on the Virginia side. The families were friendly with each other, and were intermarried on both sides of the river.

#5

The McCoy family had a fierce streak that went beyond most. They were hospitable to strangers, but a person better look out if he ever stole anything from them. Dan, Sam’s brother, was not as fortunate. He was unsuccessful in business, and his neighbors considered him quarrelsome and shiftless.

#6

In 1861, the Big Sandy River and Tug Fork became part of the Confederacy’s western border, and a fault line in the division among the states. The families on either side knew the enemy, and their own honor was at stake.

#7

In 1862, the federal government passed a law making it illegal to distill whiskey without a federal license, which made all home distillers outlaws. Devil Anse and his brothers volunteered for the Virginia State Line cavalry, joining a regiment made up of Logan County men and led by officers of the Logan County Wildcats.

#8

In February 1862, Major John B. Floyd had been part of the Confederate debacle at Fort Donelson, on the Cumberland River in Tennessee. He had then slipped out with his men before the surrender to General Ulysses S. Grant that gave the rising Union star his nickname, Unconditional Surrender, and earned him a promotion to major general.