Originally published on October 24, 2022 (Episode 289)
Introduction
For decades, scholars have emphasized violence in the history of the American West—genocide, ethnic cleansing, and settler colonialism—supplanting an earlier triumphalist narrative of “winning the West.” Yet both approaches, for all their differences, converge on conflict. After all, in the popular imagination, every Western town had its daily gunfight on Main Street.
But what if the West was also a place where peaceful relationships were forged amidst the violence? What if stories of concord, compromise, and friendship unfolded alongside stories of destruction? Stephen Aron makes that case in Peace and Friendship: An Alternative History of the American West (Oxford University Press, 2022), offering an overlooked narrative of coexistence and mutual accommodation.
About the Guest
Stephen Aron is Professor Emeritus of History at UCLA and President of the Autry Museum of the American West in Los Angeles. His scholarship explores both conflict and cooperation in the American West.
For Further Investigation
Stephen Aron, Peace and Friendship: An Alternative History of the American West (Oxford University Press, 2022)
Patricia Limerick, The Legacy of Conquest: The Unbroken Past of the American West (W.W. Norton, 1987)
John Mack Faragher, Daniel Boone: The Life and Legend of an American Pioneer (Henry Holt, 1992)
John Mack Faragher, Eternity Street: Violence and Justice in Frontier Los Angeles (W.W. Norton, 2016)
Related podcast conversations:
💬 Listen & Discuss
How should we balance stories of violence with stories of peace in telling the history of the American West? Share your thoughts in the comments and send this episode to someone who loves Western history.
