1- The Discovery, Settlement, And Present State Of Kentucky, by John Filson, published in 1784:
Filson’s book included a 33-page Appendix titled, The Adventures of Col. Daniel Boon; containing a Narrative of the Wars of Kentucke. This first account written about the life of Daniel Boone turned out to be an excellent partial biography of the previous to 1782, thirteen years of Boone’s life (1769-1782). Filson stated that the words were told to him by Daniel Boone, and Boone scholars have accepted Filson’s statement since the events match so well with later established facts. The material started with Daniel Boone’s two-year stay in the wilderness of Kentucky, when Daniel was 34 years old, and includes many of the main events in Daniel Boone’s life. However the story of Daniel Boone ended when he was 48-years old, with still another thirty-nine years of adventurous events ahead of him. Filson’s book, although published in 1784 was never copyrighted. It was copied afterward by a half-dozen others and sold through the years. It was copyrighted and published by Corinth Books Inc., NY, in 1962. It has been reprinted by various sources since, and has been available on the Internet.
2- The Boone Family, by Hazel Atterbury Spraker, originally published in 1922, reprinted in recent times:
This book was primarily a genealogy record of the earlier generations of the Boone family. The book was very well researched and included a considerable amount of historical information. The book was well annotated and used a considerable amount of the Draper material, and has been considered by Boone descendants as the main Boone family information book. Copies may be available from Genealogical Publishing Company, Maryland, or from The Daniel Boone Home, 1868 Highway F, Defiance, MO 63341, (636) 798-2005
3- Daniel Boone, Master of the
Wilderness, by John Bakeless, published in 1939 and reprinted in recent times:
The Bakeless book was the result of excellent research and was the first Boone biography to use the Draper Manuscripts after they became available to scholars. The book is unique from all other Boone biographies in that Bakeless attempted to only material that appeared as the most reliable. It is also unique in Bakeless’ effort to annotate almost every main detail mentioned in the book. The book is the most complete and accurate history of Daniel Boone as compared to other accounts, and as a result, after sixty years since it ws published, it is considered the “Classic” Boone biography. It has been reprinted in recent years by University Press of Nebraska, and may also be available from The Daniel Boone Home, 1868 Highway F, Defiance, MO 63341, (636) 798-2005
4- Some Boone Descendants & Kindred of the St. Charles District, by Lillian Hays Oliver, published in 1964, and republished in 1984 by MaryDean Alsworth:
For the children and grandchildren of Daniel Boone, and their families, it is essential to see this book. Most of the information was missing from the much earlier book on the Boone family by Hazel Spraker (listed as number 2 above). Like the Spraker book, this book was compiled through excellent research, and is referenced for allowing a researcher to track down and review the original documents. The current understanding is that this book is no longer available other than obtaining a copy from an Internet source.
5- Life Of Daniel Boone, by Lyman Copeland Draper, edited by Ted Franklin Belue, and published in 1998:
This book was an excellent effort by Ted Franklin Belue to resurrect the incomplete 1850s manuscript by Lyman Draper. Draper’s intended book of the full life of Daniel Boone, only got as far as a manuscript of half of Daniel Boone’s nearly 87-year lifetime. When Draper temporarily set aside the manuscript in 1756, his in-progress book had covered a general history of America, followed by the Boone family’s arrival to America in the early 1700s, and the Boone history up through the events just after the siege of Fort Boonesborough in 1778. A number of years passed before Draper became very active with his Boone research again. The amount of correspondence that he exchanged with possible sources of information was astounding. During this surge of correspondence and his considerable travel around the country for interviewing persons and for searching for new documents, he found many new items of information that would have allowed him to correct and complete his book, if he had done so. Unfortunately he ran out of time. Ted Franklin Belue’s editorial comments add a considerable amount of valuable information. The book can be obtained from Stackpole Books, 5067 Ritter Road, Mechanicsburg, PA 17055, or from The Daniel Boone Home, 1868 Highway F, Defiance, MO 63341, (636) 798-2005
6- My Father, Daniel Boone, The Draper Interviews with Nathan Boone, Edited by Neal O. Hammon, published in 1999:
Neal Hammon’s book is a compilation of the notes taken during Draper’s six week visit with Nathan and Olive Boone in 1851. Nathan, who was the youngest son of Daniel and Rebecca Boone, lived with or very close to his parents from the time of his birth in 1781, until his mother’s death in 1813, and thereafter he became his aged father’s keeper until Daniel died in 1820. During that time Nathan had many first-hand stories of his father’s activities, and he and Olive heard and recalled many of the stories they heard directly from Daniel and Rebecca, of events that took place prior to Nathan’s birth. Back in their day, it was part of life to hear and tell real life stories, and it was also a normal trait to remember most of what a person had heard regarding family experiences over the years. The book can be obtained from University of Kentucky Press, 663 South Limestone Street, Lexington, KY 40508-4008, or from The Daniel Boone Home, 1868 Highway F, Defiance, MO 63341, (636) 798-2005
7- Frontiersman-Daniel Boone And The Making Of America, by Meredith Mason Brown, published in 2008.
Meredith Brown’s book includes most of the usually stated events in Daniel Boone’s life, however the book also includes a considerable amount of important material that previous authors had overlooked or had never considered. This biography was seriously researched for factual history and is well worth reading as an outstanding account of Daniel Boone’s life. For general information to potential readers; while every other part is excellent, the implying of marital infidelity by Daniel Boone and his wife as part of the book, while included as a maybe and maybe not issue, has never been recognized by serious researchers as a factual part of the Boone story, but rather considered as part of back country lore or as an off-color tale passed on and on by person’s totally foreign to any such activity. The book may be obtained from Louisiana State University Press, Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
Note: (Other reviewed material will be added at a future date)