The Cowboy's Kids

The Cowboy's Kids is a sequel to my first book "Chalk". The hero in the first book and his wife had two children, a girl and a boy. About 1910, ranching and raising horses and cattle in Texas took on a whole new perspective. The advent of the automobile, the invention of the airplane and the expansion of the national railroad system into the west, made ranching and the cowboy lifestyle take a hard look at itself. The children from that era were generally raised with a strong work ethic and most of them were very aware of other new options for their lives.



Chalk Goodwin had made a lot of money in ranching. He was a kingpin in his community and he recognized that the horse business was going to slow down. He asked his children if they were interested in also being ranchers and the reply was not positive. Chalk and his wife Wanda were growing old and decided to take the family on a vacation, riding the train to California. Trains back then were a new adventure and it was fashionable to travel on a train. The trip set the stage for everyone's life.



Chalk divided the Texas ranch and sold smaller ranches to loyal employees for very reasonable prices. The money that resulted was used to start an investment company. The Goodwin parents made sure that the "Kids" got good educations. Shortly after a few more trips to California, the Goodwin parents passed away.



Barbara, the oldest child, became her brother's keeper. She helped him find his future while she found a future for herself in Army Nursing. Carl learned how to fly. He became a superior pilot and his skills led him to become an airplane designer. He worked on several early aircraft programs and became a respected and creative aviation pioneer. When the Second World War came along he was drawn back into the Army Air Corp and became a bombing instructor.



This assignment led him into the war effort and he served with the Allied Forces in England. Before overseas deployment, he fell in love and was married. Barbara had married an Army Doctor. They worked as a team, both in an Army hospital and in a private practice they started. After a few years, her husband became ill and died. She retired back to the old ranch house in Bandera and tried to rebuild her life. The Army needed nurses to support war efforts and she was called up to serve in the care of wounded soldiers. She became a specialized burn treatment nurse.



Carl had flown several combat missions into Germany and on his last mission his B-17 was shot down. He suffered a bad injury in the process. A French Resistance member rescued Carl and together, they planned and executed a unique escape plan.

Carl stayed on in England to provide ground support services to the Allied bombers. While he was in England a baby boy was born to the couple.



After the war everything went back to a new style of "normal living". Barbara remarried, Carl and his family built a new house and life went forward. Some recent authors have called ...