Ruby McConnell
Ruby McConnell is a writer and geologist who writes about the intersection of the natural world and human experience. She is the author of the critically-acclaimed outdoor series A Woman’s Guide to the Wild and A Girl’s Guide to the Wild and its companion activity book for young adventurers, and Ground Truth: A Geological Survey of a Life, which was a finalist for the 2021 Oregon Book Awards. She lives and writes in the heart of Oregon country. You can almost always find her in the woods. She's on Twitter at @RubyGoneWild.
‘Things That Could Not Be Avoided’
A crusading detective’s encounter with a charismatic cult figure and his followers in the Oregon forest had a deadly consequence.
Reckoning with the West: By the Numbers
A portrait of the West in 25 numbers.
The Missing Mouseketeer
An original member of Disney’s breakout television show went missing. Beneath the macabre details lies a saga of fleeting fame, economic hardship, and a performer's determination to be true to himself.
Part Five: History or Old Gossip?
A uniquely compelling Oregon story attracts a 21st-century historian.
Part Four: The End of the Line
The Applegate brothers are criticized as heavy rains, bitter cold, and high winds strand travelers—and worse—on the road to Oregon.
Part Three: The Road Hunters
As Oregon’s population grows, Jesse and Lindsay Applegate seek a safer route.
Part Two: Taken by the River
A dangerous stretch of rapids proves fatal for members of the Applegate brothers’ company.
Part One: The Road to the Oregon Territory
Drawn by the promises of the opening West, prospectors of all kinds set off from St. Louis.