First Chouteaus

William E. Foley is a professor of history and C. David Rice is chair and professor of history at Central Missouri State University. Foley is the author of The Genesis of Missouri: From Wilderness Outpost to Statehood and other books. Rice is the author of a number of articles on western history in American West and other journals.

"A work of enduring value ... The First Chouteaus is personal and local history at its best, richly detailed and exacting in its accuracy." -- Thomas F. Andrews, History: Reviews of New Books "This thoroughly researched and gracefully written monograph has become the definitive study of the early Chouteau family." -- Patrick E. McLear, Missouri Historical Review "In their study of these complex, long-lived, and remarkable men, whose influence spanned over sixty years in Missouri history, Foley and Rice make a long overdue contribution to the history of the political and economic development of the Mississippi valley... An important book and a credit to its authors." -- Tanis Thorne, Pacific Historical Review "This work is superb narrative history... An important contribution to our knowledge of frontier businessmen and to the general field of western history." -- John Haeger, Journal of Economic History "Any library with an American history collection should have this on its shelves. The text is eminently readable, and historians of westward expansion as well as anyone interested in Missouri or Saint Louis history will find the book both fascinating and informative." -- Missouri Folklore Society Journal ADVANCE PRAISE "Students of the West need wait no longer for a definitive work on the beginnings of the Chouteau empire. A superb treatment." -- Donald Jackson, editor of Letters of the Lewis and Clark Expedition