Louisiana's No Man's Land

Book excerpt: Join author Scott DeBose on a rugged journey through Louisiana's No Man's Land. Most Americans know the basics of the Louisiana Purchase, but few know that West Louisiana was left out of the purchase. They also don't know that in 1806, the United States and Spain almost went to war over the boundary, and it was only an agreement negotiated by the American and Spanish commanders that prevented full scale war. But it wasn't out of patriotism that James Wilkinson, commanding general of the US Army, negotiated the agreement. He was not only a Spanish Spy, but he was involved in Aaron Burr's conspiracy. America now had a 40-mile wide and roughly 500-mile-long strip of land they could not station troops or police, and outlaws soon flocked to the region. This book will tell the story of how No Man's Land was created, the conspiracy behind its creation, the outlaws, smugglers, and pirates who used the region as a base (such as Jean Lafite, Jim Bowie and John Murrell "The Reverend Devil"). But it wasn't all outlaws--those folks will get their due, as well.