Blood on the Crossties: The Florida Chautauqua Murders

Railroad detective Choctaw Parker works to solve all manner of murder-most-foul in Florida.

In early February of 1885, the robbery of the Pensacola and Atlantic train could not have come at a worse time for Florida panhandle railroad magnate William Chipley. He had put time, money, and both his personal and business reputation on the line to host the first Gulf Chautauqua in DeFuniak Springs. Now, with the murder of two guards, and the theft of both a payroll and a shipment of new US Army rifles, the success of the Chautauqua was at risk. Chipley hires the half-White/half-Indian L&N railroad detective Jimmy Lee 'Choctaw' Parker to investigate the crime, find the culprits, and restore confidence to those who would travel from all over the eastern US to attend the first month-long Florida Chautauqua. But Parker is not the only one investigating the robbery of the P&A, for he finds out very soon that he must work with-or in spite of-a pair of Pinkertons hired by the insurance company to recover the money, as well as an aggressive, vengeful, US Army Captain determined to recover the weapons and get justice for the two murdered soldiers. Parker, along with a long-time associate and a resourceful lady gambler, must navigate a web of politics, racial tension, Civil War grudges, and greed to bring to justice the culprits in this Victorian-era historical mystery.