Good fortune.

Some Googling this morning yielded some worthwhile results, including three new links I've included: Darke County Infirmary Data, Darke County Local Government Records (Wright State U.), and the Ohio History Online Portal... I've discovered that the records at Wright State include a Day Book for Darke County Infirmary during the time of Annie's stay there. I'm hoping that access to these sources will help reveal useful details.

Welcome.

This Dark Country is dedicated to my assorted thoughts and creative works, and the process of forging them into complete, tangible things...

Currently, my primary focus is on a story involving Annie Oakley. It's required a considerable amount of research, including two personal trips to Greenville, OH (thus far), and it seems that for every stone overturned in this process, two more are revealed beneath it. But the learning has been rewarding, and I'm settling upon the feel I want the story to have -- something near a classic gothic horror piece.

To this end, I'll be consuming what I can of the pertinent classics I've neglected: Dracula, Frankenstein, and works by Poe and Lovecraft. I'm looking to absorb what I can, and let it influence what I envision as a lush and deeply atmospheric work.

This is just one of many works I have planned, and I hope organizing my thoughts in a blog will help me get them done.

I'll try to keep this blog updated.

End first entry.