Top Row: W.H. Harris, Luke Short, Bat Masterson
Bottom Row: Charlie Bassett, Wyatt Earp, Frank "Shane" McLean, Neal Brown
Several versions of this famous photo are known to be in existence:
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On June 7th, in 1883, photographer Charles Conkling gathered the Dodge City Peace Commissioners into a tent. Frank McLean abstained. The man pictured as Frank is really M.C. Clark, a “hang-around” deputy from Blue Rapids, Kansas.
According to family legend, Frank “Shane” McLean was a wanted man with sworn enemies. Shane's blood-feud with Governor Sam Houston began with the murder of his father. Shane belonged to the secret society of Freemasons and kept his identity closely guarded.
Legend of Shane McLean:
A Novel
The infamous Dodge City Saloon Wars
In 1883, Wyatt Earp needed hardened killers to tame the wild streets of Dodge City, Kansas. Corupt city officials enacted draconian laws and threatened violence against local buisnessmen. Wyatt sent Luke Short to Hell’s Half Acre in Fort Worth to summon Frank "Shane" McLean. Frank was a Terry's Texas Ranger with a nasty reputation. During the Civil War, he killed fifty men and fought in the battles of Shiloh, Antietam and Perryville. Fear forces political adversaries to the negotiationg table. When Frank McLean stepped off the train in Dodge City terror resonated throughout townhall. The infamous Saloon Wars abruptly ended without bloodshed.
What do reviewers say:
*Legend of Shane McLean: Quest For Venegeance - available now
*Legend of Shane McLean: Curse of the Gun - available summer 2025
*Legend of Shane McLean: Heaven and Hell -
available fall 2025
*Legend of Shane McLean: Life and Times -
available summer 2026
Frank “Shane” McLean alias: Frank McLane, Lance McLain, W.F. McClain, M.F. McLean, as well as numerous other dubious names Shane traveled under.
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Quest for Vengeance is the first novel in a series inspired by Frank “Shane” McLean’s fifty year quest to hunt down a gang of Jayhawkers responsible for his father’s murder. Legends of McLean’s violent brand of western justice circulated throughout Texas. Descended from the Scotch-Irish Clan McLean, fighting and killing is in his blood. Shane was a Civil War hero, robbed banks and trains with Jesse James and fought alongside Wyatt Earp in Tombstone. This is his story, restless, bloody and uncompromising.
At sixteen, Shane feels destined for bigger things and grows restless on his family’s Shamrock Ranch in McLennan County, Texas. He covets a commission in Captain Dalryrmple’s Texas Rangers. With the shadow of war on the country’s doorstep, he registers for the Heart of Texas Shooting Contest and uncovers a dark family secret. His God-fearing father Kirby is an Illuminati henchman and hired assassin for the secret society. Born in Scotland, Kirby was sent to Texas by radical Jesuits and ordered to enforce a New World Order in America.
Shane is horrified by his father’s past. Kirby kills a cattle rustler along the Brazos River and slits the throat of a renegade Freemason in a Waco alleyway. The dead man has ties to Governor Sam Houston. A staunch Freemason and secret Illuminati, Houston hires bounty hunters from Fort Leavenworth to settle an old score with Kirby.
While the gang of Jayhawkers arrives from Kansas, Shane meets the love of his life, Mary Kelly. The red-haired beauty lives in nearby Clifton. Mary’s father promises her to an older man from a wealthy family. As they begin a secret affair, Shane heads to Austin with his family and squares off with the bounty hunters. His father is gunned down on Congress Avenue. The Yankee Jayhawkers evade Federal justice and flee to Missouri. Beaten to within an inch of his life, he vows to kill Sam Houston and hunt down the Unionist soldiers responsible for Kirby’s murder.
Shane leaves home seeking justice down the barrel of his father’s gun. The country is embroiled in the Civil War. Needing to bide his time, he joins the elite Terry’s Texas Rangers with three friends. The Special Forces unit is deployed in Kentucky and ordered to wreak havoc on Yankee supply lines. The battles of Shiloh and Perryville leave him wounded and emotionally scarred. His heroic battlefield exploits earn a congratulatory visit from Confederate General Albert Sidney Johnston and a Badge of Service from Robert E. Lee.
Following the fierce Battle of Shiloh, Shane struggles with his inner demons. He seeks to escape the war and punish his father’s killers but yearns for home. As he longs to hold Mary, little does he realize his quest for vengeance will last a lifetime.
Legend of Shane McLean is one of those books you don't ever want to put down. You should definitly consider purchasing a copy. I know I will.
~Norval Spangler, Civil War Book Review
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Legend of Shane McLean has a killing on every page and it's loaded with bloody battles between the Yankees and Johnny Rebs. I encourage everyone to read this wonderful Civil War thriller.
~Joe Walker, Civil War Historian, Texas Heritage Museum
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The best Western I've ever read...a page turner!
-Dan Dry, Louisiana Legends Magazine
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My heart ached for Shane in his struggle to bring justice to the heinous men who destroyed his family. Quest for Vengeance is a well-written first installment of what promises to be an incredible series.
~Regan Murphy, Reviewer
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Legend of Shane McLean was gripping form the very get go! It brought history to life with personality. Ian McLean has a true talent and I look forward to the sequel. I couldn't put this one down.
~Kenneth L. Moore, Whadda Ya Know About...Texas
Awesome read! If you are a history buff, Ian McLean's first of many is a must read. I couldn't put it down and gave my mom a copy and she stayed up super late to finish it in a day. The writing makes you feel like you are there. Even if you haven't read Lonesome Dove, even if you don't know your outlaw/Civil War/Texas History, you will love reading this book. I cannot wait for the sequel.
~Tom Miller, History Teacher
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A must read for history lovers. I couldn't put this book down. Can't wait for the rest of the series.
-Christopher Matthew Kay, Reviewer
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Legend of Shane McLean: Quest for Vengeance is just an outstanding read. I recommend this book.
-Paul Christy, Radio Personality and Audiobook Narrator
