Dalton Gossett attended San Saba High School where he was member of the National Honor Society and the 1963 bi-district-winning armadillo football team. After graduation in 1964, he attended Texas State University and Texas A&M where he received a Ph.D. degree. His work experience ranges from ranch hand to underwater gardener to college professor. Dalton has received numerous research grants and has published over 100 papers in scientific journals for both professional and lay scientists. In addition to Texas, Dalton has taught, conducted research, and served as a university administrator in Kentucky, South Carolina, and Louisiana. He has traveled extensively throughout the United States, Central America, and Europe. In 2013, he was inducted into the Rotary International Wall of Fame at San Saba High.
Dalton is the son of James and Cleo Gossett and brother of Jarvis Gossett (wife Mary), both of San Saba. Dalton currently resides in Shreveport, Louisiana, with his wife, Judy, the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. M.D. Murphy of San Saba. Although he is still involved in education, Dalton has focused on writing since retiring from Louisiana State University Shreveport where he was Associate Dean of Arts and Science. His first novel, Whispering River, is a two-part historical saga centered on the San Saba River valley. Parts 1 and 2 of Whispering River are available through Amazon. In addition to Amazon, the book will be available locally in the near future at The Pantry at The Pecan House Grill. For more information about Dalton, visit his website at: https://www.daltongossett. com.
Whispering River is an action-packed story that opens in 1754 with the Apache, Comanche, and Spanish vying for control of the San Saba River valley in the Texas hill country. Red Dog, the main Apache character, is killed during an attack on the San Saba Mission, and his son (Swift Deer/Roberto) is adopted by a Hispanic family headed by Ramone de Zavala. Thunder Foot, the main Comanche character, is killed in battle a year later, and a Spanish priest adopts his daughter (Sweet Wren/Consuela).
Whispering River takes its name from the native American belief in the whispering of the river spirit, and the remainder of the narrative covers the next 200 years in the lives of the descendants of these two native Americans. Ramone and Roberto de Zavala eventually settled on a land grant along the San Saba River. The priest took Consuela to Louisiana, where she married into a French Creole family named Halston and settled on a farm near Natchitoches. The Leonards, a Welsh family from Tennessee, joined the Halstons. Consuela’s son, Mark Halston, and Zack Leonard moved their families to Texas as part of the colony established by Stephen Austin. The Halstons and Leonards did business and became friends with the de Zavalas.
The two-volume epic story follows the interactions and exploits of the de Zavalas, Halstons, and Leonards as they experience joy and heartache while trying to put down roots along the river in their forefathers' wild and unforgiving territory. One of the recurring themes of the novel is change. Along the way, each family