From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Content deleted Content added
| Line 17: | Line 17: | ||
|
==Reevaluation== |
==Reevaluation== |
||
|
*John Westerlund in his continuing series on Richardson, shows the harm of what Richardson’s tall tales have done, and how his fictional tales have been incorporated into Arizona history, and explains how much time and work it takes to separate the fiction from the facts. (August 3, 2023) |
|||
|
*John Westerlund in the ”Arizona Daily Sun” describes 98% of Richardson’s work (using a single example) as fiction based on 2% facts, and argues that Richardson and others have damaged the historical record, and it was a mistake for history magazines to have ever published his work (July 27, 2023) |
*John Westerlund in the ”Arizona Daily Sun” describes 98% of Richardson’s work (using a single example) as fiction based on 2% facts, and argues that Richardson and others have damaged the historical record, and it was a mistake for history magazines to have ever published his work (July 27, 2023) |
||
|
*Bill Wade in the ”Arizona Daily Sun” categorizes Richardson as a fiction writer whose entire career was based on embellishing tall tales, casting doubt on the historical nature of all of his work. (July 20, 2023) |
*Bill Wade in the ”Arizona Daily Sun” categorizes Richardson as a fiction writer whose entire career was based on embellishing tall tales, casting doubt on the historical nature of all of his work. (July 20, 2023) |
||
Revision as of 01:05, 20 December 2025
Reliability of Gladwell Richardson
Gladwell Richardson was a writer and novelist in the Western fiction genre who published an enormous amount of work during his lifetime. He was most known for writing embellished, tall tales in a format that made the reader think the story was true. Over time, despite their invention, these stories became part of the local culture of Arizona. Richardson published more than 300 novels and 1,000 magazine articles under as many as 30 different pseudonyms.[1] According to historian John Boessenecker, Richardson, was known for publishing fictional historical accounts along with “phony photographs”.[2]
Source assessment
- Canyon Diablo (canyon)—Clean. All Richardson-related material deleted.
- Claim about Spanish naming the canyon was apparently invented by Richardson and filtered through newspapers and books, to the point where the original source was lost. This appears to be a common theme with Richardson-related fictional material diffusing through other sources. It is possible that the Spanish did name the canyon, however, we can’t use Richardson as a source here. We know, for example, that the Spanish did use the “diablo” naming convention for other landforms in the southern part of the state. See also: El Camino del Diablo
- Canyon Diablo, Arizona—First pass. Deleted most egregious Richardson-related material. Still needs work.
- It’s tough to sift through the Richardson-related bias. Luckily, I have collected about 30 sources to help me do this, but it’s going to take time.
- Canyon Diablo shootout—Problematic. Richardson-related material embedded within topic coverage. Needs culling or deleting. Still evaluating.
- Pleasant Valley War—First pass. Deleted fake photo and claim. Still evaluating.
- Two Guns, Arizona—Problematic. Richardson is cited more than a dozen times, and likely more than that via the other sources.
- Reduce to stub seems to be the only available option right now.
Example of the problem
- As late as October 7, 2021, the Arizona Daily Sun is still treating Gladwell Richardson’s fictional works as historical, Arizona non-fiction (see “Voices from the Ghostly Past”, which omits any mention of Richardson’s dismissal by scholars)
Reevaluation
- John Westerlund in his continuing series on Richardson, shows the harm of what Richardson’s tall tales have done, and how his fictional tales have been incorporated into Arizona history, and explains how much time and work it takes to separate the fiction from the facts. (August 3, 2023)
- John Westerlund in the Arizona Daily Sun describes 98% of Richardson’s work (using a single example) as fiction based on 2% facts, and argues that Richardson and others have damaged the historical record, and it was a mistake for history magazines to have ever published his work (July 27, 2023)
- Bill Wade in the Arizona Daily Sun categorizes Richardson as a fiction writer whose entire career was based on embellishing tall tales, casting doubt on the historical nature of all of his work. (July 20, 2023)
- John R. Beyer of the Daily Press (USA Today) notes that Richardson’s work has been questioned and doesn’t seem to add up. (October 2, 2022)
See also
References
