Black Bill

1859 - Walker Valley, now known as Tremont, in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, is just beginning its intricately woven community; a tapestry of freedom, unity, connection, and unconventional relationships.

Founded by one man, as comfortable in the mountains as if he were part of the peaks themselves, William Marion "Black Bill" Walker was a jovial, hard-working, savagely independent type, whose life centered around a unique interpretation of the Bible: married to three women. At the same time.

Surrounded by deeply religious folk, some tried in vain to teach him the errors of his ways. But he wouldn't have any of it, following Bible stories that he was sure God wanted him to follow.

Through exhaustive research, the author delves deep into this tapestry of unconventional relationships. Though a work of fiction, the people described are real, as are all major events. Within these pages are historical facts and exact quotes taken from some of the best sources, some from the very memoirs of the people themselves.

Join Bill Walker and Walker Valley as they face joys and tragedies, acceptance and doubts, and then, challenges to their very way of life; forced to adapt to the coming of the logging industry and, eventually, the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.