The James-Younger Gang’s first train robbery didn’t go as planned. It was outside Adair,
Iowa on July 21, 1873. At least nine outlaws dislodged the rails, thinking the train would
stop—but it didn’t, and the engine and two cars derailed, going into a ditch. The
engineer was killed and several of the crew and passengers were hurt.
To make matters worse, the express sa

True West March/April 2025
In This Issue:
Western Books & Movies
More In This Issue
- Truth Be Known
- What Has Taught Me: Deb Goodrich
- Earp, Cowboy Songs & Prairie Hygiene
- Trails of the Old West
- The Frontier Characters of South Dakota
- The Bowie Knife
- The Kindled Flame 1835
- King of the Scatterguns
- Selling the Mythic West and the Real West
- A Gut Punch Turns into a Miracle Reprieve
- The Beginnings of the Bird Cage
- Frontier Colossus