A reckless breed known as mountain men left an indelible impact on western history. Reckless doesn’t accurately describe them. The reckless...
“Wyatt Earp Ruined My Life”
If you grew up in the 1950s, you probably thought Wyatt Earp was a bachelor during his violent stay in Tombstone. But, in the early sixties, two...
Crime Boss Vicente Silva
Vicente Silva led a double life in Las Vegas, New Mexico. By day, he was a successful businessman. By night, he was an organized crime boss for...
Tragic Fight on the Devil’s Backbone
January 11, 1886 Captain Emmet Crawford is on the brink of victory. Yesterday, his punitive raiding party of three officers, one medic, one...
The Mes Gang Falls
New Mexico’s Mes Gang came to a bloody end in August 1875. They’d been rustling cattle from John Chisum (and may have killed a man). Outlaw Jessie...
Western Events for August 2016
Western roundup of events where you can experience the Old West! ART SHOWS ART & WINE IN THE COOL PINES Cloudcroft, NM, August 6-7: This 1898...
Holbrook, Arizona
Before the railroad arrived in 1881, Holbrook, located where the Rio Pureco joined the Little Colorado, was known as Horsehead Crossing. Just east...
Not So Gentle Tamers
Although some have portrayed early Arizona pioneer women as being “gentle tamers” the term does a bit of disservice to the toughness of these women....
Did frontier women own saloons, like Gunsmoke’s Miss Kitty did?
Susan Mims Barnesville, Georgia Women worked the saloons, dancing or serving drinks or luring male customers upstairs. But female owners or part...
Rail Barons, Train Palaces, and Great Locomotives
When Peter Cooper created America’s first steam engine, Tom Thumb, in 1830, he unknowingly built a machine that would become a symbol synonymous...
Friends or Foes?
It was November 1893, and two men who had fought off the Johnson County (WY) invasion the previous year had it out in the streets of Buffalo....
Angel of the Mining Camps
Many women came west in the 19th century to pan out some dream but none can match that of a pretty Irish immigrant named Nellie Cashman. A restless...