Stagecoach Stations on the old Butterfield Overland Mail that ran from Tipton, Missouri to San Francisco between 1858 and 1861 left a lot to be...
Where Magic Meets the West: The Para-Western
Weird Westerns? Sci-Fi Westerns? Para-Westerns? Para-Mystery Westerns? Steampunk Westerns? Western Graphic Novels? At the Tallgrass Writing Workshop...
Henry Wheeler’s Rifle
The James-Younger Gang was trying to rob the First National Bank in Northfield, MN on September 7, 1876. As we know, they were shot to pieces—in...
The “First Lady” of Phoenix
She was a Mexican woman named Trinidad Escalante Swilling. She married Jack Swilling in Tucson in 1864 and four years later moved north to the town...
The Faults Do Not Matter
Because we are dealing with a legend everyone seems to feel that it must be authentic. I am not interested in authenticity. I am interested in...
Lola Montez
One of the Old West’s most popular entertainers was Lola Montez. Tickets to her show went for as high as $500. This exotic Spanish beauty was...
Flyover No More: The Heart of the West is in Emporia, Kansas
Where is the center of the West? Try Emporia, Kansas. Last weekend, I was the keynote speaker and faculty member at the Center for Great Plains...
Battle of The Little Bighorn Reenactment
On the weekend of June 26-28, 2015 thousands will pilgrimage to the Battle of Little Bighorn National Monument to commemorate the 139th anniversary...
Wyatt Earp in Ellsworth
August 15, 1873. Ellsworth, Kansas. Gunmen Ben and Billy Thompson get into a confrontation that leads to the death of Sheriff Chauncey B. Whitney. ...
The Female Buffalo Soldier
Cathay Williams was born a slave in Missouri in 1842, but was freed by Union soldiers during the Civil War. She worked as a paid servant for the...
Stagecoach Travel
Stagecoach travel was no place for sissies. The Butterfield Overland Mail began its three-year 2,800 mile run from Tipton, Missouri to San Francisco...
Billy’s Backyard Breakout Billy the Kid vs Peppin’s Posse
July 19, 1878 Fire is licking at the last room—Susan McSween’s kitchen. In this final refuge, her husband, Alexander, sits with his head in his...