Top Five Koblas Reads

At any moment, Minnesota native John J. “Jack” Koblas was likely to break out into an animated talk about baseball, Science Fiction, Horror or Western literature, or even into a song. After all, his post-high school band, the Magpies, was inducted into the Minnesota Music Hall of Fame in 2007. But get him into a conversation about Jesse James, and he was off and running.

Koblas died on March 8 at age 70 in Minneapolis. He had Parkinson’s and had recently suffered a stroke and heart attack.

A prolific and well-versed writer, Koblas covered Ma Barker, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Sinclair Lewis, the Dakota War of 1862, the Civil War and even a young adult series of historical mysteries. He is best known, however, as a James-Younger Gang historian, specializing in the outlaws’ famous failure in Northfield, Minnesota, in 1876. Shared here are five must-read Koblas books.

—Johnny D. Boggs, author of Northfield, winner of the
Milton F. Perry Award from the National James-Younger Gang

1. Faithful Unto Death: The James-Younger Raid on the First National Bank, September 7, 1876, Northfield, Minnesota (Northfield Historical Society Press, 2001): The definitive account of the bank robbery attempt that led to the downfall of the James-Younger Gang.

2. The Great Cole Younger & Frank James Historical Wild West Show (North Star Press of St. Cloud, 2002): An insightful, often comical and sometimes poignant account of the two ex-outlaws’ glorious failure in show business.

3. When the Heavens Fell: The Youngers in Stillwater Prison (North Star Press of St. Cloud, 2002): A detailed study of Cole, Jim and Bob Younger’s time in prison after the Northfield raid.

4. Minnesota Grit: The Men Who Defeated the James-Younger Gang (North Star Press of St. Cloud, 2005): A slim, but thorough, examination of the real heroes of the raid—the Minnesotans who brought down those Missouri outlaws.

5. Jesse James Ate Here: An Outlaw Tour and History of Minnesota at the Time of the Northfield Raid (North Star Press of St. Cloud, 2001): A road-trip fave, as Koblas sorts through facts and legends, following the path of “the boys” in Minnesota.