April 14, 1881 Out in the West Texas town of El Paso, ex-Marshal George Campbell is flat-out looking for trouble. “Any American that is a friend of...
Shoot-Out in El Paso
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Bob Boze Bell
A Cold Ride into Hell
February 10, 1918 In the bitter cold, a four-man posse riding in from Klondyke, Arizona, surrounds a lone cabin in Kielberg Canyon. The posse—a...
A Watch to Die For
Dave Tutt walked onto the town square in Springfield, Missouri, at 6 p.m. on a Friday. He was about to face off with a known adversary, “Wild Bill”...
The Truth about Wild Bill
Like most Old West icons, gunfighter “Wild Bill” Hickok is shrouded in myths. He likely started many of them. A teller of tall windies, he was...
Clash of the Mad Madams
April 18, 1886 The beautiful Bessie Colvin is fed up. After a year of arguing over “extracurricular activities” and bad accounting, the star...
Hell’s Comin’ With Me!
March 20, 1882 With the recent killing of Morgan Earp by assassins, Wyatt Earp spends his 34th birthday attending to the details of shipping his...
The Spark that Launched the Vendetta Ride
March 18, 1882 A one-night showing of the play Stolen Kisses is being staged at the Turnverein Hall, north of Schieffelin Hall. It has been...
The Brutal Truth About Most Billy the Kid Wannabes
We get a “new” Billy the Kid photo sent to us almost every week. The photo of the cocky-looking gent on the opposite page is a good example. Some...
Heart Gone Wild
In 1857, Olive Oatman’s ghostwriter said this about her life story: “Much of that dreadful period is unwritten, and will remain forever unwritten.”...
The Oatman Massacre
Roys Oatman and his family have just finished hauling their belongings up a rocky grade to a bluff on the south side of the Gila River. At the end...
The Mysterious Death of John Ringo
July 2, 1882 John Ringo has decided to move to Tombstone, Arizona Territory (he has been living in San Simon and Galeyville). He arrives in town and...
Classic Gunfights: Don’t Look Back
In office for only one day, acting Ellis County Sheriff James “Wild Bill” Hickok is making his rounds in the Kansas cowtown during the height of...