In 1876, Arizona cowboy Gus Gildea described seeing the young outlaw Henry McCarty near Henry Clay Hooker’s Sierra Bonita Ranch: “He came to town,...
The Country Jake
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Bob Boze Bell
Magic Finds Tombstone
According to George Parsons’ journal the first circus (Ryland’s) landed in Tombstone on September 22, 1880. Parsons also reports going to see Prof...
The Notorious Sadie Marcus
A teenaged runaway, Sadie (real name Josephine) Marcus landed in Tombstone and “shacked up” with Cochise County Sheriff Johnny Behan. By 1881, that...
“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...
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...
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....
Lozen, Woman Warrior
“Lozen is my right hand. . . strong as a man, braver than most, and cunning in strategy,” said the Apache leader Victorio about his sister. She also...
Wyatt the Farmer?
In June 1880, Philip M. Thurmond walked around the newly formed mining camp of Tombstone and asked for the vital statistics of every person he could...
A Tall Bucking, 1881 Style
San Simon cowboy Dick Lloyd was well known in southern Arizona for his “tall bucking” (cowboy slang for riding a bronc in high style)....
Pearl Hart, Highwaywoman
In 1898, Pearl Hart was either a cook or a soiled dove (depending on who you believe) in Mammoth Arizona. When the mine closed (or, she got word her...
“Uncle Jim” Roberts Had Sand
Arizona lawman “Uncle Jim” Roberts upheld the law around Jerome well into the 20th century. State historian Marshall Trimble shares one 1890s...
Arizona Rides Tall in the Saddle
From the days of the dime novels to the cowboys of the silver screen, Arizona has been the setting for numerous classic Western stories and films....