If you believe popular history and the movies, Wyatt Earp cleaned up outlaw-infested Cochise County at the O.K. Corral in 1881. If you are a fan of...
Who Cleaned Up Cochise County?
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Bob Boze Bell
Was Wyatt Earp a Pimp?
In 1872 Wyatt Earp and his brother Morgan were arrested in Peoria, Illinois, for being aboard a floating bagnio (a brothel). Wyatt was arrested more...
Esteban: A Pass too far?
An African slave, Esteban de Dorantes, or Estevanico, helped spread the idea of Seven Cities of Gold in Spain. Consequently, he was sent on an...
The Hashknife Outfit
When it comes to Arizona cattle ranches, one famous spread had the unsavory reputation of having “the thievinist, fightinest’ bunch of cowboys in...
The Nude Duel that Will Not Die
August 24, 1877 A wild picnic is in progress just outside the city limits of Denver, Colorado. Notorious brothel owner Mattie Silks is among the...
Burning The Candle At One End
In 1880, young Juan Oliveras of Tucson was caught in an amorous act with his mother-in-law by her husband who chased his son-in-law down and killed...
Rockin’ It On The Navajo Trail
The Navajo Trail is more of a song than an actual Old West Trail. Recorded in 1945, “Along the Navajo Trail” is a classic Country song written by...
Supreme Cowgirl
This Arizona cowgirl grew up on the Lazy B, a cattle ranch near Duncan. Her father, Harry Day, expected her to pull her own weight and learn the...
Shoot ‘em, Groom ‘em, Entomb ‘em
George Ruffner arrived in Prescott in 1882 and in the years that followed was a cowboy, freighter, rancher and, in 1894, sheriff of Yavapai County....
Hays in an Uproar
Deputy U.S. Marshal James Butler “Wild Bill” Hickok converses with the bartender at Paddy Welch’s in Hays City, Kansas. Without warning, two 7th...
Warren Earp’s Lover?
Wyatt Earp’s younger brother, Warren, worked around Willcox as a bartender, stagecoach driver and livestock inspector. On July 6, 1900, Johnny...
A Surgical Disarming of Outlaws
In the early 1950s, Hollywood partially dodged the ban on “excessive violence” for TV shows watched by children by having heroes like Hopalong...