John Allen made his mark in Arizona. John B. Allen came to Arizona during the 1858 gold rush at Gila City, a few miles east of Yuma. That same year...
A Fight for Ages
The Battle of New Orleans—good and bad. At New Orleans on January 8th, 1815, some 4700 Americans (led by General Andrew Jackson) took on more than...
Lewis and Clark’s Secret Weapon
The Corps of Discovery used an air rifle to keep the peace. Below is the air rifle that Lewis and Clark took on their expedition and AMAZED the...
Financing the Louisiana Purchase
A British bank took a chance on providing the money. In 1800, Napoleon pressured Spain to cede Louisiana back to France. Then in 1803, he sold it to...
Guests at the Dining Room
Two miscreants were strung up above the tables. By 1880, “Russian Bill” Tettenborn had taken up residence in Shakespeare, New Mexico. Bill fell in...
The Amazing Escape
A woman’s travails in getting back to civilization. Larcena Page was captured by Apache on March 16, 1860 in southern Arizona. When she was unable...
The Missing Gun
Bill Downing angered the wrong saloon girl. Bill Downing was one of the most disliked fellows in Arizona. After a train robbery, Bill was sent to...
Unsuited for the Occasion
A Western prospector had big dreams but not much else. The rocky wilderness of the American West turned out to be the richest treasure of natural...
Queen of the Cons
Big Bertha had success outside the law—but not much inside. Big Bertha was the “Queen of the Confidence Women” in San Francisco’s Barbary Coast. Her...
X Marks the Spot
How a famous ranch got its name. Fred Fritz started a ranch in Arizona in 1885. One day a brand inspector appeared and told Fred he needed to...
Wyatt Earp, Wagons and Wild Women
What is your opinion of Stuart Lake’s Wyatt Earp biography Frontier Marshal? Josh Taylor Austin, Texas Much of Lake’s book comes from the fertile...
Clothing for the Cavalry…and Other Frontier Soldiers.
Soldiers on the frontier were issued all the clothing essentials, including socks and long woolen underwear. It was of cheap quality and wore out...