The Dalton boys crossed the line to outlawry. The Dalton brothers were lawmen before they turned to outlawry. The boys grew up listening to tales of...
A Man of Action
Burt Mossman cleaned up cow operations in Arizona. In 1897, Burt Mossman was superintendent for Arizona’s Aztec Land and Cattle Company,...
What’s in a Name?
Some colorful monikers of the Old West. Early Arizona mining towns were graced with a number of colorful characters with whimsical nicknames. There...
The Last Drink
A corpse, a bottle of whiskey, and drunken cowboys. On Saturday, April 8th, 1905, two cowboys, John Shaw and Bill Smythe, walked into the Wigwam...
Divine Intervention?
A lightning bolt stopped a lynching. Near Canyon Diablo in Arizona, along the Atlantic & Pacific Railroad, an aspiring train robber hijacked the...
A Man Called Pie
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...