Did most Old West lawmen always carry guns? Allen Pogue Flagstaff, Arizona Most Old West lawmen went unarmed, much of the time. Marshal Tom “Bear...
Did American Indians have some version of bathrooms or latrines?
Did American Indians have some version of bathrooms or latrines? James White Goliad, Texas American Indians generally did their “business” in the...
What is the Hole-in-the-Wall Pass in Wyoming?
Terry Kelley Ruidoso Downs, New Mexico The favorite sanctuaries for Butch Cassidy’s Wild Bunch were Hole-in-the-Wall, in northern Wyoming, Browns...
Did the Wild West era have any famous deaf people?
Chris Graefser St. Peters, Missouri One who comes to mind is Erastus “Deaf” Smith, one of the most celebrated patriots in the Texas fight for...
What can you tell me about Jack Slade’s wife?
Dan Bird Cornelius, Oregon Not a lot. Her first name is believed to be Maria Virginia, but her last name is lost to history. Historians do not know...
Why would a pile of small seashells be in the Arizona desert?
Dee Anne Jackson Gilbert, Arizona Some 200 million years ago, the area was a vast sea, which is why you can find seashells all over the Sonoran...
Did frontier women own saloons, like Gunsmoke’s Miss Kitty did?
Susan Mims Barnesville, Georgia Women worked the saloons, dancing or serving drinks or luring male customers upstairs. But female owners or part...
A picture hanging in a restaurant in Prescott, Arizona, is labeled, “Wyatt Earp.” Is this a photo of him?
Tom Isler Madera, California I have never seen this photo published in any of the Wyatt Earp biographies; somebody would have published it if the...
Did Bat Masterson carry a cane?
Bob Nellis Rochester, Minnesota No known photos of Bat Masterson show him with a cane, although he did receive a gold-headed cane in 1885 when he...
What is the origin of bib shirts?
Allen Fossenkemper Fountain Hills, Arizona Although bib shirts were not common apparel out West, they captured the flavor and romance of the...
In the 1985 film Silverado, British-born John Cleese plays the sheriff. Did any Britons become frontier sheriffs in the USA?
Paul Piper Dorset, England Legendary gunfighter Ben Thompson comes to mind. At the age of seven, he immigrated to America from his birthplace of...
How dangerous was Kid Curry?
Jonathan Smith Rodenberg, Lower Saxony, Germany An outlaw who rode with Robert “Butch Cassidy” Parker and Harry “Sundance Kid” Longabaugh, Kid...