Contention City was an Arizona boom town that soon went bust. Founded in 1879, about 10 miles outside Tombstone, the place had possibilities. It...
Arizona’s Contention City
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True West Blog
Flame Delhi
On the morning of April 16th, 1912 headlines across America told the story of the tragic sinking of the Titanic. On its maiden voyage across the...
Oliver “Ol” Yantis
Oliver “Ol” Yantis should have stuck to farming. He ran a cotton operation near Orlando, Oklahoma when his sister started dating outlaw George...
Cactus Derbies
It wasn’t long after the first railroads crossed Arizona in the 1880s and many people in the territory had yet to take a ride on an iron horse when...
Wilford Brimley’s Cowboy Roots
Wilford Brimley is known to Western fans as a walrus moustached, portly, somewhat curmudgeonly character who usually offers sage advice and a little...
Tombstone’s Hoptown
One of the forgotten parts of Tombstone—shown briefly in the movie Tombstone—was Chinatown. It was also called Hoptown, a slang term indicating one...
John Colter The First Mountain Man
John Colter was a member of the Corps of Discovery that crossed the wide Missouri with Lewis and Clark in 1804-1806. He was considered to be one of...
Bad Bill Longley
Bill Longley born into a strong Christian family, he turned bad during the post-Civil War Reconstruction period has been called one of the West’s...
Is Deadwood Dead?
Just over 10 years ago—August 2006—Deadwood ended its run; pretty abruptly. A promised wrap-up movie or two never materialized. But reports indicate...
Tom Fitzpatrick: Trapper, Scout and Indian Agent
One of America's most important frontiersman, scout and guide is also one of the least known. Stories abound about Joe Walker, Kit Carson, Jim...
Singing At The Big Corral
Romaine “Romy” Lowdermilk, the “Father of Dude Ranching in Arizona,” blossomed into one of the West’s greatest early balladeers. Born in Kansas in...
Bravery at Bloody Run
In May of 1889, outlaws attacked the army paymaster, Major Wham (rhymes with bomb) and a Buffalo Soldier escort between Fort Grant and Fort Thomas,...