Dave Rudabaugh—outlaw turned informant. Dave Rudabaugh's gang attempted their first train robbery, on January 22, 1878 near Kinsley, Kansas. The...
Switching Sides
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True West Blog
Trailing Dave Rudabaugh
Wyatt Earp hits the trail to track the outlaw. In October 1876, Dave Rudabaugh robbed a Santa Fe Railroad construction camp and fled south. Wyatt...
Get the Heck Into Dodge
Wyatt Earp puts on a badge in the cow-town. May 19, 1876 (or thereabouts). Wyatt Earp is appointed deputy marshal of Dodge City, Kansas. Over the...
Hardin and Hickok
As far as gunslingers go John Wesley Hardin and Wild Bill are reputed to have been equals at the top of the heap. So, what is the extent of the...
Those Harvey Girls
Humorist Will Rogers once remarked, “Fred Harvey supplied the West in food and wives.” It wasn’t just the excellent food that attracted people to...
Mail Order Brides
Are they still around today? You may be surprised to learn that international marriages facilitated by brokers and dating tourism sites are more...
The Corroded Badge
A crooked lawman in New Mexico. Eugenio Alarid was a lawman in Las Vegas, New Mexico in the 1890s. But hidden behind the badge was an outlaw; Alarid...
The Tragedy of Mussel Slough
Railroads versus settlers was a deadly combination. On May 11, 1880, a dispute between settlers and the railroads in central California turns...
The Payback
A robbery victim almost had to reimburse the stolen money. May 11, 1889. A contingent of Buffalo Soldiers, led by Major Joseph Wham, are attacked...
William Frederick “Buffalo Bill” Cody: A Star is Born
Myth is based on what we would like to believe while Legend takes the truth and enhances its meaning across the passage of time. The era of the “Old...
The Sheriff of Cochise County – Part 2
In 1886, the citizens of Cochise County elected John Slaughter sheriff, the office he would hold for two terms. He could have stayed on but felt...
John Slaughter – Part 1
John Horton Slaughter typified the 19th century rawhide-tough breed who settled and tamed the wild Southwest border country. He was born in 1841 in...