Texas Ranger Ira Aten tried a controversial plan to lessen crime. Ira Aten was a lawman in the 1880s, serving as a Texas Ranger. He became involved...
An Explosive Tactic
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True West Blog
A Reason for the Violence
Gunman Clay Allison had an injury that may explain his bad deeds... Clay Allison was one of the West’s most infamous shootists. It’s not clear just...
William Levi “Buck” Taylor
Was Roy Rogers the original ‘King of the Cowboys” or was it someone else? The first and original King of the Cowboys was a Texas cowboy named Buck...
Billy the Kid’s Many Aliases
The Kid's official birth name was William Henry McCarty Jr. His birthplace is not certain. Some say New York City. In 1873 his mother, Catherine...
Visit Cody Yellowstone Sponsored by Park County
Since its Wild West founding by legendary showman Buffalo Bill, Cody Yellowstone has been a must-visit destination for those passionate about...
Shaman or Medicine Men
I’ve been asked a number of times, “Where would Geronimo or Sitting Bull have learned their trade as a medicine man. How did they get this position?...
The End for Big Nose George
Parrott couldn’t fly at the end of a rope. Big Nose George Parrott ran with a gang of cutthroats and robbers in 1870s Wyoming. After bragging about...
A Revolt in New Mexico
Indians rise up against U.S. occupiers. The Taos Revolt was an uprising by Hispano and Puebloan groups against the United States during the Mexican...
Massacre at Bloody Island
The U.S. army avenges the deaths of two slaveholders. Northern California’s Bloody Island Massacre is one that is not mentioned much in the history...
Rascals of Tombstone: Ike Clanton and Billy Claiborne
After running away from the gunfight in the vacant lot near the OK Corral in Tombstone, Ike Clanton made a desperate attempt to get the Earp’s and...
Tumbleweed Wagons
They called them “tumbleweed wagons” because like their namesake, the Russian thistle, they seemed to wander aimlessly across the territory picking...
Mountain Men
The first white men to venture “across the wide Missouri” were awed by the breathtaking sight of the majestic Rocky Mountains that loomed on the...