Samuel Langhorne Clemens' journey West began in 1861 when he was 25. He’d spent the previous two and one-half years piloting Mississippi steamboats...
Birth of a Writer
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True West Blog
The Lincoln County War: Armistice Gone Bad
When Lew Wallace was appointed Territorial Governor of New Mexico in 1879 one of the first missions he hoped to accomplish was to stop the killings...
A Remarkable Person
Tamsen Donner—accomplished and faithful to the end. Tamsen Donner has been shoved to the rear of history—mainly because her husband, George, was the...
It Worked out for the Best
James Reed was exiled from the Donner Party. James Reed was one of the leaders of the ill-fated Donner Party in 1846. But he avoided their fate in...
A Name that Lives in Infamy
The leader of the Donner Party faced a tough end. George Donner had the great misfortune of leading the wagon train that bears his name. In 1846, he...
Saloon Etiquette
The men of the West These private men of the West were also accustomed to inquiring of another man’s first name only. With their varied and often...
Saloons
A saloon might also be known as a "watering trough, bughouse, shebang, cantina, grogshop, and gin mill.” The first saloon was established at Brown's...
Sam Walker’s Last Battle
Their reputation of the mounted Texans was so great, Walker's Rangers, along with those of fellow-Texans, Colonel Jack Hays and Captain John S....
Nobody Believed Him!
A James Gang member couldn’t turn himself in. Jim Cummins was not the most enthusiastic member of the James-Younger Gang. He served with the boys...
From Outlaw to Horseman
Dick Liddil found a new calling at the race track. Dick Liddil joined the James Gang in 1879, near the end of its run. He eventually was arrested,...
A Detour From the Outlaw Trail
Frank James’ brief retirement brought peace and contentment. For Frank James, the years just after the James-Younger Gang’s disastrous raid on...
The 1847 Walker Colt
Despite the popularity of the Colt revolver among Texans, Colt's company failed in 1842. Realizing the revolver needed more durability for use on...