May 27, 1837: A son, James Butler, the fifth child was born to William Alonzo and Polly Butler Hickok of Homer (later Troy Grove), Illinois. 1856:...
On the Trail of Wild Bill Hickok
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Travel & Preservation
Forging a Road to Zion
In 1847, Brigham Young, president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, organized a pioneer party and struck out west from the...
Cowboy Up America
When a Cowboy’s in a pinch, he just tightens up the cinch, spurs his horse and rides right through it ’cause that’s the way the Duke’d do it. He’d...
Spittin’ Against the Wind
In the 1830s, Davy Crockett opened a window aboard a train, which was a serious taboo because sparks from the smokestack could blow inside and cause...
Gettin’ Along on the Texas/Chisholm Trail
Jesse Chisholm was no cattleman, and the trail he blazed didn’t enter Texas but stretched from the Red River in present-day Oklahoma to Wichita,...
Ancient Pueblo Culture Comes Alive
A tourist at Mesa Verde National Park in Colorado isn’t impressed. Isn’t impressed by the torched scenery. Isn’t impressed by the history. “I was...
A River Runs Through History
What was Juan de Oñate thinking when he named the Rio Grande in 1598? Great River? Criminy, at some places it’s not even a mediocre ditch. Explorers...
National Cowgirl Museum & Hall of Fame
It doesn’t get much better than this: watching fancy marksmanship by Annie Oakley on film that was shot by Thomas Edison. Right off, you know you’re...
Following Cherokee Tracks
I first saw the Cherokee Trail when I was a little girl. One branch of it crossed my family’s ranch near Encampment, Wyoming, and when we were at...
Beating Out the Pilgrims
"El Paso, not Plymouth, held the first Thanksgiving,” declared Peggy Boone of the El Paso, Texas, CVB. “In 1598, the 500 settlers led by Don Juan de...
Hubbard Museum of the American West
When the “Gunfighter” comes to the Hubbard Museum of the American West this summer, it will be the latest in a string of impressive displays that...
From Cow Town to Western Chic
If you have a passion for the Old West, you’ll be right at home in Cheyenne, Wyoming. This city of 53,000 people is the northern anchor of the Front...