Texas badman has such a great ring to it. And, in terms of old West history, it’s one of those rare exceptions where legend meets the truth and is a...
Texas Tornados & Hoosier Maniacs
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Features & Gunfights
How The New York Herald Scooped the U.S. Army on Custer
Custer stories never seem to die out. But even if Custer had never been a part of this story, it would be a good one, involving among other things a...
No Quarter
The night of October 18, 1915, was relatively normal for the passengers on board the St. Louis, Brownsville & Mexico Railroad train—until around...
Love Lies Bleeding
Captain Harry Love was in a bad way in June of 1868. It had been 15 years since his greatest triumph—tracking and killing the California bandit...
Preserving an “Uninhabitable Wasteland”
An “uninhabitable wasteland.” That’s what Army explorer R.B. Marcy called the wilds of west Texas. Most folks took the captain at his word and...
Captain of All Rangers for Life
Jim Gillett was just 20 years old when he decided to join the Texas Rangers in 1875. But young didn’t mean inexperienced—Gillett was a native of the...
Wild West Conquers Europe
I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve been asked the question: How come you Brits are so interested in the American West? And I know for a...
A Light in the Wilderness
This is a true story. One day, in 1907, C.W. and Olin Light—brothers and owners of the F.M. Light & Sons clothing store in Steamboat Springs,...
A Nation of Hunters
Before and after the coming of European settlers, hunting game was an important aspect of Indian life. Jamestown founder John Smith relates the...
“Homos on the Range”
The most surprising thing about homosexuality in the Old West is not that it...
The Gipper’s Boots and Saddles
Sportscaster Ronald Reagan signed onto a whole new game when the 24 year old joined the 14th Cavalry (stationed in Des Moines, Iowa), which coaxed...
Long Before Texas Hold ’em
Disgusted, Wild Bill Hickok tossed down his cards on that fateful August 2, 1876. Hickok had joined the table at Nuttall and Mann’s No. 10 Saloon in...