Charles M. Russell’s 1908 Smoke of a .45 captures the violent chaos caused by short tempers and whiskey on the Western frontier. Courtesy Google Art...
Deadly Gunplay
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Johnny Lingo: Rot Gut, Sheep Wash, Chain Lightning
Belly up to the bar pards and bend an elbow. Any friendly barkeep at the local cantina or saloon, some of which became legendary like the Bird Cage...
Franciscan Trailblazers
For many, the mention of Spanish padres evokes images of bucolic missions stretching far and wide across the Borderlands. Indeed, priests from...
Did “Buffalo Bill” Cody Ever Ride for the Pony Express?
For more than 30 years, our historical consultant, Paul Andrew Hutton, has been arguing with historians over whether or not “Buffalo Bill” Cody rode...
Californios’ Legal Hero
Benjamin Hayes was neither an Argonaut nor an adventurer. Born in Baltimore, Maryland, of Irish ancestry, the lean, bookish 35 year old moved to...
Alberta’s Ghost Train
Some list this story under “Canadian folklore.” Others think it's scary but fake. Author Barbara Smith, include it in her “Ghost Stories of...
One Way to Save the Ranch
It was a familiar story in the Old West. Family ranch catches the eye of a cattleman's association that wants to buy the property—and isn't about to...
Mangas Coloradas’ Undue Fate
There's no way to look at the murder and mutilation of Apache Chief Mangas Coloradas without horror. He is considered by historians as one one of...
Johnny Lingo: Nothing That Glitters Is Gold
Pretty much everyone knows what “just joshing you” means, but how did this common substitute to “pulling a leg” or teasing someone found its way...
Action-Packed Western
Smoke Wagon by Brett Cogburn (Five Star Publishing, $25.95) sweeps up the reader and carries them along the well-written, fast-paced journey of...
Western Legend
Following the 16th-century Spanish entrada into the future states of Texas, New Mexico and Arizona, centuries of war and uneasy peace defined life...
Not Easily Intimidated
General George Crook thoughtfully allowed photographer C.S. Fly to come along to record the event at Cañon de los Embudos for posterity. One of...