Old timers used to say, “Anybody who’s ever tried to put a braid in a mule’s tale knows a thing or two more about the subject than someone who...
Joe Felmer’s Mule
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Marshall Trimble
Did most Old West lawmen always carry guns?
Did most Old West lawmen always carry guns? Allen Pogue Flagstaff, Arizona Most Old West lawmen went unarmed, much of the time. Marshal Tom “Bear...
The Trapper’s Rendezvous
Like gold dust on the mining frontier, beaver fur was the medium of exchange in the mountains. Unique to the American industry was the rendezvous...
The Apache Scouts
One of the smartest strategic moves by the Frontier Army during the Indian Wars was to enlist Natives as scouts. On the Plains, tribes like the...
Did American Indians have some version of bathrooms or latrines?
Did American Indians have some version of bathrooms or latrines? James White Goliad, Texas American Indians generally did their “business” in the...
Honeymoon Trail
There were many trails that crossed Arizona in the early days including the Butterfield Overland Stage, the Gila Trail and the Beale Camel Road and...
What is the Hole-in-the-Wall Pass in Wyoming?
Terry Kelley Ruidoso Downs, New Mexico The favorite sanctuaries for Butch Cassidy’s Wild Bunch were Hole-in-the-Wall, in northern Wyoming, Browns...
Del Potter’s Railroad
Del Potter ran a little railroad he proudly named the Clifton and Northern. The line ran from the little town of Clifton to a mine north of town but...
Marion Hedgepath, the Debonair Bandit
Someone asked me the other day why Marion Hedgepath isn’t a better-known outlaw. I have at least a dozen outlaw encyclopedias and he isn’t listed in...
Ike Clanton’s Last Ride
Ike Clanton managed to survive the “Gunfight Near the OK Corral” by running away after the shooting started and Wyatt Earp’s vendetta ride after the...
Gunfighter: Partly Truth and Partly Fiction
Gunfighters were partly man and partly myth. In legend and sometimes in real life they stood along as lone crusaders or knight-errants who fought...
Did the Wild West era have any famous deaf people?
Chris Graefser St. Peters, Missouri One who comes to mind is Erastus “Deaf” Smith, one of the most celebrated patriots in the Texas fight for...