Rolla Gardner had no plans to chase after some train robbers near Parachute, Colorado in June 1904. A posse was already on the trail. But then Gardner discovered the outlaws had stolen a couple of his horses, and he grabbed a rifle and went after them. The posse caught up with the robbers on June 17. And in an exchange of gunfire, Gardner shot one in the chest. It was probably a fatal wound. But moments later, the injured man—Kid Curry (photo)—finished things by shooting himself in the head.

True West May/June 2025
In This Issue:
Features
- Historic Hotels of the American West
- A Journey Through Wyoming’s Outlaw History
- A Journey Through Washington’s Wild Frontier
- Blazing The Oregon Trail
- Journey Through Time
- Did Brigham Young Order a Massacre?
- Mountain Meadows Scapegoat John D. Lee VS. A Firing Squad
- Mormons in the Movies
- An Indigenous Consultant Ensures Accuracy
- The Battle Axe And A Raw Deal
- Showdown: Bridger VS. Brigham
- The Mountain Man and the Mormon Moses
- The Ghosts of Mountain Meadows
- The War Before the War
- Mountain Meadows