Download or read book The Cornett Whitley Gang written by David Johnson and published by University of North Texas Press. This book was released on 2019-07-15 with total page 321 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: During the late 1880s, the Cornett-Whitley gang rose on the Texas scene with a daring train robbery at McNeil Station, only miles from the capital of Texas. In the frenzy that followed the robbery, the media castigated both lawmen and government officials, at times lauded the outlaws, and indulged in trial by media. At Flatonia the gang tortured the passengers and indulged in an orgy of violence that earned them international recognition and infamy. The damage that the gang caused is incalculable, including the destruction, temporarily, of a Texas Ranger company. The gang tarnished reputations, shed light on what news media was becoming, and claimed lives. As a whole the gang was psychopathic, sadistic, and murderous, prone to violence. They had no loyalty to one another and no redeeming qualities. But the legacy of the gang is not all evil. Private enterprises, such as Wells Fargo, the railroads, and numerous banks, joined forces with law enforcement to combat them. Lawmen from cities and counties joined forces with federal marshals and the Texas Rangers to further cement what would become the “brotherhood of the badge.” These efforts succeeded in tracking down and killing or capturing a good number of the gang members. Readers of the Old West and true crime stories will appreciate this sordid tale of outlawry and the lawmen who put a stop to it. Those who study the media and “fake news” will appreciate the parallels from the 1880s to today.
Download or read book 200 Texas Outlaws and Lawmen 1835 1935 written by Laurence Yadon and published by Arcadia Publishing. This book was released on 2008-02-29 with total page 308 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A lively reference covering a century’s worth of shooters, sheriffs, and more in the Lone Star State. The Lone Star State is known for producing both vicious outlaws and valorous lawmen. While Machine Gun Kelly terrorized urban civilians, lawmen such as Ranger John Barclay Armstrong tried to keep things under control. This is the story of Texas’s most famous criminals, intrepid lawmen—and in the case of James Edwin Reed, both—as well as such figures as the legendary Judge Roy Bean. This reference brings to life a time before the West was tamed, and also includes a chronology of well-known crimes and a locale list of notorious events.
Download or read book He Rode with Butch and Sundance written by Mark T. Smokov and published by University of North Texas Press. This book was released on 2012 with total page 457 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The definitive biography of infamous western outlaw Harvey Alexander Logan, better known as Kid Curry. A violent conflict with a ranching neighbor in Montana caused him to flee to the Hole-in-the-Wall valley in Wyoming, where he became involved in rustling and eventually graduated to bank and train robbing as a member of the Wild Bunch. This outlaw group was a melding of the best of the Hole-in-the-Wall gang and Butch Cassidy's Powder Springs gang. Smokov shows that Curry was not the bloodthirsty killer that many have claimed. He contends that Curry was the actual train robbing leader of the Wild Bunch.
Download or read book The Deadliest Outlaws written by Jeffrey Burton and published by University of North Texas Press. This book was released on 2009 with total page 561 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In the late nineteenth century Tom Ketchum and his brother Sam formed the Ketchum Gang with other outlaws and became successful train robbers. In their day, these men were the most daring of their kind, and the most feared. Eventually Tom Ketchum was caught and sentenced to death for attempting to hold up a railway train. He became the first individual--and the last--ever to be executed for a crime of this sort. Jeffrey Burton has been researching the story of the Ketchum Gang for more than forty years. He sorts fact from fiction to provide the definitive truth about Ketchum and numerous other outlaws, including Will Carver and Butch Cassidy. The Deadliest Outlaws initially was published in a limited run of one hundred paperback copies in England. This second edition in hardcover contains additional material and photographs not found in the earlier printing.
Download or read book The Santa Claus Bank Robbery written by A. C. Greene and published by University of North Texas Press. This book was released on 1999 with total page 252 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Master storyteller A. C. Greene re-creates one of America's most bizarre holdups -- one that began as a lark. On Christmas Eve 1927, four men set off to rob the First National Bank of Cisco, Texas. Soon the lark turned into a tragedy -- and at times a comedy -- of errors. The robbers did not realize the car they had stolen for their get-away was running on empty. The leader did not anticipate the attention his disguise would draw, even though it was a bright red Santa Claus suit. And they could not have known that all of Cisco would have guns at hand because the Bankers Association had offered a reward of $5000 for any dead bank robber, no questions asked. The Santa Claus bank robbery set off a chain of events that would lead to violence and the death of six men and launch the largest manhunt Texas had ever seen. A. C. Greene's factual account of the unusual crime reads like a novel -- fast paced, full of unexpected turns, and rich with the flavor of life in Texas at the beginning of the end of the Old West. This new edition contains an Afterword with photographs, some of them never before published, and follow-up information on the lives of the participants, including the surviving robber, witnesses and kidnap victims.
Download or read book Texas Ranger N O Reynolds the Intrepid written by Chuck Parsons and published by University of North Texas Press. This book was released on 2014-08-15 with total page 447 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Historians Chuck Parsons and Donaly E. Brice present a complete picture of N. O. Reynolds (1846-1922), a Texas Ranger who brought a greater respect for the law in Central Texas. Reynolds began as a sergeant in famed Company D, Frontier Battalion in 1874. He served honorably during the Mason County "Hoo Doo" War and was chosen to be part of Major John B. Jones's escort, riding the frontier line. In 1877 he arrested the Horrells, who were feuding with their neighbors, the Higgins party, thus ending their Lampasas County feud. Shortly thereafter he was given command of the newly formed Company E of Texas Rangers. Also in 1877 the notorious John Wesley Hardin was captured; N.O. Reynolds was given the responsibility to deliver Hardin to trial in Comanche, return him to a safe jail during his appeal, and then escort him safely to the Huntsville penitentiary. Reynolds served as a Texas Ranger until he retired in 1879 at the rank of lieutenant, later serving as City Marshal of Lampasas and then County Sheriff of Lampasas County.
Download or read book Great Train Robberies of the Old West written by R. Michael Wilson and published by Rowman & Littlefield. This book was released on 2006-11-01 with total page 176 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: During the 1800s trains carried the nation's wealth throughout the east, but no one thought to rob a speeding train until 1866. In 1870 the first western train was robbed in Nevada and within hours a second train was robbed. Railroads made every alteration to their cars and changed every procedure they could imagine to thwart the robbers, but to no avail. Robbing trains became epidemic over the next five decades, even when the legislatures made train robbery a capital crime. A few of the hundreds of train robberies stand out as thrilling and dangerous affairs, and the greatest of these (15-20) are included in this book.
Download or read book The Old West s Infamous Train Robbers and Their Historic Heists written by W. C. Jameson and published by Rowman & Littlefield. This book was released on 2023-07-01 with total page 219 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: What sort of person undertakes to rob a multi-ton train surging down a set of rails at high speed? For the Old West’s most famous outlaws, including Jesse James, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, the Dalton Gang, and Black Jack Ketchum, it was as much about the thrill of the crime as the riches to be won, thumbing their noses at the authorities, and getting away with their crimes more often than not. These men, and at least one woman, were dare devils, rule breakers, adventurers, and rebels. In addition to their train robberies, they led colorful, dramatic, and dangerous lives. The Old West's Infamous Train Robbers and Their Historic Heists profiles sixteen noted train robbers (or train robbing gangs) along with the details of each their forty-seven hold-ups. The mechanics of each of their train robberies—planning, execution, and escape—are dissected and discussed. Pertinent background information relating to each outlaw/gang is included as well as what became of them following their train-robbery days.
Download or read book The Horrell Wars written by David Johnson and published by University of North Texas Press. This book was released on 2014-06-15 with total page 272 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: For decades the Horrell brothers of Lampasas, Texas, have been portrayed as ruthless killers and outlaws, but author David Johnson paints a different picture of these controversial men. The Horrells were ranchers, and while folklore has encouraged the belief that they built their herds by rustling, contemporary records indicate a far different picture. The family patriarch, Sam Horrell, was slain at forty-eight during a fight with Apaches in New Mexico. One Horrell son died in Confederate service; of the remaining six brothers, five were shot to death. Only Sam, Jr., lived to old age and died of natural causes. Johnson covers the Horrells and their wars from cradle to grave. Their initial confrontation with the State Police at Lampasas in 1873 marked the most disastrous shootout in Reconstruction history and in the history of the State Police. The brothers and loyal friends then fled to New Mexico, where they became entangled in what would later evolve into the violent Lincoln County War. Their contribution, known to history as the Horrell War, has racial overtones in addition to the violence that took place in Lincoln County. The brothers returned to Texas where in time they became involved in the Horrell-Higgins War. The family was nearly wiped out following the feud when two of the brothers were killed by a mob in Bosque County. Johnson presents an up-to-date account of these wars and incidents while maintaining a neutral stance necessary for historical books dealing with feuds. He also includes previously unpublished photographs of the Horrell family and others.
Download or read book The Sutton Taylor Feud written by Chuck Parsons and published by University of North Texas Press. This book was released on 2009 with total page 402 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: History, Rangers, Quarrels, Trials.
Download or read book Captain John H Rogers Texas Ranger written by Paul N. Spellman and published by University of North Texas Press. This book was released on 2003 with total page 289 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Spellman now presents the first full-length biography of this enigmatic man.".
Download or read book The Mason County Hoo Doo War 1874 1902 written by David D. Johnson and published by University of North Texas Press. This book was released on 2006 with total page 361 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A haunting story of ethnic strife, human frailty, betrayal, vengeance, and the harrowing repercussions of mob justice.
Download or read book Death on the Lonely Llano Estacado written by Bill Neal and published by University of North Texas Press. This book was released on 2017-07-15 with total page 240 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In the winter of 1901, James W. Jarrott led a band of twenty-five homesteader families toward the Llano Estacado in far West Texas, newly opened for settlement by a populist Texas legislature. But frontier cattlemen who had been pasturing their herds on the unfenced prairie land were enraged by the encroachment of these “nesters.” In August 1902 a famous hired assassin, Jim Miller, ambushed and murdered J. W. Jarrott. Who hired Miller? This crime has never been solved, until now. Award-winning author Bill Neal investigates this cold case and successfully pieces together all the threads of circumstantial evidence to fit the noose snugly around the neck of Jim Miller’s employer. What emerges from these pages is the strength of intriguing characters in an engrossing narrative: Jim Jarrott, the diminutive advocate who fearlessly champions the cause of the little guy. The ruthless and slippery assassin, Deacon Jim Miller. And finally Jarrott’s young widow Mollie, who perseveres and prospers against great odds and tells the settlers to “Stay put!”
Download or read book Captain Jack Helm written by Chuck Parsons and published by University of North Texas Press. This book was released on 2018-03-15 with total page 336 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In Captain Jack Helm, Chuck Parsons explores the life of John Jackson “Jack” Helm, whose main claim to fame has been that he was a victim of man-killer John Wesley Hardin. That he was, but he was much more in his violence-filled lifetime during Reconstruction Texas. First as a deputy sheriff, then county sheriff, and finally captain of the notorious Texas State Police, he developed a reputation as a violent and ruthless man-hunter. He arrested many suspected lawbreakers, but often his prisoner was killed before reaching a jail for “attempting to escape.” This horrific tendency ultimately brought about his downfall. Helm’s aggressive enforcement of his version of “law and order” resulted in a deadly confrontation with two of his enemies in the midst of the Sutton-Taylor Feud. “Captain Jack Helm is more than a fine gunfighter biography: it is a vivid statement about the murderous violence of Reconstruction in Texas.”—Bill O’Neal, State Historian of Texas
Download or read book Bloody Bill Longley written by Rick Miller and published by University of North Texas Press. This book was released on 2011 with total page 391 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: William Preston Longley (1851-1878) went on a murderous rampage over the last few years of his life. Once he was arrested in 1877, and subsequently sentenced to hang, his name became known statewide as an outlaw and a murderer. Longley created and reveled in his self-centered image as a fearsome, deadly gunfighter. In truth, Longley was not the daring figure that he attempted to paint.
Download or read book Murder on the White Sands written by Corey Recko and published by University of North Texas Press. This book was released on 2007 with total page 253 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "The evidence pointed at three men, former deputies William McNew, James Gililland, and Oliver Lee. These three men, however, were very close with powerful ex-judge, lawyer, and politician Albert B. Fall. It was even said by some that Fall was the mastermind behind the plot to kill Fountain. Forced to wait two years for a change in the political landscape, Garrett finally presented his evidence to the court and secured indictments against the three suspects." "The trial took place in the secluded town of Hillsboro. The murders of the Fountains became an afterthought as the accused men, defended by their attorney Fall, pleaded innocence. Missing witnesses plagued the prosecution, and armed supporters of the defendants, who packed the courtroom, intimidated others. The verdict: not guilty.".
Download or read book King Fisher written by Chuck Parsons and published by University of North Texas Press. This book was released on 2022-07-15 with total page 321 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: America’s Wild West created an untold number of notorious characters, and in southwestern Texas, John King Fisher (1855-1884) was foremost among them. To friends and foes alike, he insisted he be called “King.” Standing over six feet tall, a dark and handsome man, King often dressed as a frontier dandy. A Texas Ranger remembered King as wearing an “ornamented Mexican sombrero, a black Mexican jacket embroidered with gold, a crimson sash and boots, with two silver-plated, ivory-handled revolvers swinging from his belt.” Early in life King fell victim to bad influences. After a stint in Huntsville Prison as a teenager, he found a home in the tough sun-beaten Nueces Strip, a lawless land between the Nueces River and the Rio Grande. There he gathered a gang of rustlers around him at his ranch on Pendencia Creek. For a decade King and his gang raided both sides of the Rio Grande, shooting down any who opposed them. Newspapers claimed King avoided the penalties prescribed by law by killing potential witnesses—in spite of many charges he was never convicted of cattle or horse stealing, or murder. King’s reign ended when he was arrested by Texas Ranger Captain Leander McNelly. In no uncertain terms he advised Fisher to change his ways. Having emerged victorious in gunfights with outlaws from across the Rio Grande, King Fisher chose a life style which would prove to be just as dangerous—deputy sheriff of Uvalde County. Now he would enforce the law, with his badge as well as his six-shooter. But his hard-won respectability would not last. On a spring night in 1884, King made the mistake of accompanying the truly notorious gambler and gunfighter Ben Thompson on a tour of San Antonio, where several years prior, over a gambling dispute, Thompson shot down Jack Harris at the latter’s saloon and theater, the Vaudeville. Recklessly, King Fisher accompanied Thompson back to the theater to call upon Harris’s former partners. Warned of their coming, assassins were waiting. Within minutes of entering the theater, when the smoke cleared, Fisher was stretched out beside Thompson, dead from thirteen gunshot wounds.
