Wild West

Wild West Magazine presents the great American frontier from its beginnings to today. America’s western frontier has been a vital part of the country’s myths and reality, from the earliest exploration beyond the territory of the first colonies, to the wide expanses of the western prairies and deserts. Experience the old west and cowboys and Indians from top historical writers. Wild West brings to life the fascinating history, lore and culture of the great American frontier.

BADMAN CHEROKEE BILL

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Wild West • JUNE 2021 / VOL. 34, NO. 1

LETTERS

TOP 10 REASONS CHEROKEE BILL WAS MORE ‘OUTLAW’ THAN BILLY THE KID

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EVENTS OF THE WEST

LOOKING OVER THE OVERLOOKED • AWARD-WINNING BIOGRAPHER JULIA BRICKLIN WRITES ABOUT JUST SUCH WESTERN CHARACTERS

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EXPERT SHOT MAKER

A JUDGE OF GOOD CHARACTER • GRANVILLE BENNETT PRESIDED OVER ONE OF THE WEST’S WILDER DISTRICTS BUT GAVE HIS COURT A GOOD NAME

‘HADN’T WE BETTER KEEP THE REGIMENT TOGETHER?’ • 7th U.S. CAVALRY CAPTAIN FREDERICK BENTEEN MOST LIKELY NEVER SAID THIS TO LT. COL. GEORGE ARMSTRONG CUSTER

WHEN THE WEST WAS WIRED • LUCIEN SMITH AND JOSEPH GLIDDEN WERE EARLY INVENTORS OF GROUNDBREAKING—AND CONTROVERSIAL—BARBED WIRE

DRAWING ON SPAGHETTI WESTERNS • LORENZO BARRUSCOTTO TAKES INSPIRATION FROM BOTH THE ‘REEL’ AND REAL WEST

HONORING FALLEN AMERICANS • LITTLE BIGHORN BATTLEFIELD NATIONAL MONUMENT RECOGNIZES WARRIORS AS WELL AS SOLDIERS WHO DIED IN THE PIVOTAL 1876 BATTLE

END OF LONG ROAD

STYLE • We admire replicas of famous paintings from Design Toscano and head online to shop for gift items at Sunset.com

GALL’S LAST STAND • Returning from exile in Canada in late 1880, the Hunkpapa Sioux leader briefly faced down soldiers on the Poplar River in Montana Territory

THE SHORT, VIOLENT LIFE OF CHEROKEE BILL • Hanged at age 20, the mixed-race freedman born Crawford Goldsby killed and robbed enough men to rate as the most dangerous outlaw in Indian Territory

WESTWARD, CHRISTIAN SOLDIER • General O.O. Howard found grace and lost an arm during the Civil War before heading west to confront Apache leader Cochise and Nez Perce Chief Joseph

BIGGEST BREAKOUT, BAR NONE • After multiple failed attempts to escape San Quentin State Prison, Tiburcio Vásquez helped lead the 1862 ‘Big Break,’ resulting in bloody chaos

SEARCHING FOR VICTORIO • The subject of this oft-published photograph is not him, but somewhere amid the archives is an authentic image of the great Apache chief

THE LIFE AND DEATH OF VICTORIO

DIRTY ROTTEN SCOUNDREL • Colonel Ben Wettermark, the seemingly trustworthy banker and onetime mayor of Nacogdoches, Texas, became ‘most wanted’ and especially elusive

FORTING UP IN CENTRAL KANSAS • THE FORT HARKER GUARDHOUSE MUSEUM IN KANOPOLIS HONORS FRONTIER POSTS BUILT TO PROTECT OVERLAND TRAVELERS

DANCING FOR DIXIE • J.H. DANCE & BROS.’ SIX-SHOOTER SERVED THE CONFEDERACY AND LATER SUCH OUTLAWS AS BLOODY BILL LONGLEY

MITCHELL, MONTANA • THE MINING SETTLEMENT EAST OF HELENA DIDN’T HIT PAY DIRT UNTIL THE 20th CENTURY

MUST SEE, MUST READ • ART T. BURTON CHOOSES BOOKS AND FILMS ABOUT FRONTIER OKLAHOMA

MAN FROM MONTANA

NATIONAL HISTORIC OREGON TRAIL INTERPRETIVE CENTER, BAKER CITY