The American West
The American West: POWs, Timber Dominated Headlines During WWII
One Saratoga resident’s brother was in Europe fighting Germans during World War II, while his father was working in the timber industry with German prisoners from a POW Camp at Ryan Park, treating one of them as if he was one of our neighbors.
Dick PerueMarch 06, 2025
The American West: Mountain Man Extraordinaire - Mariano Medina
Mountain Man Mariano Medina built a post near present Loveland, Colorado that was “a known location for the ‘pony trade,’ ‘Whites,’ ‘Mexicans’ and ‘Indians’ who traded on a regular schedule in the Big Thompson Valley."
Linda WommackMarch 06, 2025
The American West: Geronimo - Master Guerrilla Fighter
The fierce Chiricahua Apache fighter Geronimo had an all-out war that spanned the American-Mexican border as he defended his people and their way of life, eluding the army for decades.
Bill MarkleyMarch 05, 2025
The American West: Charlie Siringo’s Cowboy Days
Charlie Siringo is best remembered for his years as a detective, undercover agent, and manhunter with the Pinkerton Agency, including his pursuit of Butch Cassidy and his accomplices in robbing trains. But Siringo was a cowboy before he was a Pinkerton detective.
R.B. MillerMarch 03, 2025
The American West – Writing Advice From John Steinbeck
People often lose sight of John Steinbeck as a Western writer. Born in California, half of his published books take place in his native state or in Mexico. Some feature the theme of Westering – traveling toward the goal of California.
William GronemanMarch 02, 2025
The American West: How A Wyoming Outlaw Won A Gunfight With A Coffee Mug
When outlaw Tom O’Day was ambushed in a Thermopolis café back in 1903, a coffee cup was his only defense. Although O'Day was injured, he was declared the winner of the gunfight by newspapers all across Wyoming. The media lampooned the gunman for losing to a coffee cup.
Jackie DorothyMarch 01, 2025
The American West: The Doomed Gold Rush Of Wyoming’s Wind River Canyon
In 1906, a gold rush erupted in Wyoming’s Copper Mountains above the Wind River Canyon. Asmus Boysen’s dream to build a dam and power for these mines was destined for ruin.
Jackie DorothyFebruary 28, 2025
The American West: The First Settlement Of Pueblo, Colorado
For many years, the first official, permanent settlement of today’s city of Pueblo, Colorado, has been credited to the noted mountain man, James P. Beckwourth. But Major Jacob Fowler may have been there twenty years earlier.
James A. CrutchfieldFebruary 27, 2025
The American West: Was Frank James in Wyoming?
One puzzling historical question remains unanswered: Was Frank James (Jesse James' brother) part of the Big Nose George Parott gang that killed two law enforcement officers near Elk Mountain in Wyoming on August 19, 1878?
Mark E. MillerFebruary 26, 2025
The American West: Termespheres -- A Unique Universe Of Art In South Dakota
Each of Dick Terme’s painted spheres are unbelievably complex, painted by a masterful artist whose imagination and multifaceted techniques are beyond compare.
Quackgrass SallyFebruary 25, 2025
The American West: Solomon Butcher – Nebraska’s Prairie Photographer
Solomon Butcher didn’t want to be a homesteader, but he clearly admired those with the grit and gumption to build a home of sod and a life on the land so he made a career traveling the prairie and making photographs.
Candy MoultonFebruary 24, 2025
The American West: The Wild Bunch Moves On - The 1896 Montpelier Bank Robbery
When notorious outlaw Matt Warner was arrested and put on trial for murder in Utah in 1896, he lacked the means to pay for legal assistance. So, his friend Butch Cassidy put a team together and robbed a bank to help him out.
R.B. MillerFebruary 23, 2025
The American West: The McCarty Brothers - Criminals Who Made Butch Cassidy Famous
As the bank robbers raced out of Telluride in 1889, Butch Cassidy entered the history books for his first hold-up that would lead to the formation of the Wild Bunch. Butch Cassidy is the best known of Wild Bunch outlaws, but behind his prominence were the McCarty Brothers.
Linda WommackFebruary 22, 2025
The American West: Murder And Mayhem In Old Deadwood
After the killing of Wild Bill Hickok on August 2, 1876, another feud in Deadwood broke out. This time it was between Laughing Sam and Harry Young. Speculation is that it was over a woman. Unfortunately, the feud led to the death of Bummer Dan in a case of mistaken identity.
Bill MarkleyFebruary 21, 2025
The American West: Butch Cassidy’s Banker, Eugene Amoretti Sr.
Eugene Amoretti Sr. was the founder of Lander, Wyoming, and known friend of both outlaw Butch Cassidy and Fremont County Sheriff Charles Stough, who pursued the outlaws. Amoretti came to America to seek his fortune and died a millionaire.
Jackie DorothyFebruary 21, 2025
The American West: Vernal, Utah’s Parcel Post Bank
The Bank of Vernal, built in 1916, looks like any bank, but it's pretty unique. Freight rates for shipping there were prohibitive, so an alternative was devised. The bank is built from bricks shipped to the community via parcel post through the United States Post Office.
R.B. MillerFebruary 19, 2025
The American West: Tracking Early Humans in Montana
The Anzick site excavation and aftermath should be a model of the cooperation that can exist between the scientific world and American Indians who want to preserve the reverence, respect, and solemnity for their ancient ancestors' remains.
James A. CrutchfieldFebruary 19, 2025
Recalling United Flight 409 Which Crashed Into Medicine Bow Peak in 1955
With today's news of airplane wrecks dominating the news for the past couple of weeks, I’ve been experiencing flashbacks to 70 years ago when I helped report on the worst airline disaster at that time.
Dick PerueFebruary 17, 2025
The American West: Is This The Alamo’s Commander William Barret Travis?
Without the sketch attributed to Wiley Martin we have no verified authentic likeness of the commander at the Alamo, and therein lies its greatest value. But it takes a history sleuth to determine if the sketch is authentic.
William GronemanFebruary 16, 2025
The American West: Following Custer’s Guidon
George Armstrong Custer finished last in his class at West Point, but served admirably in the Civil War before coming to the West and commanding the 7th Cavalry. Along the way he met a gal who followed him from one Army post to another.
Candy MoultonFebruary 16, 2025
The American West: The Love Saga of Josie Bassett and the Brown’s Park Wild Bunch
Josie Bassett lived most of her life on her father's ranch, the center of the outlaw hideout known as Brown’s Park. She had five husbands - divorced four of them, running one off at gunpoint, and one husband died of natural causes … unless he was poisoned.
Linda WommackFebruary 14, 2025
The American West: The Failed Texan - Santa Fe Expedition
The Republic of Texas’ grand scheme to tap the markets of New Mexico and reap huge profits from the trade between Cuba and Santa Fe by placing Texans in a “middleman” position failed miserably.
James A. CrutchfieldFebruary 13, 2025
The American West: Oliver T. Jackson's Black Colony Of Dearfield In Northeastern Colorado
Oliver T. Jackson’s land thirty miles east of Greeley, Colorado, became the nucleus for the black colony of Dearfield, organized in 1910. The community was inspired by a book written by Booker T. Washington.
Linda WommackFebruary 13, 2025
The American West: Bill Carlisle – The Lone Bandit Strikes Again (Part 2)
PART 2: Bill Carlisle, who had brazenly robbed Union Pacific Trains in 1916, and escaped through his own elusive efforts – and with some aid provided by ranchers – would hide in plain sight for several weeks. But his crime spree wasn’t over.
Terry A. Del BeneFebruary 11, 2025