Table Of Content

TRUE TALESAMAZING LEGENDS :W iw ^mw/ **• Hg^vy K |j§| •■'-^* ’■•• 1^^11? | ■VHv ' 7 J ** m A gJHfcyi\ . « ; Boston Public Library Boston, MA 02116 General George Armstrong Custer. This photo was taken two months before the Battle of the Little Bighorn. Custer posed for over 150 photographs in his lifetime. TRUE TALES - AMAZING LE6ENDS OF HI from Magazine True West the editors of TRUE WEST MACAZINE C1 a rk son Potter/Publish ers New York ILLUSTRATION CREDITS Abbreviations: a, Above; b, Below; 1, Left; r, Right; t, Top; m, Middle; al, Above Left; ar, Above Right; bl, Below Left; br, Below Right; tl, Time Line; BBB, Bob Boze Bell art/photo; DL, Denver Public Library; CLD, Chet and Lindy Downs, Dos Amigos Publishing Co., Jourdanton, TX 78026; PG, Phyllis Gendreau; HS, Historical Society; LC, Library of Congress; RGM, Robert G. McCubbin collection; NA, National Archives; KAR, Karen A. Robertson photo; TX, Texas State Library & Archives Commission; TW, True West archives; GW, Gus Walker map. 2 RGM; 6 Craig Fouts; 8 RGM; 10 BBB; 13 TW; 141 GW, bl & br KAR; 15-16 KAR; 18 Charles Deas; 19 tl TW; 20-22 TW; 231 Alfred Jacob Miller, tl TW; 24 GW; 26 Montana HS; 27 & 29 TW; 30 Henry McArdle; 31-32 TW; 34 Daughters of Republic of Texas Library; 36 BBB; 37 David Zucker; 38 Paul Hutton; 39 Center for American History U Texas at Austin; 40 TW; 421 TX, tl TW; 43 tl TW; 45 BBB; 46 & 48 TW; 49 BBB; 50-51 RGM; 52 BBB; 531 BBB, r RGM; 54 & 56 RGM; 57 Anthony Garnett; 58 TW; 59 NA; 60 LC; 61 RGM; 63 TW; 641 KAR, r Idaho HS; 67 Idaho HS; 691 RGM, r Craig Fouts; 70 TW; 73 BBB; 76 TW; 77 Craig Fouts; 78 BBB; 80 San Francisco Call (Dec. 15,1896); 82-83 BBB; 84 RGM; 85-86 TW; 87 RGM; 88 TW; 90 RGM; 91 BBB; 92 & 94 TW; 97 Museum of New Mexico (Neg. No. 11409); 98 Minnesota HS; 99-100,102 & 104 TW; 105-109 TW; 110 Dept, of Special Collections, Chester Fritz Library, U North Dakota; 111 TW; 112 TX; 113-114 NA; 115 TX; 117 NA; 119 Colorado HS; 1201 Colorado HS, tl TW; 1211 Denver HS, m DL, tl TW; 1221 & m DL, tl TW; 123 TW; 124 GW; 125 DL; 126-130 TW; 132 GW; 133 CLD; 1341 CLD, tl TW; 135 TW; 136-137 TW; 1381 CLD, tl TW; 139 TW; 140 t CLD, tl TW; 141 CLD, inset BBB; 142-143 TW; 144 CLD; 145 TW; 146 GW; 147-148 TW; 151 TW; 152 GW; 153-154 TW; 155-159 Jim Gatchell Memorial Museum; 160 & 162-164 Arizona HS; 165 RGM; 166-167 TW; 169 & 171 a Gary S. McClelland; 171 b Tombstone Western Heritage Museum; 174 BBB; 175 101 Ranch; 177 North Fort Worth HS; 178-179 101 Ranch; 180 TW; 181 PG; 1821 PG, tl TW; 183 TW; 185-186 & 188-190 PG. Copyright ® 2005 by True West Publishing, Inc. All rights reserved. Published in the United States by Clarkson Potter/Publishers, an imprint of the Crown Publishing Group, a division of Random House, Inc., New York. www. crownpublishing, com www.clarksonpotter.com Clarkson N. Potter is a trademark and Potter and colophon are registered trademarks of Random House, Inc. All of the stories in this collection have previously appeared in True West magazine. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data True tales and amazing legends of the Old West: from the pages of True West magazine—1st ed. 1. West (U.S.)—History—Anecdotes. 2. West (U.S.)—Biography—Anecdotes. 3. West (U.S.) —Folklore. 4. Tales —West (U.S.) 5. Legends—West (U.S.). I. True West. F591.T695 2005 978—dc22 2005048704 ISBN 0-307-23638-2 Printed in the United States of America Design by True West Publishing, Inc. 10 987654321 First Edition FOR OVER A HALF CENTURY, Old West historians have made True West magazine a respected source on the history of Western North America. Writers such as Glenn Shirley and Eve Ball from the magazine’s early days have entertained past generations of readers by separating fact from myth, just as Joseph Rosa, Neil Carmony and other contemporary writers do now. The editors of True West magazine acknowledge a debt to the historians of yesterday and today, for it is their scholarship that makes True West the leading authority on the history of the Old West. Without our writers, True West magazine would not exist. And to them, the editors of True West are particularly grateful. Special thanks go to the authors who allowed us to republish their articles in this book. Choosing what to include from the wealth of articles that have appeared in the magazine was a daunting task. The editors also wish to thank Bart Bull, who first envisioned this book, and our agent James Fitzgerald, who sold the concept to the Crown Publishing Group. For patience and perseverance in enduring our seemingly endless e-mails and for shepherding the book through the Crown production process, we thank our Crown editors Natalie Kaire and Maria Gagliano. Finally, we thank True West's art director, Daniel Harshberger, for his splendid layouts and Robert Ray, head of True West’s production department, for working weekends so we could meet our deadline. The Editors, True West magazine Bat Masterson (left) and Wyatt Earp CONTENTS Introduction.9 1 Sacagawea’s Improbable Reunion by R.G. Robertson.10 2 Rendezvous by R.G. Robertson.18 3 The Alamo by Jana Bommersbach.29 4 How Did Davy Really Die? by Bob Boze Bell.36 5 Luck of the Draw by John Haradon.40 6 Dead in the Water by Downs Matthews.45 7 The Real Wild Bill by Joseph G. Rosa. 49 8 From Troy Grove to the Tin Star by Joseph G. Rosa .56 9 Orlando “Rube” Robbins by R.G. Robertson.63 10 The Split by Chuck Hornung and Gary L. Roberts.69 11 Fifty Things You Don’t Know about Wyatt Earp by Bob Boze Bell.77 12 The Wild Bunch by Daniel Buck and Anne Meadows.83 13 The Coming of the Sacred Dog by R.G. Robertson.91 14 “If They’re Hungry, Let Them Eat Grass” by Larry H. Johns.98 15 The Warrior Who Killed Custer? by Jana Bommersbach.105 16 Judgment at Jacksboro by Johnny D. Boggs.112 17 “Take No Prisoners” by Linda R. Wommack.119 18 Swallowed by the Earth by Mike Coppock.126 19 A General Named Dorothy by Neil Carmony.133 20 Raid on Columbus edited by Neil Carmony and excerpted from Tough Times in Rough Places: Personal Narratives of Adventure, Death and Survival on the Western Frontier.145 21 Truth Failed to Hide in a Tin by Larry K. Brown.154 22 One for the Grave by Leo W. Banks.160 23 Eating His Weight in Democrats by Jana Bommersbach.165 24 O Homo by Leo W. Banks.169 25 Chompin’ at the Lip by Tom Carpenter.175 26 Vera McGinnis by Jana Bommersbach .181 COHTEHTS * 7 The only known photograph of Billy the Kid,