Jim Bridger would join the ranks of Ashley’s One Hundred while still a teenager and - alongside other future old west legends like Hugh Glass, Jedediah Smith, and James Beckwourth - head up the Missouri river in search of beaver. From present day northern Montana all the way down to the Gulf of California, from the Mississippi on west to the Pacific Ocean, the iconic Mountain Man Bridger saw it all; discovering and blazing trails that still bear his name to this day while at the same time facing...
Feb 01, 2023•51 min
My Darling Clementine is considered the greatest Wyatt Earp film of all time. It also just so happens to be the least accurate, despite legendary director John Ford having known Wyatt personally. Contrary to popular belief – and Ford’s own claims - this film was NOT based on Earp’s own account of his days in Tombstone, but rather an earlier film whose director also knew the now famous lawman. I say now famous because Wyatt wasn’t exactly what you would call a household name prior to the 20th cen...
Jan 04, 2023•36 min
We all know the "scene", right? Wyatt, Virgil, and Morgan Earp are walking the streets of Tombstone when they’re confronted by a visibly inebriated Johnny Ringo. He informs the trio that he wants their blood and their souls, and he wants them now. Wyatt refuses to fight, says there ain’t no money in it and tells Ringo to sober up, as he and his brothers turn and walk away. At this point Johnny really begins to rage. “Don’t any of you have the guts to play for blood?” And that’s when Doc steps ou...
Dec 21, 2022•27 min
This is the fifth and final installation in the Frank Canton series. Link below for the previous four. In the early morning hours of June 2nd, 1899, five masked men held up a Union Pacific Train near Wilcox, Wyoming. In what would become one of the more famous robberies of the old west, the bandits used dynamite to blast their way into a mail car and after another detonation took care of the safe, they’d ride away with an estimated 50,000 dollars. Nearly 2 million in today’s money. And if this s...
Dec 14, 2022•41 min
This is part 4 in the series on Frank Canton. Link to previous episodes below. When we left off, Frank was laying low in Nebraska following the aftermath of the Johnson County War. On this episode we’ll take a look at Canton’s next job – that of Undersheriff in a newly formed county down in Indian Territory. We’ll discuss his relationship with the famed Three Guardsmen – Heck Thomas, Bill Tilghman, & Chris Madsen, as well as Frank’s efforts to put an end to the notorious Doolin Gang as well ...
Dec 07, 2022•43 min
This is Part 3 in the Frank Canton series. See links below for Parts 1 2. https://open.spotify.com/episode/04X4DO7USW9EzqK0xFNhSJ https://open.spotify.com/episode/0Nh2kWENOVK8xwZgy5SLf6 Things in Johnson County, Wyoming had finally come to a head. After the Wyoming Stock Growers Association allegedly lynched James Averell and Ella Watson, there was a series of repercussion killings. When respected cowboys Orly Jones and John A. Tisdale were also found brutally murdered, all eyes were cast on Fra...
Nov 30, 2022•33 min
This is Part 2 in the Frank Canton series. See link below for Part 1. https://www.wildwestextra.com/frank-canton-part-1-the-outlaw-years/ During Canton’s time as Johnson County Sheriff, he sent over a dozen men to prison – mostly for horse theft – and even executed a murderer. He wasn’t very trigger happy, though. Frank was a tough, intimidating lawman who was happy to let his reputations speak for him. But why did he soon lose the support of the people? And what happened when Frank and his WSGA...
Nov 23, 2022•40 min
Frank Canton was not born; he was created. The mental fabrication of a notorious outlaw and escaped convict by the name of Joe Horner. After possibly killing his first man at the tender age of 15, Horner would spend the next several years as a cowboy and ranch hand before forming the infamous Horner gang, that would terrorize north Texas during the mid-1870’s. After a full-on gun battle with the United States military in broad daylight, Horner is arrested but escapes. And, following the successf...
Nov 16, 2022•49 min
It’s safe to say that a career as an outlaw doesn’t lend itself to a long life. Billy the Kid was only twenty-one years old when he was killed. Cherokee Bill a year younger. The notorious Bloody Bill Anderson not yet twenty-five. Jesse James, Joaquin Murrieta, Rube Burrow, Bill Longley, the list goes on. Not a one of them over the age of forty. But of course, there are exceptions. Not ALL of the west’s most dangerous men died young. Nor did they simply disappear at the turn of the 20th century. ...
Oct 29, 2022•12 min
Happy Halloween! Clemente Apolinar was the last person publicly hanged in Texas. Not only did his execution go horribly wrong but you won’t BELIEVE what the location is currently being used as. Check out my website for more true tales from the Wild West: https://www.wildwestextra.com/ Email me! https://www.wildwestextra.com/contact/ Buy me a coffee! https://www.buymeacoffee.com/wildwest Join Patreon for bonus content! https://www.patreon.com/wildwestextra Become a YouTube Paid Member for bonus c...
Oct 26, 2022•14 min
Fifty Modoc warriors defied the U.S. Army for nearly a year; outwitting and outfighting them on more than one occasion, & killing a General in the process. This is Part 3 of the series on Captain Jack and the Modoc War. Captain Jack & the Modoc War Pt 1 – https://open.spotify.com/episode/08Z5EY1dTdb9vTGRm1OoTb Captain Jack & the Modoc War Pt 2 - https://open.spotify.com/episode/4aveLbPW47jLSlqdeqvUkW Check out my website for more true tales from the wild and woolly west https://www.w...
Oct 12, 2022•53 min
This is part 2 in the series on the Modoc war. If you haven’t already listened to part 1, you may want to do so. Captain Jack & the Modoc War | Part 1 - https://www.wildwestextra.com/captain-jack-the-modoc-war/ We’ve already discussed the Modoc people, a bit of their history, and the unfortunate events leading up to the war. About how Captain Jack and his band weren’t content with the living conditions on the Klamath reservation, so they simply left and headed south, back to their homeland a...
Sep 28, 2022•38 min
In 1874 Kintpuash – better known as Captain Jack - led his small band of the Modoc people off of a reservation in southern Oregon and back to their homeland in Northern California. What occurred after would be one of the most expensive wars ever fought on U.S. soil; one which pitted just 50 to 60 Modoc warriors against nearly a thousand U.S. troops and volunteers. Check out my website for more true tales from the wild and woolly west https://www.wildwestextra.com/ Email me! https://www.wildweste...
Sep 14, 2022•30 min
What happens when a young Kit Carson faces off against a mountain of a man at the annual fur trapper’s rendezvous? What IS a rendezvous, anyway? And who gets the girl??? Check out my website for more true tales from the wild and woolly west https://www.wildwestextra.com/ Email me! https://www.wildwestextra.com/contact/ Buy me a coffee! https://www.buymeacoffee.com/wildwest Join Patreon for bonus content! https://www.patreon.com/wildwestextra Become a YouTube Paid Member for bonus content! https:...
Aug 31, 2022•25 min
This is part 3 and the final installment of this series on Wild Bill Hickok. If you have not already listened to the first two episodes, please do so. Links below. We’ve already pretty much covered Bill’s entire life; his childhood, his adventures during the war, his time as a lawman, and - finally - his decline. If you’ll recall we left off with Hickok in St. Louis, attempting to organize an expedition bound for the black hills. And there we shall begin. What events led to Bill's premature deat...
Aug 17, 2022•37 min
Wild Bill leaves Independence after killing Davis Tutt and pursues employment as a scout and U.S Deputy Marshal. As Hickok’s notoriety increases, he goes on to serve as Marshal in the rough Kansas towns of Hays and Abilene before joining Buffalo Bill Cody and Texas Jack Omohundro in New York City. This is part 2 of Wild Bill series. In part one we covered Hickok’s childhood, his time in Bleeding Kansas, his first known gunfight with David McCanles, time spent serving the Union during the war, an...
Aug 10, 2022•57 min
Few names associated with the old west are as recognizable as Wild Bill Hickok. And for good reason. In many ways, Wild Bill was the quintessential Westerner of the later 19th century. Wagon master, scout, soldier, spy, lawman, gambler, actor, and yeah…gunfighter. A man capable of extraordinary feats of daring and bravery, yet courteous and soft-spoken when left alone, and kind to children. One of the few frontiersmen who was willing to take his guns off and go toe to toe with anyone looking for...
Aug 01, 2022•1 hr
Unfortunately due to technical difficulties there will be no new episode of The Wild West Extravaganza today. But don't you worry none, I'll be leaving you in the very capable hands of Lindsay Graham, the host of History Daily. You may know Lindsay from the excellent audio drama 1865. Or maybe American History Tellers. American Scandal, American Elections: Wicked Game, Dirty John, Doctor Death, Business wars. And on and on. Lindsay Graham knows how to make a great podcast and he most definitely ...
Jul 20, 2022•39 min
Said to have killed hundreds of people – although the true number is likely far less than that – Cullen Baker was one of the more deadly men of the old west; a guy who didn’t blink when it came to dropping that hammer, a man to whom killing seemed to come naturally. Who was Cullen Baker? A proud rebel who continued to defy federal authority long after the Civil War was officially over? A true hero of the cause or just a homicidal maniac? Did he really invent the quick draw? And what’s the story ...
Jul 06, 2022•51 min
Imagine for a second that you’re a young immigrant, lured to a foreign land with hopes of creating a better life for yourself and your family. Upon arrival, however, things don’t turn out quite like you dreamed and those in power decided to take everything from you that you hold dear. Your land is stolen, your brother murdered by so called vigilantes without benefit of a trial and you yourself tied up, horse whipped, and forced to watch your beautiful wife beaten and raped, raped to the point th...
Jun 22, 2022•1 hr 3 min
This is a tale of two survivors. One, affectionately known as Comanche, was an 8-year veteran of the U.S. military. He was first wounded in battle against hostiles on the southern plains in 1868. And, when Custer led the charge at the Battle of Little Big Horn, our veteran was right there with him. Wounded an astonishing seven times, he somehow survived and spent the next year recuperating. And, as you can imagine, he was showered in respect for the rest of his life and, upon his death, was sent...
Jun 08, 2022•32 min
The Gambler lived his life as did many of his kind, quietly and in the shadows. Never making a mark nor desiring to do so. His long life spanned from the wild and rough days of Tombstone and Silver City to a modern era of airplanes, automobiles, and jazz, yet our Gambler would never make the history books. His brother, however… Email me! https://www.wildwestextra.com/contact/ Check out my website! https://www.wildwestextra.com/ Buy me a coffee! https://www.buymeacoffee.com/wildwest Book & Ge...
May 25, 2022•23 min
Rube Burrow got his start as an honest man. A simple cowboy and farmer with a wife and children. But when his wife died and the farm went belly up, Rube took to earning a living in anyway he could. And that way led him to become one of the most notorious and most wanted train robbers of the old west. Who was Rube Burrow? A good man pushed too far? The Robin Hood of Alabama who only stole from the rich? Or just another good ole boy lured by the trappings of easy money? Email me! https://www.wildw...
May 10, 2022•57 min
The outlaw Billy the Kid was allegedly killed at the age of 21 by Sheriff Pat Garrett in the year 1881. Skip ahead another 70 years and you have an elderly man known as Brushy Bill Roberts coming forward shattering the common historical narrative. He claimed to be the kid, said that he had escaped Pat Garrett all of them years before and had been living under the radar ever since. Brushy - with the help of an attorney named William V. Morrison - spent around two years compiling evidence, conduct...
Apr 22, 2022•1 hr 35 min
April 1874. Present day Colorado. A half-starved weather-beaten Alfred Packer came limping into the Los Pinos Indian Agency seeking refuge. Feet covered in rags he claimed he had a harrowing story to tell. The man was ushered in and given food which he vomited up almost as soon as he got it down. Too long without he explained, asking instead for whiskey. Anything that would calm his stomach and hopefully his trembling hands. Finally, Alfred spoke. Said he had been a guide up in the mountains for...
Apr 06, 2022•1 hr 2 min
When future General George S. Patton saw his first taste of combat, he was a young officer on the Mexican border. But was this REALLY his first fight? Email me! https://www.wildwestextra.com/contact/ Check out my website! https://www.wildwestextra.com/ Buy me a coffee! https://www.buymeacoffee.com/wildwest Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Mar 31, 2022•11 min
There are two things you just don’t discuss in a beer joint: politics and religion. The reason being these topics tend to be a bit divisive. You add alcohol to the mix and things could get downright ugly. As was the case one sweltering August evening in Newton, Kansas. 1871. Two lawmen named Mike McCluskie and Billy Bailey got into a heated argument that turned physical and – ultimately – deadly. What followed was a quest for revenge that led to one of the deadliest gunfights of the Old West – t...
Mar 16, 2022•34 min
In a remote corner of Oregon’s northeastern territory exists a mysterious and foreboding village. This is the legend of Sammyville. Listen and subscribe to Obscure History wherever you get your podcasts! Obscure History - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/obscure-history/id1496667775 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Mar 09, 2022•22 min
The 1919 Texas Ranger Investigation - and the Canales Hearing that followed - shed light on misconduct and atrocities committed by one of the most legendary branches of law enforcement between the years 1910 and 1920. An era known to some as La Mantanza - The Slaughter. What events unfolded to cause the darkest hour of the Texas Rangers? And who was Jose Canales, the man brave enough to stand up against them? Today we remember the victims. Email me! https://www.wildwestextra.com/contact/ Check o...
Mar 03, 2022•40 min
In October of 1864 Britton Johnson’s son was murdered and his wife and two surviving children were taken captive by a Kiowa War Party. Not willing to just sit back and hope for the best, Britt took matters into his own hands. Set out, alone, into Indian Territory. Determined to get his family back, one way or another. And believe it or not, he was successful. Unfortunately he made some enemies along the way, a desperate savage foe who were just biding their time until they could catch up with Jo...
Feb 17, 2022•59 min
