They were duelin’, Doolin-Dalton
High or low, it was the same
Easy money and faithless women
Red-eye whiskey for the pain
— Glenn Frey, Jim Ed Norman, Don Henley
Marvin Minkler scouted this one up. Due in November:
Here’s the caper:
The Last Outlaws is the thrilling true story of the last of one of the greatest outlaw gangs. The dreaded Dalton Gang consisted of three brothers and their rotating cast of colorful accomplices who saw themselves as descended from the legendary James brothers. They soon became legends themselves, beginning their career as common horse thieves before graduating to robbing banks and trains.
On October 5, 1892, the Dalton Gang attempted their boldest and bloodiest raid yet: robbing two banks in broad daylight in Coffeyville, Kansas, simultaneously. As Grat, Bob, and Emmett Dalton and Bill Power and Dick Broadwell crossed the plaza to enter the two buildings, the outlaws were recognized by townspeople, who raised the alarm. Citizens armed themselves with shotguns and six-shooters from nearby hardware stores and were locked and loaded when the thieves emerged from the banks. The ensuing gun battle was a lead-filled firefight of epic proportions. As the smoke cleared, eight men lay dead––including four of the five members of the doomed Dalton Gang.
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Also coming in November…
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Here’s a piece of Old West Law & Disorder history — one of Wild Bill Hickock’s Navy Colt’s and its holster. I got frisson chills studying it in the case at the Cody Center of the West museum. Cody and Hickock were friends from the time that both served as U.S. Army Scouts starting in the 1860s. They were both Union men, and they shared a taste for flamboyant dress, long, flowing locks, liquor, and the attentions of women.
You know what they say:
“You oughta know better than to touch another man’s hat.”
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I am entirely down with a six or seven-week Halloween season. Hell, I extend the spooky vibe all the way to Christmas, cuz in the old times, that was a holiday with an edge, too. In that spirit….
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Captain Schwertfeger has tempted me into a read of Daniel Morgan: A Revolutionary Life, by Albert Louis Zambone. It’s on point with the Ranger Project. According to Rick, Zambone casts Morgan as part of the Ranger tradition. And he was one of the two most tactically proficient battlefield commanders of the war.
GAH says
I have read several of Tom Clavin’s books, including most he has co-authored with Bob Drury… All of the books are well-researched/documented and exceptional story telling… GAH
Wayne says
I just finished Blood and Treasure by Drury and Clavin and agree that they’re a good team. I enjoyed it so much that I’m planning an excursion to visit Boonesborough, Boone Station, the Blue Licks Battle site, etc.
I lingered long over Hickock’s pistol at the Cody Museum. If only it could talk!
JimC says
I’d love a guest post debrief on that trip.
Monk says
Trailer for Butcher’s Crossing is up as well, looks great.
JimC says
Holy smokes!
Aaron Yetter says
Did you see the gun of Longmire display?
JimC says
Did not. Not sure that was still there, though it’s possible I missed it.
Quixotic Mainer says
That’s awesome that Hickock’s colt and holster were there. I would have stood there goggling that for a fair piece!
I acquired a fixer upper Navy reproduction for the princely sum of 80 dollars a few years back. It’s a fine shooter, though it’s only fought battles against paper targets in a gravel pit along one of my hiking trails.
I just picked up “The Three Cornered War”, which tells the New Mexico campaign in the ACW from the Union, Confederate and Native American perspectives. It’s been great thus far, and the whole readership here would greatly enjoy it!
Geoff Miller says
I also have a replica .36 cap & ball revolver, and I prefer it to my Ruger Old Army — not leasr because it uses less powder and lead, at least with target loads. But wasn’t there a line in one of the Highwayman albums (2nd or 3rd) about the .36 being enough to get you into trouble but not get you out?
Ugly Hombre says
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emmett_Dalton
Never has been a good movie made about the Dalton/Doolin gang old Sam sure could have done it- not sure if anyone could now. Plenty of good books on their exploits through Emment wrote a couple iirc and so did Marshal Evett Nix in “Oklahombres” the story of the trackdown and deadly gun fights that did them in. NIx sent out 100 Marshal’s with shoot to kill orders.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evett_Dumas_Nix
The Daltons were experts with the old Colt and Winchesters learned the old way to use them and practiced constant. They had worked both sides of the law and learned from both sides.
https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-A4C71fh_DjQ/VY3Yig2vk5I/AAAAAAAAoq0/55cPOH0QXdg/s1600/bob-dalton-colt-single-action.jpg
https://www.historynet.com/dressed-to-kill-the-guns-used-by-the-daltons-at-coffeyville/
After a robbery flush with cash story is one of them ordered 10 engraved pearl handled Colt Model P’s for the gang. Or did Bob run up on them pre made-on a post heist bender in a St. Louis Hardware store- and slap down the silver for them?
“Was the legend true, then? Had gang leader Bob Dalton outfitted the five holdup men with brand-new horses, fancy Mexican saddles, new clothes, new Winchesters and a pair each of fancy engraved Colt .45s with pearl grips? Pairs of fancy, pearl-handled Colts were not exactly standard equipment for bank robbers in those days, if for no other reason than such weapons would have stood out like filet mignons at a fish fry. But, as bizarre as the story sounds, the existence of the three engraved Colts seemed to be pretty strong evidence that the story was true. In his 1963 book The Dalton Gang, Harold Preece’s description of Bob Dalton making a pre-holdup midnight visit to Coffeyville to get some illegal whiskey while “packing a pair of pearl-handled pistols” adds credence to the legend.”
A old man I knew said one of his relatives two gens back- in Oklahoma traded in on one of the guns after or before the gang was shot all to hell in Coffeeville. The relative had a long notch stick and knew the Daltons well in their glory days pre and post outlaw, and liked them. “They was not bad-they was made that way.”
I don’t doubt the words of the old man about his old family history- he also told me “It a’int true wat Patton said about Pearl handled Colt’s” . Yeah I don’t think I would have brought that up to Bob Dalton. lol
True or not? Hell we will never know for sure. But I believe it.
Padre says
“The Daltons were experts with the old Colt and Winchesters learned the old way to use them and practiced constant. They had worked both sides of the law and learned from both sides.”
Would you happen to be able to elaborate on what that old way might have look like? I am curious if there’s a particular methodology that was taught or copied, and where it could be seen today.
I’m guessing that just as there are many different schools of thought re: weapon handling and gunfighting today, there were probably different approaches back then, too.
joe p. says
an excellent book about the daltons and their accomplices is desperadoes by ron hansen. a telling of their early years as lawmen up to the fatal raid on coffeyville. well worth the read.
Wayne says
Desperadoes by Ron Hansen is one of my all time favorites. He also wrote The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford (made as a movie with Brad Pitt in the title role), another excellent book. Sure wish he’d write another one in the genre.
JimC says
He wrote a Billy the Kid book but there was such a glaring firearms anachronism that it kicked me right out. A Ruger Old Army. Ugh.
Aaron Yetter says
Off topic. Always wanted a movie about buffalo hunters and Nicolas Cage delivers. Butcher’s Crossing. Could be fun. Thou the scenes showing reloading 45-70 shells looks silly.
JimC says
A little heavy with that hammer, right?
Ugly Hombre says
https://gunsmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/G0921-THROW-4.jpg
I don’t know much about it, just have a little verbal info shared by my friend Jim Martin “The last of the Colt Qualified Gun Smith’s” (according to Jerry Kuhnhausen in his “Colt Single Action revolvers Shop Manual” Pg. 167) Jim is a master of the old gun its repair and its practical use. Champion fast draw and practical pistol shooter old L.A. Sheriff firing range instructor and mounted patrol manager. And best of all- he is a great guy.!
https://gunsmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/G0921-THROW-5.jpg
Jim learned from Bob Howard master single action gunsmith and shooter and pard of Elmer Keith’s in the 30’s and 40’s. Jim also shot with a man who rode with Villa back in the 50’s. So he got “the old way” from at least men.
https://gunsmagazine.com/guns/throwing-down-with-the-saa/
https://gunsmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/G0921-THROW-6.jpg
One thing is the throw down method e.g the- 1st gen guns had very heavy main springs so what you see in the old westerns the snapping down of the wrist with the 1rst joint of the thumb on the hammer like casting a fishing pole was for real. Ways of using the recoil to get off a second shot fast using the energy, double shot thumbing the gun, double finger trigger pull, etc. Jim always says the early Colts had springs like model T trucks lol. I was already old when I got my first and am just a hobby shooter its a really interesting subject fun to try to learn the basics. Spoke with Jim many times urging him to do a article or even a book or booklet on the practical use as I believe he has info and I know he has skills with the thumb buster no one else has.
Linked to a article above by Jim and his friend Alan Garbers in Guns magazine. They have done at least one more story together will try to find them, will also call Jim and ask-BTW, when they took the pictures of Jim “throwing down” for the article and getting off two shots so fast they sounded like one they had to put the camera on ‘robot’ could not see him move. lol!
Hope that helps!
Quixotic Mainer says
Awesome stuff!
I’ve been a fast draw competitor for going on a decade now, it’s such a great sport. Standing on the line waiting for that light never gets old!
Reading about the “passing the torch” era in the early days when the guys that were founding the sport were learning from the last of the real frontier era shooters always makes me wish I could have been there.
Ugly Hombre says
https://www.thefreelibrary.com/%22Throwing+Down%22+With+The+SAA%3a+EATING+CROW+BUT+RELISHIDG+THE+TASTE.-a0668522491
Addendum:Seems- Guns magazine removed some of the text from the “Throw Down” article- full article in the above free library link.
Padre says
That’s a big piece of the puzzle. Thank you!
Ugly Hombre says
Very welcome!
https://gunsmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/G0321-MARTIN-5.jpg
Linked to a “Guns” magazine article about Jim Martin and his Colts.
https://gunsmagazine.com/discover/jim-martin-tribute-revolvers/
Wayne says
I agree that Hansen’s Billy the Kid book was a disappointment. So was Larry McMurtry’s Anything for Billy. Butcher’s Crossing was a good read; I hope the movie does it justice. Ugly Hombre’s post makes me want to shoot my revolver.