Bloody Beaver

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.wildwestextra.com/contact/   Check out my website! https://www.wildwestextra.com/   Buy me a coffee! https://www.buymeacoffee.com/wildwest   Book & Gear Recommendations - https://www.amazon.com/shop/wildwestextravaganza/list/YEHGNY7KFAU7   Rube Burrow Blog by Joe Wheeler - https://jwheeler331.blogspot.com/2012/04/   Rube Burrow: King of Outlaws by George W. Agee (great resource!!!) - https://sites.rootsweb.com/~kithandkin2000/rubeburrow1.htm   Confession of Leonard Brock aka Joe Jackson - https://sites.rootsweb.com/~kith

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, conducting interviews, researching, documenting all kinds of stuff for the purpose of both proving these claims and obtaining a pardon for Mr. Roberts; the same pardon that Billy the Kid was promised back in the day. Brushy was able to obtain a meeting with the then Governor of New Mexico but it was a no use. The whole ordeal was a media circus and Roberts ended up having a stroke right there in the Governor’s mansion. Less than a month later on December 27th, 1950, Roberts would suffer a fatal heart attack and needless to sa

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 some prospectors. They hit some bad weather and worse luck. He himself got snow-blinded and the other five would-be miners abandoned him. For the next two months this survivor somehow scrapped by - living by his wits, surviving the hellish winter, and making it to civilization all on his own, with almost no supplies. An amazing tale of endurance, for sure. There’s just one catch - Alfred Packer didn’t seem all that malnourished. Matter of fact, the man seemed pretty well fed. And his story? Well, it had holes. Who was

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

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 – the Newton Massacre, also known as the Shootout at Hide Park. Also discussed: John Wesley Hardin and Doc Middleton.   Email me! https://www.wildwestextra.com/contact/   Check out my website! https://www.wildwestextra.com/   Buy me a coffee! https://www.buymeacoffee.com/wildwest   Newton, Kansas | Hide Park - https://hchm.org/author/hchm-curator/   Newton’s General Massacre - https://hchm.org/newtons-general-massacre-truth-myth/   A Boy Named Riley - https://hchm.org/fact-fiction/   Who Was Allegro? - https://hchm.org/m

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

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 out my website! https://www.wildwestextra.com/   Buy me a coffee! https://www.buymeacoffee.com/wildwest   Dark History of the Texas Rangers - https://www.npr.org/2020/06/08/871929844/cult-of-glory-reveals-the-dark-history-of-the-texas-rangers   Porvenir Massacre Descendants - https://time.com/5682139/porvenir-massacre-descendants/   Big Wonderful Thing Excerpt | Sediciosos - https://www.texasmonthly.com/being-texan/big-wonderful-thing-excerpt-sediciosos/   The Murder of Bazan & Longoria - https://www.valleycentra

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 Johnson once again. John Ford’s 1956 masterpiece starring John Wayne, The Searchers, is said to be inspired by Britt Johnson.   Email me! https://www.wildwestextra.com/contact/   Check out my website! https://www.wildwestextra.com/   Buy me a coffee! https://www.buymeacoffee.com/wildwest   The First Battle of Adobe Walls - https://www.wildwestextra.com/firstadobewalls/   Satanta’s Flight - https://www.wildwestextra.com/satantas-last-flight-kiowa/   Elm Creek Raid - https://www.frontiertimesmagazine.com/blog/the-indian-r

August 1903. The famous Annie Oakley is arrested in Chicago for theft, a crime committed in order to obtain money to fuel her cocaine habit. And what a headline that made. America’s original sweetheart, the tiny sharpshooter who once entertained kings and queens, now reduced to petty thievery. Wasn’t long before newspapers throughout the country began to report on this fall from grace. Enter in William Randolph Hearst, son of mining tycoon George Hearst, who ruled a media empire and had his eye on the white house. There was no story too sensational or salacious for him to print, the truth be damned. What happened when the darling of the Wild West Show goes to war with one of the most powerful men in the country? A man with very deep pockets and an army of Pinkertons? Did Annie Oakley even have a chance at clearing her name? Find out on this girl power episode of The Wild West Extravaganza!   Email me! https://www.wildwestextra.com/contact/   Check out my website! https://www.wildwestextra.com/   Buy me a coff

In 1849 a trader named James White decided to break from his wagon train and push on ahead with just his family and a few men. The outcome was about as bad as anything you could imagine; the men were dead, and the women taken captive. The subsequent rescue mission was led by none other than Kit Carson. But this time could the hero save the girl? Also, I rant about history!   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   Tom Tobin & The Bloody Espinosas: https://www.wildwestextra.com/tobin/   Blood and Thunder by Hampton Sides: https://www.amazon.com/Blood-Thunder-Carson-Conquest-American/dp/1400031109   Meat Eater Podcast | Hampton Sides: https://www.themeateater.com/listen/meateater/ep-298-cooking-captain-cook   Kit Carson’s Rescue Ride | True West Magazine: https://truewestmagazine.com/article/history-and-the-myth/ Learn more about your ad c

Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned, ain’t that what they say? But what happens when it’s also a woman doing the scorning? And what happens if that hell is just El Paso, Texas? One helluva girl fight, that’s what! Join me as we take a look at Old West madam Fat Alice Abbot and the fight she got into with rival brothel owner, Etta Clark. This episode has a little bit of everything. Listener discretion advised!   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   What’s a “pubic arch”?: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pubic_arch   Clash of the Mad Madams | True West Magazine: https://truewestmagazine.com/clash-of-the-mad-madams/   Big Nose George: https://www.wildwestextra.com/big-nose-george-wyoming-bandit/   The Battle of Beecher Island: https://www.wildwestextra.com/40-the-battle-of-beecher-island/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.

George Parrot - aka Big Nose George – was a basic run-of-the-mill road agent. Trains, stagecoaches, general stores – they were all fair game for Big Nose and the boys. Sometimes he was successful and sometimes he wasn’t, but he was always down to try. Unfortunately for George the long arm of the law eventually caught up with the man; permanently and prematurely ending his outlaw career. And that’s only HALF the story! How many times did George have a noose placed around his neck before it finally stuck? What happens when a couple of old west sawbones get their hands on a criminal cadaver? And what’s all this have to do with nipple shoes? Find out on this Farrah Fawcett inspired episode of The Wild West Extravaganza!   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   Who Were Those Masked Men? | Texas Observer: https://www.texasobserver.org/2552-who

Jim Clyman is a name that pops up consistently in all the books I’ve read on mountain men and fur trappers, but I never really dived into the guy until now. Veteran of the War of 1812, General Ashley’s 1824 Expedition, AND the Black Hawk War, as well as friend and contemporary to guys like Jedediah Smith, Broken Hand Fitzpatrick, Hugh Glass, and Jim Bridger. From the shinning mountains to the great plains to the high desert, from the wild and woolly days till the twilight of the west, Jim Clyman was THERE! And he most definitely had his fair share of close encounters of the historical kind! Donner Party ring a bell? LISTEN TO THE END FOR AN IMPORTANT UPDATE! Check out my website for more true tales from the wild west! https://www.wildwestextra.com/   Contact me!!! https://www.wildwestextra.com/contact/   Subscribe or follow The Wild West Extravaganza WHEREVER you consumer audio! https://www.wildwestextra.com/follow/   Listen to my friends at Obscure History and Texas History Lessons!!!! https://op

There's just no denying that Texas produced its fair share of stone-cold killers in the latter part of the 19th century. Men like John Wesley Hardin, King Fisher, Clay Allison, and of course the notorious Deacon Jim Miller. And then there’s Bill Longley, considered by some to be one of the deadliest gunmen of the west. A tall brooding shootist credited with 32 kills once described as the worst man in Texas. “I still alone tread the living land destitute of friends but damn the world and every sons of a bitch that don’t like me for I am a wolf, and it is my night to howl.” – Bill Longley Check out my website! https://www.wildwestextra.com/ Contact me! https://www.wildwestextra.com/contact/ Listen to The Wild West Extravaganza WHEREVER you consume audio! https://www.wildwestextra.com/follow/ Listen to Obscure History!!!! https://open.spotify.com/show/7gpVCWNeSxwDpZGWdEMvsl  Listen to Texas History Lessons!!! https://www.texashistorylessons.com/ Boastful Bill Longley https://www.historynet.com/boastful-bill-lon

In the summer of 1877 Chief Joseph and the peaceful Nez Perce went to war with the U.S. Government in a running fight that spanned four states and 1,170 miles. Who was Chief Joseph? Why’d Buffalo Bill call him “the greatest Indian ever produced?” And why did the Nez Perce go to war? I’ve been looking forward to this episode for a long time so without further ado, let’s dive into Chief Joseph and the Nez Perce War! Check out my website! https://www.wildwestextra.com/ Contact me! Wildwestextra@gmail.com https://www.wildwestextra.com/contact/ Listen to The Wild West Extravaganza WHEREVER you consumer audio! https://www.wildwestextra.com/follow/ Chief Joseph and the Flight of the Nez Perce by Kent Nerburn https://www.amazon.com/Chief-Joseph-Flight-Nez-Perce/dp/B07D8CNG6K/ref=sr_1_6?dchild=1&keywords=kent+nerburn&qid=1626877161&sr=8-6 Nez Perce War Battle Map https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Nez_Perce_War_battle_map-1877.jpg Nez Perce War Timeline – University of Lethbridge https://www.ulethbridge.ca/lib

Discovered sometime prior to 1952 in the Florida Mountains of Southwestern New Mexico, the “Last Stand Note” - written on a piece of tobacco paper and stuffed inside an empty shell case - reads as follows: This is our last shell and about 10 Indians left so our chances look slim, but we are going to take a chance. Yours truly, Wm Bonney. Did Billy the Kid REALLY write this note? Did he ever have any close encounters with the Apache? Find out all of this and more on this newest episode of the Wild West Extravaganza! Check out my website! https://www.wildwestextra.com/ Contact me! https://www.wildwestextra.com/contact/ Billy the Kid and the Apaches – True West Magazine https://truewestmagazine.com/article/billy-the-kid-and-the-apaches/ The Last Stand Note https://www.oldwestevents.com/highlights/2019/1/18/last-stand-note-on-cigarette-paper-signed-wm-bonney Cooke’s Canyon https://www.desertusa.com/desert-new-mexico/cookes-canyon.html       Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

When Felipe Espinosa and his younger brother Vivian were feeling bloody, the bodies were sure to follow. And in the spring and summer of 1863, there was certainly no shortage of bodies. Some victims were shot at long distances while others were casualties of more close-in work with blades or axe. And most were mutilated; beheaded, disemboweled, desecrated, or otherwise molested. After several failed attempts, the U.S. Army finally hired mountain man Tom Tobin to hunt down Felipe Espinosa. Tobin had been out west since he was a 14-year-old and had a unique set of skills that made him invaluable when it came to being a manhunter. Who were the Bloody Espinosa brothers? What caused their murderous tirade? Who was Tom Tobin and was he successful? My name’s Josh and your listening to the Wild West Extravaganza! 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/ Listen to my episode of Texas History Lessons!!!  htt

This is a Podcast Swap, hosted by my friend Michael from the podcast Texas History Lessons! After you give this a listen make sure you check out his website for the latest episode of Texas History Lessons - hosted by yours truly - on the 1919 Texas Ranger Investigation! https://www.texashistorylessons.com/jose-canales-and-the-texas-rangers-investigation-of-1919/ Any mention of the Wild West brings up many images that books and film have ingrained in the American mind over decades. Cowboys trailing cattle up the trail. Bold Native American warriors fighting to preserve their way of life. Settlers and soldiers determined to fight back and take the land that they felt they, somehow, deserved. Surely many more can be listed but there are two that will definitely pop up. The confident gunman that had a steady hand and a sure shot that would lay his opponent or opponents in the dust and the feuding families or associations of cattlemen that resorted to bloody violence to establish their control over the use of wat

In 1864 famed frontiersman Kit Carson took a force of several hundred soldiers into the heart of the Llano Estacado in an attempt to punish the Comanche for their recent raids. What followed was a bloody fight now known as the first Battle of Adobe Walls, as Carson and his men kicked the hornet’s nest and quickly found themselves outnumbered 10 to 1. This episodes got something for everyone! We’re gonna talk Kit Carson, we’re gonna talk army tactics, Billy the Kid, the Navajo, the Apache, and - of course - the Comanche. For further reading check out Blood and Thunder by Hampton Sides. Check out my website for more true tales from the wild and woolly west!!! https://www.wildwestextra.com/ Contact Me!!! https://www.wildwestextra.com/contact/ Support this podcast!!! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Wyatt Earp, Billy the Kid, Doc Holliday, Jesse James, Wild Bill Hickok - These are the names of legends. Names I think most people – even those with no interest in old west history – will find familiar. But for every one of these guys, there were a dozen others who were every bit as deadly and capable with a firearm, if not more so. Men who didn’t flinch in the face of death. Men who knew the smell of the black powder smoke and the crack of a bullet snapping past their heads; men who for whatever reason are largely lost to history. Or at the very least just not that well known. Men like Elfego Baca. The young store clerk pinned on a fake mail order badge and single-handedly took on an overwhelming force of gunmen. The over 30-hour gunfight that ensued is considered, by some, to be the most lopsided of the wild west. All at the tender age of 19! And don’t you worry your pretty little head, the rest of Elfego’s life was chock full of excitement as well, including a run-in with Pancho Vila.   Check out the websi