THE ENGLISH WESTERNERS'  SOCIETY

Brand Books and Special Publications

 All prices are at subscriber rates and for members include postage and packaging. Books should be ordered from

Mike Bell, 43 Russell Road, Hall Green, Birmingham, B28 8SF or E-mail the Treasurer@EWS

Please note that these prices are the normal rates set for each publication. On occasions members will receive Special Offers via The Round-Up.

Jesse Woodson James - A Noble Robber? (16pp) A fully researched look at the legendary aspects of this fabled outlaw.  £4.00 ($8.00)

The Eyes of the Sleepers: Cheyenne Accounts of the Washita Attack. (24pp) A collation of rare Cheyenne interviews dealing with the Custer attack against Black Kettle at the Washita in 1868. £4.00 ($8.00) 

Jack McCall, Assassin: An Updated Account of his Yankton Trial, Plea for Clemency, and Execution. (24pp) The twists and turns of Black Jack’s last trial for the killing of Wild Bill Hickok. £4.00 ($8.00)

Crook’s Résumé of Operations against the Apache Indians 1882 to 1886. (28pp) Rarely in print, unless goaded, these are the scarce words of the bearded one himself on the subject of Geronimo. £4.00 ($8.00) 

'Splashed to the Brows in Blood': The Winston Train Robbery and the End of an Outlaw. (20pp) The last days of the James Gang and an examination of Jesse's untimely death at the hands of the Ford brothers. £4.00 ($8.00)

The Guns Long Hair Left Behind: The Gatling Gun Detachment and the Little Big Horn. (24pp)  Should Custer have been better armed or would it have cramped his style?  The debate of the day is raised again in this new examination which also contains a rare copy layout plan, from Dr Thomas B Marquis, of the Seventh Cavalry marching in formation. £4.00 ($8.00)

'James W Kenedy: Cattleman, Texas Ranger, Gambler and 'Fiend in Human Form' (28pp)  A tale from the annals of Dodge City in the 1870's. Was his celebrated victim the real 'Miss Kitty' of fictional Western fame? Something of the life of this rich-boy-gone-bad is told here including his pursuit by Wyatt Earp and an all-star posse of the most intrepid lawmen.' £4.00 ($8.00)

The Battle for Apache Pass (32pp)  Captains Roberts and Cremony needed water for their men and horses.  It was to be found only at a spring high in the rocky bastions of Apache Pass where Cochise and Mangas Colorodas held the cliff tops above them.  Accounts of the participants and maps from Larry L Ludwig tell the ensuing story'. The story of the Battle for Apache Pass from the original reports of the California Volunteers, with editorial by Allan Radbourne. £4.00 ($8.00)

The Saffron Walden Scalplock Shirt (34pp) The story of the scalplock or hair fringed shirt that occupies a prime location at the Worlds of Man Gallery at  Saffron Walden  Museum and related aspects of Plains Indian material culture is by Neil Gilbert and as a number of colour drawings by Richard Hook as well as black and white illustrations. £4.30 ($9.00)

More Sidelights of the Sioux Wars (96pp) This Special Publication No. 10 was sent to all members for 2002-2003 in lieu of the Brand Books for that year. It contains four well-researched articles; George Herendeen: The Life of a Montana Scout by Barry C. Johnson, Approach to the Little Big Horn River by Rod MacNeil, "I Have a Right to Sing" - The Courtmartial of Cadet Marcus A. Reno at West Point by Barry C. Johnson and Yellowstone Interlude: Custer's Earlier Fights with the Sioux by Francis B. Taunton. English Westerners' Society Special Publication No. 10. £7.00 ($14.00). SOLD OUT

Captain Tom Bell and his Legion of Ruffians (102pp) Tells the enduring story of Captain Tom Bell and his organised raiders who preyed upon the early California goldfields.  Something of a contrast to the Old West proper and the more interesting for that.  Features an excellent map of Gold Rush California. £6.50 ($13.00)

The Liberty Bank Robbery (18pp) This article tells the story of the first crime attributed to the James Gang that took place at Liberty, a small town in Clay County, Missouri. Some of the material appeared in previous Society publications but enough is new to make an update worthwhile. £4.00 ($8.00) 

Black Twin: Dark Lord of the Oglala (18pp) By Gary Leonard. 'My friend' said Red Cloud to the commissioner, 'take pity on me, if you would have me live long'. He was talking about another chief named Black Twin, whom he said was 'wild, like the antelope' but admitted that he was afraid to make a move without the mysterious leader's approval. This intriguing work examines the forgotten power of 'the most prominent Oglala' during the Sioux wars. £4.00 ($8.00)

"My Arm was Hanging Loose" - The Pinkerton Attack on the James Family Home (48pp) By Robert J. Wybrow as a result of new material this is a re-examination of famous bungled raid on the home of the James Brothers - Frank and Jesse over the night of 25/26th January 1875 by operatives of the Pinkerton Detective Agency. It was during this raid that their mother lost an arm.  £4.50 ($9.00)

"Vignettes in Violence". (108pp) This is Volume 1 in a two volume series. Volume 1 is edited by Barry C. Johnson and Francis B. Taunton to celebrate the Golden Jubilee of the English Westerners' Society. It contains a series of articles on Western outlaws and law enforcers written by Chuck Parsons, Robert Wybrow, Jeffrey Burton and Roy O'Dell. English Westerners' Society Special Publication No. 11A. £6.50 ($13.00)

"A Stinging Blow" The Battle of The Big Hole: 9th August 1877 (28pp). Francis B. Taunton describes the Battle of the Big Hole which took place on the 9th August, 1877 when a force led by Colonel John Gibbon attacked a Nez Perce village. This was one of a number of engagements in a war that had started when approximately 800 Nez Perce men, women and children fled Northern Idaho in June 1877. Gibbon who had just under 200 soldiers and civilians had planned to launch his assault at about 4 A.M., when he had hoped to achieve surprise. Unfortunately the movements of his command were discovered and the attack commenced early. Despite having artillery support in the form of a mountain howitzer, Gibbon lost the advantage as the Nez Perce fought back and even captured the gun. This short paper not only reviews the engagement but provides a critical perspective on the problems confronting the U.S. Army in its campaigns during the latter quarter of the 19th Century. £4.00 ($8.00)

The Battle at Rainy Butte: A Significant Sioux-Crow Encounter of 1858  (69pp) By Brian L Keefe who provides an account of the 1858 confrontation that took place at Rainy Butte almost twenty years before the Little Bighorn, when the Sioux consolidated their hold upon the Northern Plains. It started here. £6.00 ($12.00)

The Life and Death of Outlaw Harry Tracy  (37pp) By Frank James.  Although attributed to Frank James the account of the outlaw Harry Tracy was actually ghosted by a journalist and author Robertus Love as the Foreword by Robert Wybrow informs the reader. Tracy was an outlaw who had escaped from the Oregon State Penitentiary on 9th June, 1902 and was to die at his own hands on 5-6th August, 1902 after being cornered by a posse. During this brief period on the run he had killed seven people including the man he had escaped with.  £4.00 ($8.00)

Company C, Indian Scouts, Arizona, 1882 (24pp) By Allan Radbourne who tells the story behind one term of enlistment for a typical Indian Scout company in 1882. The enlistment of Indian Scouts by the U.S. army was first authorised in 1866 and had become routine by the 1880s. £4.00 ($8.00)

The Outlaw and the Lawman: Some Reminiscences of Cole Younger and Harry Hoffman (56pp) Compiled and introduced by Robert Wybrow and Laura Heywood. Harry Hoffman was a lawman in the Jackson County Marshal's Office from 1909-1917 and was an authority on some of the old time outlaws. He was born in 1873 and died in 1964. Laura Heywood who along with Robert Wybrow compiled this Brand Bok actually met Hoffman in 1959 when she was 13 years-old and corresponded with him until his death. Hoffman had been a friend of Jesse James Jnr and despite being a lawman was an admirer of Cole Younger. Hoffman was also the director and general manager of the company that produced the film that starred Jesse James Jnr, as his outlaw father and in which Harry played Cole Younger. This collection of reminiscences of this old-timer is probably the most complete collection published. £4.90 ($10.00)

Wakanyan: Symbols of Power and Ritual of the Teton Sioux  (22pp) This is by the late Colin Taylor is reproduced by kind permission of Mr Samuel W. Corrigan, Editor of The Canadian Journal of Native Studies. This work was originally given as a lecture and subsequently published as a paper in the aforementioned journal. In this work Colin brought out the observations of the American anthropologist, Lewis Henry Morgan, who felt that Indian artefacts were "silent memorials" which could unlock the social history of the past. £4.00 ($8.00)

"Wash My Hands in Your Heart's Blood" Some Incidents in the Life of Mattie Collins (31pp) By Robert Wybrow. Mattie Collins is well known to those interested in the James Gang especially because of her relationship to Dick Liddil and minor part in the assassination of Jesse James. There were other darker facets to her life, involving three murders. She was born in 1851 and died in 1936. £4.00 ($8.00)

A Blackburn Man in the Frontier Army: The Life and Recollections of Sergeant Jacob Howarth (40pp) by Barry C. Johnson. Voices from the ranks were seldom" were seldom heard according to Johnson and most only deal with the period of military service. Jacob Howarth was born in Blackburn, Lancashire in 1853, he would run away to see the world and end up enlisting in the U.S. army in 1871 and was then assigned to the Company F, 11th U.S. Infantry, who were serving in Texas. He only served five years but had no regrets and returned to his native country in late November1876 having achieved the rank of sergeant. In 1926 he wrote by request what he himself described as "a simple and truthful narrative of events [in Texas] ... without colouring of any kind." £4.00 ($8.00)

Mochi: Cheyenne Woman Warrior (32pp) by the late Peter Harrison. Peter as many members will be aware died on the 31 January 2009. He had been working on his book about Monasetah and his research had produced a wealth of information on the Southern Cheyenne. This book is a result of some of that research and was finalised by Gary Leonard who took over editorial control of the Brand Book after Peter's untimely death. It is a fascinating account of Mochi, a Cheyenne woman who was as fierce as any warrior. With her husband  Medicine Water, she was responsible for the death of five members of the German family (the parents and three of seven children) and capture and taking into captivity of four surviving female members. The attack on this immigrant family took place on the 11th September 1874 on the West Kansas Plains. £4.00 ($8.00)

Fist Fighting Out West: Dan Stuart versus General Mabry and the Texas Rangers (28pp) by the Keith Robinson tells the story of the attempts by Dan Stuart a boxing promoter to match two contenders for the heavyweight championship of the world in El Paso after the abdication of James J. Corbett as the champion. This proposed fight led to State and Federal legislation outlawing boxing. Seven companies of territorial militia were put on alert and 250 infantrymen and five troops of cavalry were confined to Fort Bliss awaiting development. The two contenders tried desperately to stay out of jail and avoid being shot and Dan Stuart sparred with Adjutant General Mabry of the Texas Rangers. The fact the fight took place was down to the ingenuity of no less a person than Judge Roy Bean. £4.00 ($8.00)

Texas Wants 'Em (30pp) Written by Robert Wybrow an acknowledged expert on the James brothers and the Youngers. In this book whose title reflects the headline in the St. Louis Globe-Democrat, "Texas Wants 'Em. Depredations of the Youngers in the Lone Star State", he had set out to see if whether the claims made by Texas that the James-Younger gang committed felonies in that State had any basis for being fact. He widened his article to also focus on another Missourian, Jim Reed, who most definitely had been involved in criminal activity within the State. A most interesting read for those who of us who take a particular interest in the James-Younger gang and known associates. £4.40 ($9.00)

Aspects of Lakota Leadership (28pp) This publication contains two short articles. The first is by the late Joseph Balmer (1914-2006), a native of Switzerland and one of the founder members of the English Corral of Westerners in 1954 (now the English Westerners' Society). Joe was an acknowledged expert on the Indian Wars and based his views from the Indian side of the conflict, although he was certainly not uncritical. Joe also could read and write Lakota and had corresponded in his younger days with many old-time warriors. His paper introduced by Barry Johnson is about the leadership of the Brule Sioux (Sichangu or Burnt Thighs) from the mid-1700s to 1825 The latter date is when on the 22nd June 1825 Brule headmen/tribal leaders signed a treaty of peace and friendship with the United States. The second article is by Kingsley Bray on Sitting Bull and Lakota Leadership, Sitting Bull is perhaps the most iconic Indian leader on the Plains and achieved a unique status among his people, the Hunkpapa tribal division of the Teton Sioux or Lakota. His article describes the structure of the Hunkpapa bands, tribal and national-level organisation, historical developments between 1800-1851 and through into the 1860s. £4.00 ($8.00)  

Henry Starr and his Era (44pp) It is not a definitive account of the life of the outlaw Henry Starr but as well has providing information on his criminal career it also provides a great deal of information on his known associates from the start of his career in crime in 1891. During his 32 years in crime Henry Starr robbed more banks than both the James-Younger and the Doolin-Dalton gang's put together. As just a teenager in the Oklahoma Strip, Henry, the nephew of livestock rustler Belle Starr, received his initiation in crime at an early age. He started robbing banks on horseback in 1893 and ended up robbing his last in a car in 1921. In the late 1890’s he organised a gang that robbed a number of small banks in the Oklahoma, Texas, and Arkansas area. Starr shot and killed Floyd Wilson, a deputy of Judge Isaac Parker in 1903. For that murder he was sentenced to hang but eventually after two appeals and pleading guilty to manslaughter his sentence was reduced and he would be released after a pardoned in 1903.

Starr never seemed to able to give up his life of crime and he would return to prison on two further occasions. Finally after robbing a bank in Harrison, Arkansas on 18 February 1921, he was shot in the back by the former president of the bank. Starr received medical attention but died on 21 February 1921. Henry Starr is buried in the Dewey Cemetery north of Dewey, Oklahoma. There is no marker, but he is buried next to headstone labelled as ‘Baby Starr.’ Rather uniquely, although not the first, before his return to crime and death for the final time he had produced and starred in the silent movie, 'A Debtor to the Law', in 1919. The film was about the double bank robbery in Stroud, Oklahoma on the 27 March 1915 for which he received his last custodial sentence. Price: £6.00 ($12.00)

Making Pacts With Old Enemies: The Fort Laramie Treaty of 1851 (46pp) Brian O'Keefe covers the lead up to the 1851 Fort Laramie Treaty that brought together a number of the Northern and Southern Plains tribes together despite their long time enmity towards each other. The fact that so many tribes would gather for the conference was down to the efforts of men like Thomas 'Broken-Hand' Fitzpatrick, a government agent, and Father Pierre 'Black Robe' DeSmet. The Crows were one of the last of the tribes to gather and they staged a grand entrance, their late arrival, from a white man's perspective heralded the conference and subsequent treaty a success. Although official records record this as the  Fort Laramie Treaty of 1851 it was referred to by white's as "The Fitzpatrick Treaty" or "Horse Creek Treaty". To the Indians it went by other names like the "Great Smoke" and "The Treaty of the Long Meadows". As with all US Government treaties it would not last as they were never able to deliver on promises made, and although for a few years inter-tribal warfare was reduced it would begin again as the tribes fought to protect their traditional hunting grounds from each other and white encroachment. £6.40 ($13.00)

The Secrets of Box 20: Custer's War Department File 1861-1897 Edited by Barry C. Johnson including Foreword and Introduction is a Special Publication and Volume 2 of the Golden Jubilee Publication. Although General George Armstrong Custer's personal file has been available to researchers since the 1950's , up until then all were regarded as confidential, there was very little interest in Custer's file and Johnson explains why. The importance of this work however is the methodical way that Johnson has put this publication together. First explaining the how the Adjutant General's Office (AGO) compiled such records known as A.C.P. files after "The 'Appointments, Commission and Personal Branch" whose responsibility it had been to maintain the files. Then he assesses the  the contents of Custer's file, which contains very little information regarding Custer's campaigns or battles, before giving readers an insight into the AGO in Custer's time. The file itself is published in chronological order as the original file had been kept loosely and had clearly resulted in the files themselves becoming disorganised. The formatting of the original files as been retained included the spelling and it is believed this publication is the first time that the files have been reproduced in print. English Westerners' Society Special Publication No. 11B. £10.00 ($20.00)

Wild Bill Hickok's Hays City Brawl With Soldiers of Custer's 7th Cavalry (32pp) This account of of the famous brawl outside  Tommy Drum's  Saloon in Hays City, Kansas on 17th July 1870 between "Wild Bill" Hickok and members of Company M of Custer's Seventh Cavalry is well-known.  Company M were commanded at the time by Thomas Ward Custer, the General's younger brother, who would also meet his death at the Little Bighorn in 1876 in the same year that Hickok would die after being shot in the back in Deadwood. The author, Jeff Broome, has worked tirelessly to uncover the facts, made challenging by the various but widely false accounts perpetuated over time. The discovery in 2000 of Sergeant John Ryan's memoirs by Sandy Barnard and subsequent publication helped to shed new light on the incident but also on the two soldiers; John Kile and Jerry Lonergan. This book provides a reader with a much richer picture of these two men, in particular Kile, as well as clearing up the facts of the fight. £4.00 ($8.00)

'An Indian Called Wounded Knee': Miss Viola Clemmons and the White Lily Company in England & Wales, 1991-92 (36pp) The American actress Katherine Viola Clemmons toured the provincial theatres of England and Wales for four months during 1891 - 92 with The White Lily, a pioneering production in the evolution of the Western genre. Viola’s dramatic career, although ultimately a monumental failure, could not have been accomplished at all without the patronage and comprehensive backing of Colonel W. F. 'Buffalo Bill' Cody, who was simultaneously engaged on a tour of Great Britain with his Wild West Show. The most compelling element in this dramatic spectacular was a band of ten authentic Lakota Indians, whose recruitment from Pine Ridge Reservation, South Dakota, was facilitated by Buffalo Bill. £5.20 ($10.50)

Wyatt Earp - Fair and Square Referee? Fist Fighting Out West II (36pp) Keith Robinson's first book about Fist Fighting Out West featured the fight between two heavyweight championship contenders fighting for the title after the abdication of James L. Corbett. The fight was won by Bob Fitzsimmons. Corbett came out of retirement and planned to fight Tom Sharkey in San Francisco. He pulled out of the fight and Fitzsimmons stepped in as his replacement prior to fighting Corbett himself at a later date. The fight took place on 2 December 1896. With no referee agreed by the day of the fight, Wyatt Earp who resided in the city was nominated by the Sharkey camp and the Fitzsimmon's camp saw no reason to object to this ex-lawman refereeing despite some warnings from other that the fight would be fixed. This account of the events surrounding that fight make interesting reading and the final result still remains controversial in boxing history. £5.20 ($10.50)

The 'Itazipcho' Hoop: Sans Arc Lakota Tribal Organization and Leadership in the 19th Century (40pp) Kingsley M. Bray in his paper examines in detail the social and political organization of one of the seven tribal divisions of the Lakota or Western Sioux, the Sans Arcs or Itazipcho (Without Bows). A chronological vantage point in the 1850s is used to focus this paper to look at earlier developments in the robe trade period of Lakota history, and later developments in the Sioux Wars and early reservation period. The Sans Arcs were the smallest of the seven tribal divisions probably less than 200 lodges by 1865 with a population of approximately 1,200 according to the papers author.£4.00 ($8.00)

Witness to the Passing of a Legend: The Death and Burial of Jesse James (40pp) Michelle Pollard provides a first class account of the death in St. Joseph, Missouri and subsequent burial of Jesse James at his home in Kearney, Missouri. Jesse James who at time was living under the name of Thomas Howard who was shot in the back by Bob Ford as he hung a picture on the wall in his parlour. £4.00 ($8.00)

The 'Fighting Seventh' at Canyon Creek (28pp) Francis Taunton produces an important study of the 7th Cavalry's encounter with the Nez Perce at Canyon Creek in September 1877. The fight took place over a year after the more famous battle at the Little Bighorn but the regiment itself has failed to describe it in its own history. Why this is the case is unknown as it can not be described as either a defeat or a success. Six companies under the command of its regimental commander, Colonel Samuel D. Sturgis, whose son had been killed with Custer, participated. £4.00 ($8.00)

"Jim Cummings, the last of the Jesse James gang" (68pp) Robert Wybrow tackles the story behind the robbery of a St. Louis and San Francisco train on 25 October 1886 that was supposedly committed by Jim Cummings who had been a member of the Jesse James gang. Cummings participation in the robbery was claimed by David S. Fotheringham, the train's express messenger. As a result of this claim the newspapers were quick to provide details of Cummings past involvement with Jesse James, describing him as possibly the last member of the gang who could answer his name at a roll call with the exception of Frank James. Fotheringham's description of the robber and of the robbery itself didn't add up and there were those who suspected he knew more of the event than he was prepared to tell. This is a fascinating account of how the real Jim Cummings past association with the James gang was used to identify him as the the robber when the act itself was actually carried out by others.£6.00 ($12.00)

Corporal Edward Scott, Frontier Cavalryman (36pp) Allan Radbourne writes about Corporal Edward Scott, an African-American who served in both the 9th and 10th U.S. Cavalry. He initially enlisted in the 9th  on the 12 December 1878 and after training he was assigned to D Company at Fort Lewis, Colorado. His first action would take place at a crossing on the Milk River where the White River Utes had attacked and laid siege to a column from Wyoming commanded by  Major Thornburgh, who was killed. Scott's D Company, commanded by Captain Dodge set out to relieve the force but would in turn come under attack when his command had reached the original column. Other fights would follow. Having served 5 years in the 9th he left the army only to re-enlist on 21 December 1883 in the 10th U.S. Cavalry and assigned to K Company. Less than 12 months later he would be promoted to Corporal. In 1886 a raid by Apaches from across to border in Mexico saw Scott's company in the field and in hot pursuit of the raiders who returned to Mexico.  Captain Thomas Lebo, who commanded D Company, crossed the border into Sonora and would encounter his quarry in the Sierra Pinito where Geronimo had set up an ambush position, which Lebo had recognised would be an ideal location and in the fight that followed, Edward Scott would be wounded. It was on receiving this wound that he called for help from his comrades and Lieutenant Powhatan Clarke responded and dashed forward to where Scott lay. As he was unable to lift Scott on his own he called for a trooper to assist and between them they dragged the Corporal to cover. Clarke would receive the Medal of Honor for his action. Scott would go to Fort Huachuca to be treated but he had to have his leg amputated in the field. Despite his critical condition he survived. It was whilst Scott was in hospital recovering that Frederic Remington interviewed him and also Clarke. From these interviews he recreated the rescue for the cover of Harper's Weekly. Scott would be medically discharged and went to live in Washington D.C., it was here he met his wife. They had two children. Edward Scott died in 1919 at the age of 62. His wife Sarah would die in 1947.£4.00 ($8.00)

Monahsetah: The Life of a Custer Captive (204pp). This special publication, written by the late Peter Harrison and edited by Gary Leonard tells the story, based on Peter's extensive research, of Monahsetah, or Meotzi, was a young Cheyenne Indian woman captured by the 7th U.S. Cavalry following Custer's attack on Black Kettle's village on the Washita River in November 1868. Controversy has existed for decades over the question of whether Custer procured some sort of sexual relationship with Monahsetah and whether she bore a child by him. The book allows the reader to make up his or her own mind on this issue. It also fleshes out her long and adventurous life. In addition to her experiences at the Washita, she was wounded during the Sand Creek massacre, helped Custer procure the release from the Cheyennes of two women, was involved in the rescue of two of the German girls, and lived through one of the most tumultuous eras of Cheyenne history. She also was married several times. Her first husband was the son of Cheyenne Chief White Antelope, while later husbands included a retired mountain man, and a former Fort Marion captive who was later a scout for the Army. Society Special Publication No. 12A. This was a special limited edition of 100 copies to commemorate the 60h Anniversary of the English Westerners' Society. The limited edition have now all been sold but members can still purchase copies either through Lulu.com or by contacting Gary Leonard

Black Elk, Mexican Joe & Buffalo Bill: The Real Story (44pp). Tom F. Cunningham tells the real story behind Black Elk's time in Europe based on extensive research by the author, as a result of his dissatisfaction with earlier work that tended to dismiss Mexican Joe's outfit as "a show that left little trace."  Readers will have been familiar with Black Elk from his autobiography Black Elk Speaks written on his behalf by John G. Neihardt and Colonel William F. Cody, better known as Buffalo Bill, needs no introduction. Less may be known about Mexican Joe, who was “Colonel” Joe Shelley and not to be confused with another Wild West Show performer with the same nickname, Jose Barrera. This book provides insights into Black Elk's time with Mexican Joe's show from May 1888, after being left behind with three other young Lakota's who had been with Buffalo Bill's Wild West tour, until he left Mexican Joe's outfit in the spring of 1889 through ill-health. He would eventually rejoin with Buffalo Bill and eventually return to the Pine Ridge Reservation in the USA that same year. Unlike Buffalo Bill's show, Mexican Joe's had no seasons and toured Europe from  the summer of 1887 until its collapse in 1894. £4.00 ($8.00)

Edge of Darkness: The Final Days of Ben Thompson (20pp). Douglas W. Ellison tells the story of Ben Thompson (2 November 1843 – 11 March 1884) final days. Thompson a Yorkshire man born in Knottingley, travelled at the age of eight with his parents to the USA. He would become famous as a man of the gun and at times was a gunman, gambler, and lawman of the Old West. He was a contemporary of “Buffalo” Bill Cody, Bat Masterson, John Wesley Hardin, and “Wild Bill” Hickock, some of whom considered him a friend, others an enemy. Thompson fought for the Confederacy during the Civil War, and later for Emperor Maximilian in Mexico. When hired in 1881 as marshal in Austin, Texas, the crime rate reportedly dropped sharply. Thompson was murdered at the age of 40 in San Antonio, Texas in the “Vaudeville Theater Ambush” whilst attending a show with the rancher King Fisher, who also died. £4.00 ($8.00)

'Reminiscences of Sam Graham' (39pp). Edited and annotated by Chuck Parsons, this article is on Sam Graham, one of the few Texas Rangers of the Frontier Battalion who left his memoirs for later generations. The original manuscript is now in the collection of Texas State Archives and Library in Austin and was written in the early 1930's and donated to the Archives on 13 November 1936. Graham joined the Texas Rangers on 8 July 1878 and served for five years, almost continuously until his discharge on 31 August 1882. £4.00 ($8.00)

Deadly Days in the Old West: More Vignettes in Violence (200pp). This is the second volume to celebrate the Society's Diamond Jubilee. It is a collection of carefully researched accounts of the bad men of the Old West and their nefarious ways, all written by Society members with international reputations as experts in their fields. This book contains the following articles:

How Nice It Would Be to Rob A Train: The Oro Grande Conspiracy and its Melancholy Outcome by Jeffrey Burton

Richard C. Ware v. George Herold and the End of the Sam Bass Gang by Chuck Parsons

Did Jesse James' Horses Perform in a Circus? by Michelle Pollard

Jack Davies and the Comstock Train Robberies by Roy O'Dell

A Death in the Family by Robert J. Wybrow

Society Special Publication No. 12B. This second publication to commemorate the 60h Anniversary of the English Westerners' Society is available to members for £12.00 ($18.00)

English By Birth, Scottish by Blood (36pp) Peter G. Russell and Leslie Hodgson have written about a member of Custer's Seventh Cavalry, Trooper John Stuart Stuart Forbes, who had enlisted as John S. Hiley on 22 January 1872 in New York. He was assigned to Company E; participated in the Yellowstone Campaign (1873); the Black Hills Expedition (1874); and killed with Custer’s column at the Battle of the Little Big Horn. This publication is a fitting tribute to the memory of John Stuart Stuart Forbes particularly as 2016 marked the 140th anniversary of the battle where he gave his life for his adopted country. This volume also includes Letters to Private John S. Hiley by Leslie Hodgson and Peter G. Russell. £4.00 ($8.00)

Bat Masterson A Denver Sporting Man: Further Fist Fighting Out West (52pp) Keith F. Robinson's relates the story of Bat Masterson in his middle years. Masterson was a well-known as a lawmen, which was only one of many adventurous careers he pursued. Later he followed a number of equally dangerous modes of employment that included gambling, saloon owner, and that of a sporting man. This publication follows Bat's life as a sporting man whilst living in Denver. Masterson was a resident in Denver c. 1882-1902, it was during this period he became active in the fight game as a backer, second, referee and promoter; all of which became essential preparation for his later career as a New York sportswriter specialising in boxing. His stay in Denver however was not always welcome by some of its residents. £6.00 ($12.00)

Mexican Joe Volume II: The Running Wolf Years (44pp) Tom F. Cunningham in his second volume and continues the story of Mexico Joe Shelley and his Wild west show that toured the United Kingdom. This volume opens with a report on an attempt on the life of Mexican Joe by an Indian known as Running Wolf in November 1887. Newspaper reports stated this had been the fourth attempt of Running Wolf to shoot his employer. To what extent that this was a publicity stunt is discussed given that at the time Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show was touring England. Running Wolf, it was claimed was an Apache who was a fearsome savage with seventy scalps to his name and had been a member of Geronimo's band who had broken out of the reservation in 1886. £5.00 ($10.00)

The Battle of the Robe Entrenchments, Wolf Creek, and the Great Peace of 1840: The Anatomy of War, Trade, and Diplomacy on the Southern Plains (56pp) Phillip Robinson reminds us that although warfare between the tribes on the plains however bloody it might become, it was not necessary what tribes sought. Trade was a key component of of inter tribal relationships and only when diplomacy failed would a tribe resort to violence. This book examines this in the period 1837 and 1840 on the Southern Plains and in particular the Great Peace of 1840 between 5 of the tribes. £7.00 ($14.00)

The End of the Road: Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid in Bolivia (40pp) by Daniel Buck and Anne Meadows look at the lives of Butch Cassidy (Robert LeRoy Parker) and the Sundance Kid (Harry Alonzo Longabaugh) after they moved to South America in February 1901, initially Argentina and then finally Bolivia where the duo would be killed on 7 November 1908 in San Vincente, Bolivia. £5.00 ($10.00)

Ballads, Banjos & Bullets: Trailing The Tangled Lives of IRA 'Dick' Brown & Fannie Garrettson (52pp) Chris Penn tells the story that begins when in January 1907 a white-haired visitor to Los Angeles spun some colourful tales to a reporter on a local newspaper. The man was Ira 'Dick' Brown and his story was published in The Los Angeles Herald. The author having stumbled on the story some years ago has brought the story up todate with his research into contemporary records. 'Dick' Brown would meet Fannie Garrettson the woman who would feature in his life for a number of years in 1874 at McDaniel's Thratre, Cheyenne, Wyoming. Both had very colourful lives after they separated in 1878. £6.00 ($12.00)

"Poor John" John Harrison Younger 1851-1874 (32pp) Robert J. Wybrow tells the story of John Harrison Younger who according to a letter written by his brother Cole was "hunted down and shot like a wild beast, and never was a boy more innocent." John Younger's life was short but he was not so innocent and had killed his first man in January 1866. £4.00 ($8.00)

Salvador or Martinez? The First Fork on the Trail of Mickey Free (24pp) by Allan Radbourne. This paper is a revised and updated version of one first published under the same title in the Brand Book (Volume 14, Number 2) in January 1972. Mickey Free is widely remembered as the boy whose abduction would lead to the confrontation between Lieutenant George N. Bascom and the Chiricahua apache chief, Cochise at Apache Pass in 1861. This paper looks at the two versions of Mickey free's origins hence the title of the paper. £4.00 ($8.00)

Sheriff Thomas Cody: A Man to Match a Mob (20pp) by Douglas W. Ellison. On the night of the 14 April 1904 Azel Galbraith who had confessed to the cold-bloodied killing of his wife and son was being held in a cell in Gilpin County Courthouse in Central City, Colorado. Outside a mob had gathered and wanted to submit Galbraith to their brand of justice but Sheriff Thomas Cody stood on the steps of the courthouse and shouted to the crowd that he would shoot the first man who came up the steps. His oath of office meant despite whatever he may think of the killer he would defend him even at the cost of his own life if that should prove necessary.

Douglas Ellison tells the story behind this event and the background to the murders perpetuated by Galbraith who would be found guilty and hung for his crime on the 6 March 1905. Cody would go on to become the Mayor of Central City. He would die on 15 May 1926 aged 70 years-old. His obituary reminded readers of his dramatic facedown of the mob in 1904. £4.00 ($8.00)

Who Are Those Guys? Of Myths and Manhunters: the Union Pacific Bandit Hunters (48pp) by Mike Bell. By 1901 the Union Pacific had run out of patience. Two train robberies in two years – one at Wilcox, Wyoming in 1899 and one at Tipton, Wyoming in 1900 – spurred them into action. Guards had been placed on trains after the Wilcox robbery but that clearly did not deter the Tipton robbers.  In January 1902, William Canada, head of the UP's Secret Service Division, hired former North Platte, Nebraska, Sheriff Timothy T. Keliher to bring together a force that would hunt down and destroy any further gangs of train robbers. In their first year the Union Pacific Mounted Rangers, popularly known as the Bandit Hunters, were led by Arthur Grosvenor Porter, a cousin of Teddy Roosevelt. Porter left in 1903 but the Bandit Hunters carried on, led personally by Keliher. Equipped with a special train, they rode the rails from Cheyenne to the Utah line, regularly running their horses alongside the track to deter robbers. By 1905 Buffalo Bill took an interest in the Bandit Hunters, and featured them in his 1907-1909 tour of the United States. This book explores the origins and history of the manhunters, and traces the history of each individual members of the force. £7.00 ($14.00)

LAST UPDATED 8 JANUARY 2020

English Westerners' Society  

Copyright © 2020 English Westerners' Society