Category Archives: Texas

Charles Edward Travis

Posted on December 7, 2020 by Mustang

I would be surprised if anyone in the United States hasn’t heard of William Barrett “Buck” Travis (1809-1836).  I find his story quite interesting, if short — and perhaps somewhat typical of Americans in the early to the late nineteenth … Continue reading →

Posted in History, Texas, Texas Rangers | 2 Comments

Ethnic Lawmen in Texas

Posted on November 16, 2020 by Mustang

Most Americans have a misperception about the old west lawmen.  I did too for many years.  It wasn’t our fault, though.  With scant exceptions[1], all liberal Hollywood ever presented to us in the cinema was white lawmen, wearing white hats, … Continue reading →

Posted in Society, Texas, Texas Rangers | 8 Comments

Sally Scull: Mean as a snake

Posted on October 19, 2020 by Mustang

One axiom of the old west was that good-hearted cowboys were as mythical as unicorns.  The saying probably does some injustice to stockmen, cowhands, ranchers, and trail drivers.  The truth is that the term cowboy had, at one time, the … Continue reading →

Posted in Civil War, Pioneers, Society, Texas | 2 Comments

The Hyde Park Gunfight

Posted on September 21, 2020 by Mustang

Historian Eduardo Obregón Pagán’s book Valley of the Guns: The Pleasant Valley War and the Trauma of Violence emphasizes the post-traumatic stress among survivors of old west gunfights, hostile Indian attacks, and lawmen who were quick on the trigger.  I … Continue reading →

Posted in Gunfights and such, History, Kansas, Texas | 1 Comment

Murderous Rage

Posted on July 27, 2020 by Mustang

The Confederacy was already dead by early April 1865.  With Robert E. Lee’s defeat at Sailor’s Creek, fighting in the Eastern Theater came to an end.  Fighting did continue in Alabama with Nathan Bedford Forrest struggling against James Wilson’s cavalry, … Continue reading →

Posted in Civil War, History, Justice, Texas, Uncategorized | 2 Comments

Terry’s Texas Rangers

Posted on July 20, 2020 by Mustang

Benjamin Franklin Terry (whom everyone called Frank) was born on 18 February 1821 in Russellville, Kentucky, the son of Joseph and Sarah Smith Terry.  Joseph’s Grandfather was Nathaniel Terry; Sarah’s Grandfather was David Smith … both of whom served as … Continue reading →

Posted in Antebellum Period, Civil War, History, Texas, Texas Rangers | 2 Comments

Jim Courtright

Posted on June 25, 2018 by Mustang

Born Timothy Isaiah Courtright near Springfield, Illinois, during the spring of 1845, Courtright married Sarah Elizabeth Weeks in 1870 and may have had three children.  Courtright enlisted in the Union Army when he was just 17-years of age and fought … Continue reading →

Posted in Gunfights and such, History, Justice, New Mexico, Texas | 6 Comments