Outlaws of the Wild West

De: Terry C. Treadwell

Narrado por: Jim Seybert

The "Wild West" developed in the years following the American Civil War. However, this period of myth-making cowboys, infamous gunslingers, not always law-abiding lawmen, and saloon madams is as much the product of fiction writers and film makers as reality.

Many of those who roamed America's West in the period between 1850 and 1900 often appear as colorful, romanticized, legendary characters. The majority of outlaws, though, were anonymous common criminals. In 1877, the state adjutant general of Texas published "wanted posters" for some 5,000 outlaws and bandits in the Rio Grande district alone, almost all of whom have since vanished into the mists of time.

When it comes to the Wild West, it is important to separate fact from fiction. Of the known recorded killings by the various outlaws and gunfighters, Billy the Kid killed four men, not the 20 that some writers attributed to him. Clay Allison, however, was thought to have killed at least 15 men in his time as a gunfighter, while some of the outlaw gangs were particularly violent and ruthless.

The days of the outlaws of the Wild West gradually came to an end at the turn of the 20th century. The legends, however, live on.

©2021 Terry C. Treadwell (P)2021 Tantor

Great read!

I enjoyed this book. It was well researched and presented much information on outlaws to which I was unaware. Would recommend this book to any western buff.

The amount of information and detail in this book. I learned a lot about the West and I have read a lot of material.

I like just what I said about it plus the format that is used in it

Telling it like it was

This is one of the best books I have read(listened to) regarding various outlaws of the developing westwrn States. Full of no BS facts and well presented.

A short version of all kinds of old western stories. But all the good stuff was left in each story. Really nicely done

The full stories cut down so you can stop at almost any time and not to be lost when you come back.

Outlaws of The Wild West...

Terry Treadwell sets out to separate fact from fiction, myth from reality, in Outlaws of the Wild West, and in some respects, he succeeds. The book takes a short-story approach, with each chapter focusing on a different outlaw or gang. Treadwell keeps things straight to the point, relying on well-known and proven facts, briefly sketching each life as the record allows. For those who want quick, no-nonsense overviews stripped of tall tales, this style does exactly what it promises.

The problem is, that approach also makes the book feel flat. Each chapter reads more like a checklist of facts than a story, which makes for a dry and often unengaging read. While it does its job in separating truth from legend, it doesn’t capture the complexity or intrigue of the people it covers. These men and women, while mostly common criminals, shaped the culture and chaos of the lawless American frontier. Yet their lives are boiled down to such brief summaries that there’s no room to explore the forces, choices, and contradictions that made them significant.

By the time you start to form any interest in a particular figure, the book moves on, leaving the reader without a sense of connection or a deeper understanding. History isn’t just facts—it’s context, motivations, and the broader impact of the individuals who lived it. Without that, this book feels less like a journey through the Wild West and more like a catalog of names and dates.

In the end, Outlaws of the Wild West accomplishes its goal of cutting through myths, but it sacrifices narrative and depth along the way. It’s a quick read for those who just want the basics, but if you’re looking for something with substance or storytelling, this one falls short.

Not worth the time

The book is about a bunch of little known “outlaws “ that lived after the civil war. While some of so-called bios are interesting, they are too short. The uninteresting ones were too long. Find a book more interesting about the outlaw you are interested in.