Short Stories: Fraternity of Gunslingers Volume 3

By C.R. King

Saddle up and embark on an epic journey through the untamed and captivating landscapes of the Old American West in volume three of A Fraternity of Gunslingers: True Stories of Wild West Gunmen. The Civil War may have been a defining chapter in American history, but it was also the catalyst that birthed the age of gunslingers. In this riveting non-fiction tome, you'll discover that the Old West is more than just the stuff of legends; it's a saga of heroes, outlaws, pioneers, and rebels that comes to life within these pages.

 

From the First Americans, whose rich traditions and enduring spirit shaped the West, to the thunderous gunfights that painted the frontier in shades of blood, A Fraternity of Gunslingers: True Stories of Wild West Gunmen Volume 3 explores the entire tapestry of this  wild and unforgiving land. Delve into the relentless pursuits of Morgan Earp's killers and witness the relentless posse that hunted them down; discover the vivid world of pioneer newspapers, where the written word held sway; and Leland Stanford, the indomitable leader of the Big Four, who orchestrated the Pacific Railroad's rise. Meet the notorious outlaw King Fisher, Phineas Banning, the visionary father of the Los Angeles harbor, and the enigmatic Civil War General Rosecrans. Witness the true events leading up to the iconic gunfight at the O.K. Corral, complete with those who dared to face their destiny at high noon as you navigate the winding canyons of history.

 

A Fraternity of Gunslingers: True Stories of Wild West Gunmen Volume 3 is a window into the lives of the men and women who contributed to the time-honored legends of the Wild West, told with a meticulous dedication to historical accuracy. Some were heroes, some were villains, but all were indispensable in shaping the West's enduring mystique.

 

With a narrative as thrilling as the frontier itself, this book will transport you back to a time when the West was untamed, and every day brought a new showdown with destiny. Read A Fraternity of Gunslingers: True Stories of Wild West Gunmen Volume 3 and immerse yourself in these authentic and harrowing tales of the Old American West.

• Language: English
• Publisher: EMSA Publishing
• Release date: Nov 16, 2023
• ISBN: 9781988843780

Book preview

Contents

Foreword

Story 1: Owens Valley Indian War

Story 2: The Gambler’s War—Tombstone, Arizona

Story 3: George Waightman, a.k.a. Red Buck

Story 4:  The Posse    

Story 5: What Caused the Gunfight at the OK Corral?

Story 6: A Day in Miles City, February 1878

Story 7: United States Marshal of Oklahoma Territory William Bill Grimes

Story 8: The Man Who Killed the Man Who Killed Who Killed Jesse James

Story 9: Red O’Kelley

Story 10: John Hubatka, Lawman

Story 11: Pioneer Newspapers

Story  12: Gold Discovery in California

Story 13: Cattle vs. Sheep, Graham-Tewksbury War

Story 14: Sam and Orion’s Adventures

Story 15: Trail of Tears

Story 16: William Billy Claiborne, a.k.a. Billy the Kid

Story 17: Belle Starr, The Bandit Queen

Story 18: Commodore Perry Owens

Story 19: Leland Stanford

Story 20: Phineas Banning

Story 21: John King Fisher

Story 22: General William S. Rosecrans

About the Author

Also by C.R. King

References

SHORT STORIES

FRATERNITY OF GUNSLINGERS:

VOL 3

C.R. KING

Short Stories: Fraternity of Gunslingers Volume 3

by Charles Randal King

Copyright ©2023 by Charles R. King, Norman, Oklahoma

All rights reserved.

Published by EMSA Publishing, 2023

https://www.emsapublishing.com

This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade or otherwise, be lent, resold, hired out, or otherwise circulated without the publisher's prior consent in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published and without similar condition, including this condition imposed on the subsequent purchaser.

All Rights Reserved.  No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or in any means – by electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise – without prior written permission from the publisher.

The final approval for this material is granted by the author.

First printing

Credits:

Cover art by Eli Ziv @ www.elizivart.com

Eli Ziv Illustrator & Graphic Designer

www.elizivart.com

Mobile: [phone] Los Angeles

Edited by Elise Abram

EMSA Publishing

https://www.emsapublishing.com

This book is dedicated to  

Kendra McDonald-Chamberlin.

Foreword

Welcome to the third volume of A Fraternity of Gunslingers: True Stories of Wild West Gunmen. My process is to do extensive research. Even while writing, I’ll stop to check the accuracy of my research.

When I realized that most of us have little time to actually read for fun, the idea of writing short stories stuck in my head, and I thought it would be the best way to present the last volume of my series.

Instead of chapters, each of the 20 stories is numbered and given a title describing its contents. Stories are of various lengths, with some being longer than others. I also decided to include a list of  suggested reading at the end of each story, some of which you can find in one of the other two volumes.

Though the stories vary, they all take place in the Old West. As mentioned in my first volume, The Civil War is the divider after which gunslingers became prevalent. There were problems between those who fought for the Union and those who were on the Confederate side, but this book has a much wider range. It begins with the Natives and leads to the time of gunfights and the killing of Morgan Earp and the posse that chased down his killers. I also cover pioneer newspapers— yes, most could read and write back then: Leland Stanford, leader of the Big Four;  King Fisher; outlaw Phineas Banning; and even a Civil War general. Not all of these men and women are well known, but they contributed to the legend of the Wild West and deserve to have their stories told with accuracy. And as you will see, a few were pure evil.

Our history has been covered up and a different story told, and for this reason, stories involving Native Americans need to be told. We touch on that here and the stories of the Natives will be told in my next booklet. Again, these are short stories for busy readers, which is why I also provide readers with lists for suggested reading.

C.R. King

Story 1: Owens Valley Indian War

The War started in the winter of 1861 which was quite severe. It took place in California, but many Nevadans were also involved. Due to the severity of the winter, Natives living in the Owens Valley killed some cattle to stay alive (the number of exactly how many is unknown). The blowback from all that snowfall was the Great Flood of 1862.

To date, the Great Flood was the largest ever in that part of the country, and the Natives were hurting. In addition to the harsh winter, there was the encroachment of cattle onto Paiute land that became the source of their food supply.  The winter and the flood, combined with the overused land, threatened to starve the Paiutes, and they had little choice but to kill the cattle or starve.

The cattle owners retaliated with what they considered to be caution, killing only some of the First Americans (F.A.). Because they feared starting a war, when they came across an Indigenous person or two, they killed them if they thought they could get away with it; five Anglo men were killed in kind by the Natives. The trouble began when the ranchers refused to stay off the F.A. land they needed for grazing land. The Natives retaliated for no other reason but to remain alive.

As things escalated, as a group, the cattle owners decided to gather their cattle to graze in an area 31 miles above Lake Owens. In doing so, they realized they needed help, so they sent word to both Visalia, California, and Carson, Nevada, so they would be backed by troops.

On March 28, 1862, eighteen men from Aurora, a mining boomtown (now a ghost town) located three miles from the California border, showed up and immediately, re-enforced the owners. The cattle, being raised in Owens Valley, was earmarked to feed the Aurora miners, as was the agreement, and Aurora had an investment to protect.

The additional men, plus a detachment of militia, joined Colonel Mayfield, who now had 60 volunteers under his control in addition to his detachment to counter the Paiutes. He took his troops, and off they went to engage in a head-to-head confrontation with the Paiute in what is now known as the Battle of Bishop Creek.

The 50-mile march did not go well, for Mayfield had to fall back to a ditch and hold up there until nightfall when he could remove his men, including the dead and wounded, before they headed back to the valley. On their way to their destination, Mayfield came across a volunteer force from California, headed by George S. Evans, a former Texas Ranger who had volunteered to fight the F.A., as well as a group of Tuolumne Rangers from Camp Alert, located in San Francisco, now known as the California Volunteers.

Evans was commissioned to the rank of lieutenant colonel and appointed to serve as adjutant general of California from 1864 to 1868. Evans was a busy man, a born leader who continued to serve, and he was elected to the State Senate in ’65. In ’69, he was a Stockton city councilman and then the mayor. Once again, he was elected as a California State Senate office official from 1871 to 1877 (Farquhar, 1965). When they neared Bishop Creek, Mayfield joined Evans’s group with 40 of his men and headed on a Northbound track while the rest of his men, and of course, the wounded, headed back to Owens Valley.

Evans’s scout informed the two leaders that another group of 50—from Company A, 2nd Cavalry out of Fort Churchill led by Lieutenant Noble—were on their way. They were headed south to a place called Putnam’s Store, where they would wait for Noble’s command to show up. Meanwhile, a scout returned to inform the three officers that there was a large group of F.A. near Bishop Creek. Evans moved up during a storm so he could lay low for a surprise attack once his main body was in place, but the plan fell through when the Natives spotted the main body of cavalry and quickly left.

Around April 8, 1862, Evans observed campfires in a canyon. The following day, he advanced to the canyon where the Paiute were holed up. The whites and F.A. engaged, and Mayfield was wounded. Col. Mayfield was hit once more as his men carried him away from the firefight, and he died. The canyon was named Mayfield Canyon in his honor.

Note that the Shoshones also lived in the area and are likely to have joined the Paiute in their battle against the Anglos. On July 1, 1862, Camp Independence was established, meaning that the military presence was large enough to counter Indigenous raids. On March 22, 1863, Chief Captain George came to Camp Independence for a peace talk and indicated that he no longer wanted war. As a result of his surrender, more than 400 F.A. laid down their arms. Two other chiefs, Captains Dick and Tiemaha, also surrendered. By July ’63, there were close to 1,000 Native people at Camp Independence. From there, they were escorted to Fort Tejon, California, located on the top of "The