Nat Love presents... True Tales of The Ole West

[Marshal Halloway]

Folks! I just had to transfer this from the old Forum Hall. Our good friend and long time citizen and cas-l posse pard Nat Love is back on town. I have copied his true tales from the old forum hall below.

If you have Real Player installed, you can also see him in action by clicking on his picture:

Well, here are his stories. Nat, I know you will add the rest yourself on tbis thread or in a new one.

 

[Marshal Halloway]

Posted Feb 8th, 2004, 12:19pm by Nat Love:

Thank you for the kind words and welcome back to the campfire!  I've missed the warmth of the burning embers and hot java. 
Well, Winter Range 2004 has passed into the history books as a well attended and highly enjoyable celebration of our western traditions and cowboy action shooting sports.  Unfortunately a last minute SNAFU had me working instead of shooting, but I got over to the Ben Avery Shooting Facility every chance I got. 

My good friend Sam Hane SASS #28778 (aka Joe Bethancourt) asked me to join his Snake Oil and Medicine Show, and we had a good time telling stories and pickin' and strumin'.  Sam is a highly polished musician, with a collection of rare banjos and guitars.  You might want to pay him a visit at his web site:
http://www.whitetreeaz.com/medicineshow/
for a real good time.

I have a new true tale that I want to share with the campfire. (Note: because of the length, I'll post in tree parts.  This is part 1)
 
It's about a fine cowboy by the name Bones Hooks. Matthew Hooks, born November 3, 1867, in Robertson County, Texas, was the first of eight children born to a freed slave couple, Alex and Annie Hooks.  Matthew was a scrawny boy and became known by his nickname "Bones."

At 7 years, Bones was driving a meat wagon for a butcher.  A year later he learned to ride a horse at his home in Henrietta, Texas.  When he turned nine, he drove a camp wagon pulled by two old steers, Buck and Berry, to D. Steve McDonald's DSD ranch in Denton County.

When J.R. Morris. a cattleman from the JRE ranch on the Pecos, visited the DSD, he was intrigued to see that Bones worked harder than most of the grown men on the ranch.  Norris said to the barefoot youth, "I'll buy you a pair of boots and make a real cowboy out of you if you come to work at my place on the Pecos."

Bones eagerly accepted Norris' offer and began his career as a horse trainer on the iwsolated JRE ranch.  He took part in many trail drives to Kansas before 1886 - his 19th year - when he helped to bring a herd to the young Texas town of Clarendon.

As the only black man in sight, Bones was very lonely in the Panhandle , but he loved the prairie country and the orderly community and was determined to remain there.  He stayed in and near Clarendon for the next 23 years and made a name for himself as the top horse wrangler in that part of the country.

Bones Hooks part 2 follows in another post...


Nat Love says hang around the campfire.  More to come!

[Marshal Halloway]

Posted Feb 8th, 2004, 12:28pm by Nat Love:

Bones Hooks part 2
 
Religion was very important to Bones, and he was intrumental in founding and building at Clarendon the first black church in the Panhandle.  Bones never used tobacco or alcohol although it was said that he bet on horses occasionally. 
 
Bones associated with many of the early day Panhandle ranchers.  J.S. Wynne, an expert horse trainer, helped Bones perfect his skill of managing horses. On the Bar CC ranch, located on Home Ranch Creek, Bones was befriended by Dave Lard who had many fights with new hands for teasing Bones. The black cowboy said that he was an "Angus" among "White Faces."
 
When cattleman Tom Clayton died in the early 1890's, Bones took a bunch of white wildflowers to the funeral. This was the beginning of a tradition with Bones, who ever afterward sent a single white flower to the funeral of every pioneer he knew.
 
Later Bones expanded this tradition to include living persons who he felt had accomplished something noteworthy.  In addition to area citizens Bones sent white flowers to several United States presidents, world leaders and religious notables.  Among these were President and Mrs. Franklin D. Roosevelt, Will Rogers and Sir Winston Churchill.
 
The written acknowledgements sent to Bones by hundreds of persons who had received his white flowers were kept together in a leather bag - his most prized possession.
 
In May, 1909, Bones left the range to work as a porter for the Santa Fe Railway.  In the summer of 1910, he was working in a day coach when he overheard four men talking about horses.  Bones said later, "I sort of hung around, dusting the seats, because I don't like to miss any horse talk."
 
The men were talking about "Old Bob," a black mustang owned by Moore Davidson of Pampa.  It was said that nobody could ride that horse, but Bones broke in and told the men, "I can ride that horse."
 
The men were amused when Bones told them to telegraph Davidson and ask him to have the horse at the depot when the train was scheduled to reach Pampa.  This was arranged and it was agreed that Bones would receive $25 if he succeeded in riding the horse.
 
--end Bone Hooks part 2,  Part 3 follows

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[Marshal Halloway]

Posted Feb 8th, 2004, 12:32pm by Nat Love:

Bones Hooks part 3...


Bones had broken horses for J. Frank Meers when Meers was the froreman on the Masterson ranch.  Meers was one of the men who brought "Old Bob," the "unrideable" black mustang from Davidson's place south of Pampa to the place where a large crowd had gathered south of the depot.  Lewis F. Meers, son of J. Frank, played "hooky" from school to watch the event.

The train arrived at the Pampa depot about 2 a.m.  Bones, booted and spurred and minus his white porter's jacket, descended from the train.  He is reported to have said later, "I combed that bronc from his ears to his tail, rode him to a standstill, collected my money, and was back on the train when it pulled out seven minutes later."

Bones moved to Amarillo about 1911 and remained there most of the rest of his life.  He married Anna Crenshaw who died in the early 1920s.  They had no children.

Bones retired from the railroad in April, 1930, and thereafter devoted his time to civil affairs.  Soon he became recognized as a leader who worked unceasingly for the betterment of his people.  He was the first black man to sit on the Potter County Grand Jury and the first of his race to be a member of the XIT Association, the Montana Cowpunchers Association, the Western Cowpunchers and the Pampa Old Settlers Association.

Bones helped start the North Heights addition in Amarillo, and in 1912 he created the Dogie Club for underprivileged boys.  The last picture made of Bones was when he was with a group of these boys.

Bones kept mementoes and newspaper clippings and could talk for hours about the Panhandle and its people without ever repeating himself.  His scrapbook of momentoes was displayed at the Texas Centennial in 1936.  He represented Texas at the 75 Years of Negro Progress Exhibition at Detroit in 1939.

Shortly before his 83rd birthday, the old cowboy was stricken with an illness which brought to a close his long career of strong mental and physical activity.  When his savings were exhausted after a lengthy stay at Wyatt Memorial Hospital, the Amarillo Globe-News collected funds to provide a housekepper and a nurse for him.

On the evening of February 2, 1951, Bones told his housekeeper, "Of Course I'm going to die, but don't you worry.  I feel wonderful."  Shortly afterward he died very quietly.

At the funeral service for Bones, the Mount Zion Baptist Church was crowded with his friends, white and black. One by one, each person laid on his coffin a single white flower, his longtime symbol of respect.  Those who loved him were returning white flowers to the black cowboy.

Bones Hookw Park, located at N.W. 20th and Hughes in Amarillo, was named for the black cowboy and civic leader.  A pavilion over the Bones Hook monument is located a few blocks away in Hines Memorial Park at N.W. 18th and Lipscomb.

Well pards, that's my true tale for today.  Hope you find it interesting and enjoyable.  Until the next time, your friend, Nat Love, says Adios, and never squat with your spurs on!

(attribution: Bones Hooks...famous black cowboy and civic leader  from the Email Museum White Deer Land Museum  16 S. Cuyler  Pampa, TX 79065)

[Marshal Halloway]

Posted Feb 23rd, 2004, 5:43pm by Nat Love:

Howdy to all sittin' 'round the campfire.

Nat Love here with another true tale of the olde west.  Well, my story today is not about a cowboy hero or an outstanding Buffalo Soldier.  This time, it's a ne'er do well by the name of Crawford.  Crawford Goldsby that is, but you may remember him by the outlaw handle...Cherokee Bill.

Born February 8, 1876 at Fort Concho, Texas, Crawford was the oldest son of Ellen and George Goldsby.  He was a mixed blooded Cherokee, meaning he was a black indian.  His maternal grandfather and grandmother had been slaves whose massa was a Cherokee known as Jeffery Beck.  Most folk didn't know that at one time Native Americans owned African slaves. 

(read more about it: http://www.rosecity.net/tears/trail/priscila.html)

Around Crawford's 18th year, trouble came a knockin' and he eagerly opened the door.  Young Goldsby had words with a 35 year old black man which ended in a fight that had the future law breaker on the losing end.  Crawford grabbed a gun and shot the man twice, leaving him for dead.  Although the man recovered from his wounds, the law set out to arrest him, but Crawford left the Cherokee Nation and went into the Creek and Seminole Nations, met and joined up with two other noted outlaws Jim and Bill Cook.  They were also known as mixed blooded Cherokees.

It was the summer of 1894 and after the sale of land called the Cherokee Strip, any one with at least one-eight Cherokee blood could make a claim for a portion of the six million dollars paid out for the land.  Goldsby and the Cook brothers struck out to get their share of the money, $265.70 each.  But since the law was after all three outlaws, they convinced Effie Crittenden, who operated a restaurant/hotel in the area to pick up the money for them.  She was successful, but she was followed back to her restaurant by a posse intent on putting Crawford and the Cooks in shackles.

On the evening of July 18, 1894, a gunfight occurred between the Sheriff and a posse of seven men on one side and the Cooks and Goldsby on the other.

During the gunfight, posse member Swquoyah Houston was killed and Jim Cook was wounded.  When the posse wisely fled the scene, the Cooks and Goldsby made their escape.  After the melee, Effie Crittenden gave the alias of "Cherokee Bill" to the authorities as the other man who was with the Cooks.  She was trying to cover the fact that Crawford Goldsby was the other outlaw.
Thus a legend was born.  (End part one)

That's all for right now, pards.  I'll finish the story of "Cherokee Bill," in a future installment.
Until the next time, vios con Dios (go with God)!

Nat Love, sends regards

[Marshal Halloway]

Posted Feb 24th, 2004, 8:31pm by Nat Love:

Howdy Gents, Thanks for the kind compliments. For Your Information, my better half and I are working on a series of video storytelling.  Each tape will have a particular theme (The Law, Buffalo Soldiers, Pioneer Women, Cowboys, Outlaws). When the series is ready, I'll make the first announcement right here.

Now, part two of the Cherokee Bill story...

Shortly after the fight at Fourteen Mile Creek, Cherokee Bill used his sister's home, Maud Brown, to hide out from the law.  Her husband, George Brown, a vicious drunkard, took a whip to Maud one day for not responding fast enough to his orders.  While he was beating Crawford's sister, he walked up behind him and shot Brown to death.

During the summer of 1894, Cherokee Bill and the Cook gang robbed the railroad depot at Nowata, Indian Territory (I.T.)  At the depot he shot and killed station agent Richards as he went for his gun.  Cherokee then waited on the platform for the next train to arrive.  When it did, he ordered the express car to open up.  When Sam Collins, the conductor, opened the door, he ordered Bill to leave.  Big mistake.  Goldsby shot him in the face and killed him.  As the brake man came running down the platform, Bill shot and wounded him.  Then he leaped onto his horse and rode away.

Later that same year, Cherokee Bill and some of the gang robbed every store in the town of Talala, I.T.  Some say they simply started at one end of town and robbed their way to the other end of town.

On the morning of July 31, the Cook Gang robbed the Lincoln County Bank at Chandler, Oklahoma Territory.  The barber across the street attempted to sound the alarm when Crawford Goldsby, aka Cherokee Bill, reportedly shot and killed him.

The rampage of terror continued throughout the months of September and October, 1894. A store was robbed at Okmulgee.  Individuals were robbed in the areas of Muskogee and Fort Gibson.  On October 11, the Missouri Pacific depot at Claremore was robbed and two hours later the Katy Railroad agent was also robbed.  On October 20, the gang wrecked and robbed the Missouri Pacific Railroad's Kansas City and Memphis Express at Coretta.

Just before noon on November 8, 1894, two men identified as Cherokee Bill and Sam McWilliams, the Verdigris Kid rode into Lenapah located between Coffeyville, Kansas and Nowata, I.T. with the intent of robbing a store operated by Schufeldt and Son.  During the robbery Cherokee Bill shot and killed Ernest Melton, an innocent by-stander.  It was for this murder that Judge Isaac "Hanging Judge" Parker placed a $1,300 reward on Goldsby, payable dead or alive.

An intense search was mounted to find the gang and bring an end to the crime spree.  Deputy Marshall W.C. Smith learned that Bill was infatuated with Maggie Glass, a cousin of Isaac "Ike" Rogers, who had been a deputy for Smith on several occasions when posses were needed.  Smith arranged for Roger to lure Bill to Roger's home to meet the girl.  Bill showed up at Ike Rogers' place on the evening of January 29, 1895.  He was constantly on guard and very suspicious of Rogers and refused to leave even after the unsuspecting Maggie urged him to do so.  Ike played the part of a generous host by offing him whiskey laced with morphine, but Crawford refused to drink and kept his rifle with him at all times even at the dinner table.  Cherokee Bill spent the night at Rogers house and in the morning after breakfast, Ike gave Maggie a dollar and told her to go buy some chickens from a neighbor.  This was a ploy to get her out of the house and out of the line of fire if there was any gunplay.

Shortly after Maggie departed Bill took some paper and tobacco from his pocket and rolled a cigarette.  When he leaned over towards the fireplace to light the smoke, Ike struck him across the back of the head. The blow would have killed an ordinary man but it only knocked the 19 year old killer down. After rolling around the floor for twenty minutes Bill was handcuffed and eventually sent off to the jail at Nowata, I.T.

Phew!  I've run out of space and time, so I'll finish this story real soon.  Adios, Pards.  Keep your powder dry until the next time.



 

[Marshal Halloway]

Posted March 1, 2004 at 5:50pm by Nat Love:

Well, Howdy Pards
I don't know if there's anybody around the old campfire, but I'll finish the story of Cherokee Bill today and start a new true tale of the olde west over at the new town hall forum.

Part Three of Cherokee Bill...

At 7 o'clock on the evening of July 27, 1895 Cherokee Bill (aka Crawford Goldsby) attempted an escape from the jail in Fort Smith, Arkansas.

Crawford was a member of the infamous Cook Gang that had been terrorizing the Indian Territory.  He was apprehended near Newt, I.T. on January 29, 2895, and delivered to Judge Isaac "Hanging Judge" Parker's Court in Fort Smith where he was found guilty of murdering Ernest Melton during the gang's robbery of the Shufeldt store in Lanapal I.T., on November 9, 1894.  He was sendenced, by Parker, to hang on June 25, 1895.  His lawyers appealed the case and won him a stay of execution.

While in jail Cherokee Bill and Henry Star were housed on the same floor of the jail known as "Murder's Row." Henry was in jail awaiting a new trial for the murder of Deputy Marshal Floyd Wilson.  He had been tried, found guilty and sentenced to hang by Parker.  However, his lawyers were successful in winning an appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court, and he was granted a new trial. During their stay at the jail, the boys had met and become friends.


As the days passed by, Goldsby's mood grew uneasy.  The other inmates whispered that the climate was ripe for disaster.  On July 10th, the prison was searched for contraband.  Nine 45 caliber cartridges and a .45 cal. revolver was found in the bathroom of the lower floor.  In the weeks that followed there were several rumors about Cherokee Bill attempting a prison break.  The guards remained alert and kept a close eye on Bill.

At 7 o'clock on July 23, turnkey guard  Campbell Eoff and guard Lawrence Keating entered Murderer's Row to lock the prisoners in their individual cells.  During the day the prisoners were granted use of the entire cell block area, and returned to their cells at night.  Night guards Will Lawson, Bras Parker, and William McConnell had just came on duty and were outside the cell block.

As Eoff was locking the cells, at the cell next to Cherokee Bill's, turnkey Eoff had trouble inserting the key.  The keyhole had been stuffed with paper.  He called to Keating that something was wrong.  At that moment Bill leaped from his cell with a pistol that had been smuggled him, and ordered them to throw up their hands.

Keating reached for his gun, and Bill shot him in the stomach.  Eoff fled back up the corridor.  Bill followed him and fired four shots at him.  George Pearce, who was one of the ring-leaders of the plot, jumped from his cell and also chased agter Eoff with a broken table leg he was using as a club.   Meanwhile, Guard's Lawson, Parker, and McConnell opened fire on Bill and Pearce and drove them back down the corridor.

Lawson saw the dying Keating at the foot of the stairs.  As he reached over to pick up the officers pistol, Keating called to him, "Kill the dog, Will, he has killed me," then he died.

Deputy Marshal Heck Bruner and Captain Berry, hearing the gunfire, raced to the jail and joined the fight.  By this time Crawford was able to reach the safety of his cell, from there he could cover the corridor with little danger to himself. It was a virtual "stand-off," Bill couldn't leave his cell and the guards couldn't enter the cell block.  A "sniping match" between Cherokee and the guards began.  Every time that Bill would fire he would "gobble" like a turkey.


Almost Done.  Until the next time, Adios Pardners,  Nat Love sends regards 

[Marshal Halloway]

Posted March 1, 2004 at 5:54pm by Nat Love:

And now the conclusion of Cherokee Bill...

For fifteen minutes the shooting continued.  Bill even shot at two citizens trying to carry the body of Keating out of the cell block.  Most of the prisoners had taken refuge under their bunks.  Outside the cell block twenty or more armed men waited impaitiently.  Captain Berry tried to get Bill to surrender his gun, but he refused.

Outside a crowd had formed, and there were shouts of "lynch him!"  Cherokee Bill yelled back: "I didn't want to kill Keating: I wanted my liberty.  Damn a man that won't fight for his liberty!  If I hadn't shot him, he would of shot me."

Star, who was watching the excitement from a cell on the west side of the cell block, told the marshals that: "If you promise not to kill Bill, I will go get his pistol."

It was an unheard of thing to do.  The marshals with no other solution at hand to the situation, agreed.  The order was given to the guards to hold their fire.

Henry Star went to Cherokee Bill's cell and talked with Bill.  He told him it was useless, tht he might get a few more guards, but that he was not going to get out.  Bill took his advise and handed over his pistol to Star.  Henry walked to the end of the corridor and handed it over to the guards. The guards then entered and covered Cherokee Bill with their guns while a thorough search of the cell block was conducted.  He was then handcuffed and locked back in his cell.

At the autumn term of the court, Crawford "Cherokee Bill" Goldsby plead not guilty and his trial was set for August 8.  The grand jury returned indictments against Henry Star, Sherman Vann, George and John Pearce, Ed and John Shelly, and Ed's wife Lou, for participating in the breakout.  They all plead not guilty.

Bill denied that any of these people had anything to do with it, that a trustee named Ben Howell brought him the revolver.  His story was not believed.  Vann had already admitted to bringing in the revolver that was found in the search.  There was evidence that showed Mrs. Shelley had brought the second revolver in to her husband.  And it was believed that Star was the one who threw the brake that would release the cells once the fight started, thus releasing Bill and Pearce.

Bill was convicted of Keating's murder, and sentenced to hang on September 10th by Judge Parker.  His lawyer appealed, and a stay of execution was granted.  On December 2, 1895 the Supreme Court affirmed the decision of the Fort Smith court, and Cherokee Bill was sentenced to death.  On St. Patrick's Day, March 17, 1896, Crawford Goldsby was escorted to the gallows   He was cool and displayed good nerve. There were one hundred tickets given out to those who wished to witness the execution but people climbed over the jail yard fence until the yard was full of people. When Cherokee Bill saw so many people he said, "...look at the people, something must be going to happen." Then he looked up at the sky and said, "Well, this is as good a day to die as any day." His mother was at his side and urged him not to weaken. When he stepped upon the gallows he was asked if there was anything he wished to say. He said, "I came here to die, not to make a speech." At 2:30 p.m. the lever was pulled and Cherokee Bill went into eternity.

Well, Pards, there you have it.  A young man, full of potential, makes the wrong turn in life and winds up strange fruit.

Gotta go, but I'll be seeing you at the new CAS City Hall Forum real soon.  Until then, YIPPEE TY YI YAY!

Nat Love sends regards 

[Nat Love]

Howdy Pards, Your friend Nat Love here with another true tale of the olde west.  Today's recollection is about a woman who became a living legend around Colorado.  Her name is Clara Brown and she was born on a plantation in Gallatin, Tennessee in 1803.  At age three she and her mother were sold to a Virginia planter where she stayed until age thirty.  At the age of 18, Clara married a fellow slave, Richard.  They had four children; Richard Jr., Margaret, Palina Ann, and Eliza Jane.  In her 35th year, she was sold again at an auction to a third owner named George Brown.  Clara was sent off to George Brown's plantation in Kentucky and given his surname, Brown.

Being torn from her family sparked a drive within Sara to seek freedom and to locate her lost loved ones.  In 1857, when she was 55, George Brown died, and Clara Brown, with the sum of 100 dollars she had saved, bought her freedom according to the stipulations of George Brown's will.  Upon receiving her freedom papers, she had to immediately leave the state of Kentucky according to its laws involving newly emancipated slaves.  Clara moved on to Saint Louis, Missouri, and, in 1859, while working as a cook and a laundress, her employer invited her to travel with him on another business venture to the town of Fort Leavenworth, Kansas.

While in Kansas, Clara Brown learned there was gold in the hills of Colorado.  Through hard work and thrift, she earned her passage on a wagon train and became the first African American woman to cross the plains to reach the Colorado gold fields.  Later on, she opened a laundry shop in Central City, Colorado which was heavily used by the miners of the area.  By 1866, she had accumulate substantial monetary wealth.  Being a deeply spiritual person, Clara used her wealth and ability to work long hours to helping those in need.  She took in the sick and used here home for church meetings.

But she never stopped looking for her long, lost family.  For decades Clara searched all over Kentucky without much luck.  Eventually, at the age of eighty two, she was reunited with her daughter, Eliza and her grandaughter, Cindy, with the help of a wide based community letter writing campaign.

Clara Brown was called home in 1885 at the age of 82.  She was voted into the Colorado pioneers association in 1884 becoming the first female member of that all male group.  "Aunt" Clara Brown is remembered today as one of the 100 most influential women in the history of Colorado.

Coming up next time...another true Colorado story.  Until then, your friend Nat Love bids Adios! 
 

[Steel Horse Bailey]

I agree with Joss!  Nat, you need to visit more often!

[Nat Love]

Thanks for the kind words, Joss.  Your reward is another true tale of the olde west.  This story is about one of the finest ropers to ever ride for the brand!

“Now some folks use to say a Black cowboy was either worth his weight in gold…or wasn’t worth spit!  I reckon it depends on the kinds of cards you was dealt in the poker game of life. 

Take for example the true tale of how top roper “Black Frank” saved the life of Ab Blocker.  Ab was one of the most famous trail bosses of the olde west.

Well, lemme see, it was around 1879, when most trail drivers had left the Chisholm Trail and begun using the Western Trail to drive herds west of Waco and Dallas, moving North to Dodge City, Ogallala and Deadwood.  Oh, by the way, I got a story about me and Deadwood City, but I’ll tell ya’ll that tale some other time.

But, for now, while driving the herd north on the Western Trail, they had stopped for the noon meal.”Frank” rode into camp, threw the bridle over his horse’s head and climbed off to get a cup of coffee.
Just then Ab Blocker yelled for help.
A steer had a mind to take after the trail boss at a dead run. 
Halp! Halp! Cried old AB. 
Frank dropped his cup of Joe, ran for his horse, tossed the bridle over its head and leaped into the saddle in one real purty move.

As he turned the horse towards the steer and put spurs to him, Frank grabbed  his rope and began to make a loop not much bigger than the steer’s horns.
The steer had tucked his head to hook Ab as Black Frank rode up behind him whirling the rope one time around and hollering, “Hold on Boss, don’t you go no further!”
Frank threw the rope over the steer’s horns and sat his horse down on his back hooves.
The steer instantly changed ends with his tail almost touching Ab’s chest.  Phew!
Like I said, depends on the kind of cards you was dealt.
Now, that’s another true tale of the olde west.

 

[Howdy Doody]

Nat. I really enjoy your stories pard. I almost feel like I was there while reading the tales. Thanks for sharing and please visit us often. As I watched the video I thought to myself, I shore wish I had a history teacher tell us the lessons in a manner like yours. Thataway I might still remember the class.

[Will Ketchum]

Nat, I have always enjoyed your posts and stories.  It sure is nice to have you back Pard.

Will Ketchum

[Camille Eonich]

I love this!  Thanks for the stories Nat and thanks for bringing them back to the top Joss. 


A visual aid....Bones Hooks

[RRio]

Nat's a heck of a guy. Shot with him on the same posse once at Rio Salado, and probably one of my most memorable shoots. He kept us in stitches.
Good to see ya in Cas City again, Pard!     

RRio

[Bristow Kid]

Nat great stories.  Glad ya come back around.  Keep up the great work.

[Col. Riddles]

Nat I sure enjoy your true stories. keep em coming pard.

[Heck hunter]

Does anyone have any information on the US Marshal Service between 1870 and 1920 in Indian Territory?  I'm specifically interested in Heck Bruner and Bass Reeves.  Heck Bruner was married to a relative of ours.  I got interested in Reeves because I kept running across his name during my research efforts.