King Hill
November 22, 2022
Nellie Burgess drew on forty acres along the Snake River and called it the Rainbow Ranch. She planted a garden and trees, hauling water by bucket from the river. Along with the other homesteaders, they built a church and improved on their homes and ranches. It grew into the small Idaho community of King Hill.
The Castle Gate Payroll Robbery
November 15, 2022
Butch Cassidy carefully planned the robbery, arranged for horses and supplies and with help from other gang members made his escape from a sympathetic posse. He even rescued a stray dog.
The Tukudeka Indians
November 8, 2022
Also called the "Sheepeaters." They lived high in the Rockies, were excellent hunters, well dressed and fed. They were a peaceful tribe, but became extinct due to smallpox.
Jake Herman, Rodeo Clown
November 1, 2022
Jake was a failure at being a rodeo star, so decided to be a rodeo clown. He had a trick mule, dog and skunk and once butted heads with a bull which left both knocked out. He brought a lot of applause and laughter with his act and retired at age 72.
Bill Miner
October 25, 2022
Known as the Grey Fox, he had a habit of always getting caught when he committed a crime. He also managed to escape from prison several times, but eventually died in prison.
Oregon's Johnny Appleseed
October 18, 2022
They said Henderson Luelling was crazy to think he could take a heavy wagonload of fruit trees to Oregon. He made the trip, started the Luelling and Meek Nursery and sold grafting shoots all over Washington, Oregon, and California.
Ostrich Ranches
October 11, 2022
Because of a huge demand for feathers, Arizona ranchers imported ostriches in 1883. They were cheap to raise, ate less and produced $30 a year in income. The feathers were cut and sold at a huge profit until it became unfashionable to wear feathers.
The Story Teller
October 4, 2022
Henry McDonald wanted his own freighting business, George Myers wanted to sell. McDonald ended up with Myers outfit, but how did he get it? Myers ended up dead, a jury found McDonald guilty of murder despite his many stories. His life ended on the gallows.
Serial Wife
September 27, 2022
Ed Meyer was deathly sick in the hospital. He was recovering until he kept eating his wife’s daily picnic basket. Lyda Lewis's routine was to take out life insurance policies on her husbands, who soon died after marriage. Finally caught, she went to prison.
Counterfeit
September 20, 2022
The Eddys and the Splawns used wooden molds of five, ten and twenty-dollar gold pieces to make their own money. With careful research they used plaster coins, coated with an alloy, then coated with a gold mixture and using an electric battery produced the counterfeit coins. Charley Reavis, an amateur detective solved the case, the family went to jail.