Westalk

2nd Annual Wild West History Roundup

2009-07-22T18:53:00.000-07:00

Dan Patterson, WWHA photographer, with wife, Rita.

2nd Annual Wild West History Roundup

2009-06-09T18:19:00.000-07:00

The second annual Wild West History Association Convention meets July 15-19 in San Antonio, Texas. Meetings will be held in the historic Menger Hotel nearby the Alamo. The opening reception will be at the Buckhorn Saloon and Museum. The Texas Ranger Museum is also nearby.

Western History Symposium and Book Exposition

2008-11-25T15:38:00.000-08:00

This year's symposium, held November 12 thru 16, saw an added attraction: The unveiling of a seven-foot, eight-inch statue of Wyatt Earp created by Tim Trask. Dan Patterson took the following pictures during this year's events.

Bill O'Neal with Leon Metz
Terry "Ike" Clanton views new statue.
Cheryl Metz and Bill O'Neal
Wild West History Association President Bob McCubbin
Bob Alexander
Richard Lapidus
Jan Devereaux
Rita Ackerman
Elaine and Lindsay Bennett, Jan Devereaux, and Rita Patterson
Elise McChesney and Mike Tower
James "Texas Jack" Wright with Marshall Trimble, Bob Alexander, and Jan Devereaux
Steve Gatto, Linda Pardo, and Bob McCubbin
Marshall Trimble, Sunny and Dakota Livesay
Terry "Ike" Clanton
A crowd watches the unveiling of the Wyatt Earp statue.
Michael Hiebert next to the statue.
Dakota Livesay, Bob Alexander, and Steve Gatto
Fred Schoemehl
Bob Palmquist
Lt. Dave Bruce
Tombstone Historian Ben T. Traywick

Speakers, Awards, Tour, and Banquet

2008-07-19T08:19:00.000-07:00

Tulsa, Oklahoma, Saturday, July 19, 2008
Oklahoma author Jim Fulbright spoke on "Lawmen, Cowmen, and Big City Dandies: The Volunteers of 1898," Jan Devereaux on "Lottie Deno," Corey Recko on "Samuel B. Axtel and the Colfax County War ," and Paul Cool on "Texas Ranger John B. Tays" in the morning sessions. Cool, commenting on history in general, emphasized that individuals and their decisions, as much as movements or forces, play a key role in the making of history.

Corey Recko

Paul Cool

WWHA presented awards to outstanding Western historians and authors at the luncheon. Awards included the following.

The President's Silver Star Award went to Ida Saunders and Karen Tanner. The Lifetime Achievement Award for Contributions to Western History went to John B. Tanner, Jr. Best Book of the Year went to Corey Recko for Murder on the White Sands. Best Article of the Year went to Robin L. Andrews for "Belles of Tombstone." Leon Metz, Harold Edwards, Chuck Parsons, and Robert DeArment were inducted into the NOLA Hall of Fame.

Award recipients (left to right): Ida Saunders, Karen Holliday Tanner, John B. Tanner, Jr., Chuck Parsons, Corey Recko, Sharon Cunningham (for Robin Andrews), and Robert K. DeArment.

Following the Awards luncheon, Bill O'Neal spoke on "Caldwell, Kansas, 1871-1893 - The Wild West years of the Border Queen."

At 2:30 p.m. members left on buses headed to Gilcrease Museum. The museum displayed art of the Old West and picures and history of the Miller Brothers' 101 Ranch.

The evening banquet featured keynote speaker Michael Wallis, author of Route 66: The Mother Road and The Real Wild West: The 101 Ranch and the Creation of the American West among many other books. He spoke on "The Real Wild West: 101 Ranch and the West of Myth and Reality."

After Wallis spoke, WWHA conducted its annual period costume competion.

Bus Tours

2008-07-18T20:41:00.000-07:00

Tulsa, Oklahoma, Friday, July 18, 2008
Today WWHA members left on three tour buses which traveled to Claremore and Bartlesville, Oklahoma, and Coffeyville, Kansas.

+ At Claremore members toured the J.M. Davis Arms and Historical Museum. From there members went to Coffeyville where they visited the grave of Bob and Grat Dalton and Bill Powers as well as that of Frank Dalton before touring the Dalton Defenders Museum and viewing a re-enactment of the Dalton Raid which took place on October 5, 1892. After eating lunch in Coffeyville, members headed to Bartlesville and several miles beyond to Woolaroc refuge and museum.
+ Aside from one bus breaking down for awhile, all went well. Members returned to the hotel around 5:30.

That night members attended "An Evening with Robert DeArment." Bill O'Neal interviewed DeArment about his long and outstanding career as author of numerous non-fiction books on Wild West characters. DeArment's family attended the event.

+ The evening closed with a panel discussion about "Women of the Wild West." Sharon Cunningham moderated the discussion. Panelists included Ann Collier, Jan Devereaux, and Pam Potter.

Perspectives from Historians

2008-07-17T10:12:00.000-07:00

Tulsa, Oklahoma, Thursday, July 17, 2008
Old West historians and authors filled this second day of Wild West Hisory Association's first annual roundup. Speakers included: Larry Yadon, "The Gangs of Frontier Tulsa," Robert Barr Smith, "Famous, Infamous, and Overrated Oklahoma Outlaw," Bob Ernst, "Jim Cole, Deputy U.S. Marshal," Mike Tower, "Fred Waite: The Outlaw Statesman," David Turk, "The New U.S. Marshals' Museum," Catherine Gray, "Outlaws of the Cherokee Nation," and Dee Cordry, "Murder in the Cheyenne-Arapaho Country."
+ Robert Barr Smith described the majority of Oklahoma outlaws, such as Al Jennings and members of the Dalton gang as "chronic dumb." He also mentioned three things totally unacceptable by the Code of the West: 1) Never kill a preacher; 2) Never kill a doctor; and 3) Never rape a decent woman. He said this to illustrate how some of the Old West outlaws sentenced themselves to an early demise when they broke one of these rules.
+ In the last panel session of the day, each panelist spoke about their favorite good, bad, or ugly Wild West character. Bob Alexander chose Texas Ranger Ernest St. Leon as his 'good' character; Mike Cox chose Deputy U.S. Marshal Frank Dalton as his 'good' man; Rick Miller chose Bill Longley as his 'bad' and 'ugly' character; Larry Ball chose George Sutherland "Flat Nose" Currie as his 'bad' and 'ugly,' and Chuck Parsons chose John Wesley Hardin as his 'good,' 'bad' and 'ugly.'

Bob Alexander

Larry Yadon

Robert K. DeArment

Mark Dworkin

Drew Gomber

Dakota Livesay

Robert Barr Smith

Jim Fulbright

Liz Freeman and Chuck Parsons

Bob McCubbin, Liz Freeman, and Chuck Parsons

Nancy Samuelson

Marshall Trimble

1st Annual Wild West History Roundup

2008-07-17T04:41:00.000-07:00

Tulsa, Oklahoma, Wednesday, July 16, 2008
Historian David Dary spoke on "Why This Fascination with Outlaws and Lawmen?" He concluded that these Old West figures draw attention as "symbols of power." Their most memorable trait was "lack of fear" or, viewed by some as bravery or courage.

"Texas Jack" Wright

Chuck Hornung

Kenny "the Kid" Vail

Sharon Cunningham and Bob McCubbin

Bob DeArment and Dan Patterson