Gene from The CSL&OH.A. Talks to Tom and Keving from History Delights,About my Recent Speech at the James Farm and the Meguiar Jesse James Photo Investigation.

 

Tom Shaw (L) Interviews Gene (R) on History Delights YouTube Channel

                                                          Jesse James approx. 1861 From the                                                                                                            Patrick Meguiar Collection.

Army of The Southwest Winterset Covered Bridge Festival: Civil War Days By G.C. Stevens

 

Event: Winterset Iowa Covered Bridge Festival

2025

Civil War Days

                                                             HUZ-ZAH

History Delights Battle Reenactment. Video 

        What a great event weekend at the Winterset Covered Bridge Festival at the 

                     Civil War Battle 

           This was the final event in 2025 for the Army of the Southwest. And it was by far the best ASW event that I have attended. The weather couldn't have been better, with partly cloudy sky's and cooler temps.  There was a Christening for a new artillery piece. Thus adding a second gun to the ASW equipment compliment. Also added to the event was the 1st Louisiana Tigers Confederate Zouave Group. The confederate Reenactors enjoyed a brisk and detailed drill as the Tigers and 1st Missouri Infantry drilled together and then reenacted a very entertaining and colorful battle together. The museum provided two great lunches, and ASW provided powder and caps. The battle scenarios went well while infantry was able to keep up a good pace of fire  because of the added participants. while the artillery was also able to provide increased fire due to the additional guns.

Army of The Southwest Drill lead my SGT.  O.J. Fargo

Photo by G,C .

The Artillery Gods arrive to Christen a new Artillery Gun.

Photo by GC

                                      Photo by GC

Pvt Stevens 1st Missouri / ASW.  in front of the new gun! Photo G.C.

1st Louisiana Tigers Photo by G.C.

The Following photos were taken 

by

 Kevin Schmitt

Wyatt Earp Never Wounded: By G.C. Stevens

 

                                                      Drawing Courtesy of Jose Marquis

Wyatt Earp was a lawman in three of the most dangerous frontier towns in the wild west. Wichita Kansas, Dodge City Kansas and Tombstone Arizona. In a twist of fate of Wyatt Earps life, he had never once been wounded in any gunfight that he had been involved in. This legendary claim  holds true, in the many discussions about gunfights in the old wild west. With fast draws and strategic positioning, but there's no documented evidence that suggests of Wyatt being hit by gunfire any bullets.  From the infamous Gunfight at the OK Corral and the legendary Vendetta Ride, Earp's legacy often blends fact and folklore, making him a figure of enduring fascination in Wild West history. Wyatt Earp would provide some insight on how he viewed gunfights during a 1910 interview:

 “The most important lesson I learned from proficient gunfighters was the winner of a gunplay usually was the man who took his time. The second was that, if I hoped to live long enough on the frontier, I would shun flashy trick-shooting—grandstand play—as I would poison.”

“When I say that I learned to take my time in a gunfight, I do not wish to be misunderstood, for the time to be taken was only that split fraction of a second that means the difference between deadly accuracy with a six-gun and a miss. It is hard to make this clear to a man who has never been in a gunfight.”

The James Farm Reunion 2025 by G.C. Stevens (c) 2025

 

James Farm, Jesse James birthplace photo taken by the Author

On October 4th, 2025, I had the great honor to being invited to speak at the James Farm reunion to talk about the Train robbery in Adair Iowa in 1873. I was one of five speakers who gave presentations at the James Farm. The presenters were Frank & Cole, Buffalo Soldier George Pettigrew, Author Richard Gooch and me. It was a beautiful day for a reunion in the hills of western Missouri. I am especially grateful to Laura Ganschow Dellinger, and Bryan Ivlow  who helped to make my presentation possible. The James Farm is a beautifully preserved and well-maintained historic site, that helps to preserve and interpret a turbulent time in American history. While there, I took the opportunity to take a lot of photos which are included below. The museum also contains many important artifacts related to Jesse James and the James family. The museum is located in Kearny Missouri and well worth the visit.  

*All photos in the article were taken by the Author.

G.C. Stevens

   James Farm information   

 

  Friends of the James Farm     

                                                                                                                                      

While there, I just had to purchase the traditional "James Farm Pepple"

James Farm Reunion Flyer

The former resting place of Jesse James

Author Richard Gooch, talks about his up-coming book on Frank James and 

the last thirty-one years of Franks life.

Saddle Belonging to Jesse James

Saddle of Mrs. Frank James

   Saddle Belonging to Frank James

Photo of Jesse James Next to his personal effects which were 

donated to the James Fame, by Ethyl Rose Owens granddaughter of

 Jesse James and James R. Ross great grandson of Jesse James                                            

 

#1

#2

Personal effect of Jesse James #2 and description of the artifacts #1 which were 

donated to the James Farm, by Ethyl Rose Owens granddaughter of Jesse James

and James R. Ross great grandson of Jesse James.                                                

Buffalo Soldier George Pettigrew: Gives a talk on the front porch of the James
farm house. His talk is about the Battle of Island Mound Missouri and

Buffalo Soldiers of the American West..

Me having a chat with Frank James and Cole Younger. I'm asking Frank

about the train robbery in Adair Iowa. He denied being there.

#1

#2

#3

Photos 1-3

Frank and Cole tells stories of Jesse and Frank James and the civil war and their outlaw career.

John Wayne, The Searchers an Enduring Film, ... By GC Stevens

The Enduring Legacy of 

John Wayne in,

"The Searchers"

  Video Courtesy of Lucas Cavanaugh

John Wayne's portrayal in the 1956 Western masterpiece The Searchers was directed by the famed Director John Ford. The film remains one of American cinema's most profound and iconic explorations of vengeance, frontier warfare and redemption. Wayne stars as Ethan Edwards, a hardened Confederate Civil War veteran who embarks on a relentless quest to rescue his niece, Debbie (Natalie Wood), a victim of an Indian attack who is abducted by Comanche raiders who massacre his brother's family. Debbie is stolen away but not forgotten by the settlers and family who loved her. The years pass across the harsh Texas frontier, as Ethan and Martin (Pawley) Debbie's half-brother, played by Actor Jeffrey Hunter, search for multiple seasons and years to find Debbie. Martin and Ethan find themselves frequently locked in a war of words, loyalty and morals, as the navigate a very rough hostile environment, trying save their kin folk. As the film delves into Ethan's love of family, and burning anger blurs the lines of peace in a difficult time as he seeks to recover his lost and endangered family member.  Ford's brilliant eye and vivid Technicolor landscapes of the deserts of the "American west" and Wayne's intensity, lights the fire of a tale beyond typical Western films. 

 Ethan's journey is fraught with moral ambiguity; his initial intent to kill Debbie, viewing her as "tainted" by her captors, evolves into a forgiving Christian act of mercy. This culminates in the film's unforgettable final scene, a masterstroke of visual storytelling that cements Wayne's iconic status. As Ethan returns with the rescued Debbie and miraculously reunites with her adoptive family inside the Jorgensen homestead, Ethan then lingers in the doorway, framed by the wooden threshold like a humble man and a knight of old. The camera captures Wayne's weathered face in profile, with left arm gripping his right arm. A nod to Actor Harry Carey. John Wayne's massive silhouette dwarfed by the vast, unforgiving desert beyond. Ethan perhaps too scarred by war, on the frontier and in the civil war, fades into the background like so many patriots and hero's of the past have done and men with stoic character hold their anguish on the inside. A God given right.

G.C. Stevens