102084 Visitors, a Major Milestone! By G.C. Stevens

 

                                               

 ANOTHER MILESTONE! 

The Central States Lawman and                Outlaw Historic Association blog, breaking records!

 102084 visitors!

I'm very proud of the CSL&OHA blog and what we have accomplished here! The success here was easy, 

because it's a labor of love and collaboration with many other writers, artists, genealogists and reenactors.

Central States, Lawman and Outlaws Historic Association: Dusty Trails Books

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Lawman- Peace Officer: Bat Masterson By G.C. Stevens

 

Photo from the authors collection

"Bat Masterson was the quintessential Peace Officer, who's good

 works are apparent by the legacy that he left behind"

-The Author

William B. 'Bat' Masterson, Was Ford County Sheriff and Dodge City citizen. W. B. "Bat" Masterson was born William Bartholomew (nee, Barclay) in Iberville County, Quebec, Canada on November 26, 1853. Bat was the second of five children. According to Masterson, in his book Gunfighters of the Western Frontier (1907), he gained his nickname later in life. Bat Masterson was the quintessential Peace Officer, who's good

 works, level head and attention to duty are apparent by the legacy that he that he left behind. 

"It was as a hunter he won his name of 'Bat', which descended to him, as it were, from Baptiste Brown, or 'Old Bat', whose fame as a mighty nimrod was flung all across, from the Missouri River to the Spanish Peaks, and filled with admiration that generation of plainsmen which immediately preceded Masterson upon the Western stage."

-Bat Masterson

Bat Masterson moved to Kansas sometime in 1871, he and his family settled near the small farming community of Sedgwick which is located near Wichita Kansas, along with a family friend, buffalo hunter, H.H. Raymond. The Masterson family had previously farmed in New York and Illinois. During the fall and winter, 18-year-old Bat went west to hunt buffalo with his 19-year-old brother Ed, together they camped with other hunters working along the Salt Fork River in present Comanche and Barber counties, Kansas. During this time, Ed and Bat Masterson met several people who would become Western legends, including Billy Dixon, Tom Nixon, "Prairie Dog" Dave Morrow, and Bat's lifelong friend, Wyatt Earp.  Bat and his brother also worked on a crew grading roadbed for the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railroad. Their territory covered a four-mile stretch from near Fort Dodge, KS to a tent town then called "Buffalo City" later Dodge City. According to Robert M. Wright, Dodge City's founder, in his 1913 book, "Dodge City, the Cowboy Capital"

"Bat Masterson was the real deal. He came west in the 1870s and was at the Battle of Adobe Walls where the buffalo hunters held off the Comanche. He was an Army scout against the Kiowa; in 1877 he joined his brother Jim and Ed in Dodge City and was elected Sheriff of Ford County where he had a commendable record."

-True West Magazine

The Battle of Adobe Walls

Probably the most amazing and poignant story about Bat was his involvement in the Battle of Adobe Walls, it was in June 1874, when he was in the Texas Panhandle, when he along with other buffalo hunters took part in the Battle of Adobe Walls, Texas, starting  on June 27, Bat was one of twenty-eight men and one lone woman in the poorly protected settlement of Adobe Walls. They faced with an attack by 800-1000 Native Americans Indians, lea by Chief Quanah Parker, who commanded the Comanches; Lone Wolf, the Kiowas; Stone Calf and White Shield, the Cheyennes against the white buffalo hunters. 

Law Enforcement

In 1877, Bat Masterson was elected sheriff of Ford County, which included Dodge City. His tenure was marked by decisive action against crime, especially horse theft. He was known for apprehending nearly every horse thief who dared to operate in the area Police1. His leadership helped bring order to the chaotic frontier town.

In 1879, he served as deputy U.S. marshal for Dodge County. While working in this role, he was part of the local “Gang” of town bosses, but his law enforcement duties were often tied to protecting the community and enforcing federal and local laws. Bat’s brothers, Ed and Jim, were also active in law enforcement. Ed served as assistant marshal in Dodge City and was known for his bravery, 

Ed Masterson Lawman

"In June 1877, Ed was appointed deputy marshal of Dodge City and very quickly became popular and respected throughout the entire town. Seven months after his appointment to the police force, he was promoted to city marshal. In the evening hours of April 9, 1878, Ed, along with his deputy, Nat Haywood, tried to control a group of cowboys wooping it up at the saloon. Ed disarmed Jack Wagner and gave the gun to Wagner's boss, A.M. Walker. When Masterson left, Walker returned the pistol to Wagner. Wagner went outside and got into a wrestling match with Ed. Wagner's pistol discharged in the struggle and the bullet hit Masterson in the abdomen and exited through his lower back. Even though shot, and his jacket on fire from the powder blast, Ed pulled his gun and fired 4 shots, killing Wagner and wounding Walker. Masterson then turned and stumbled 200 yards to the saloon and fell to the floor. He was carried to brother Bat's room where he died a short time later. He was 25 years old. Ed's funeral was attended by the entire town who mourned the loss of the lawman that they had come to love and respect."

-Find a Grave

refs

• kansashistory.us/fordco/batmasterson
• True West Magazine
• Find a grave

CSL&OH.A. Editorial July 2026 By the Editor G.C. Stevens

 

Photo courtesy of the state of Iowa

Greetings from the Dragoon Trail in central Iowa.  As we travel down the historic trail and we approach July of 2026, a month which not only marks my 68th birthday, it also marks the 250th birthday of the United States of America.  These milestones also mark my return to civil war reenacting after a very long hiatus from living history. Adding to this is the success of this blog, are the number of visitors who read our work here. The number of readers has surpassed 10,000 visitors this last month. I have to personally thank the many people who have supported what I do and those who have contributed to this blog. If you view this blog on your laptop or desktop computer, you can look at the right-side column and see the folks who support this blog, on the same side of the page, you will also see the people that I have supported as well. It's been quite a journey thus far. I have a couple of books coming out, one is called "The Scoundrels of Iowa" which is being published by Arcadia publishing. This book has been in the publishing phase for about seven months and there is no visibility on when it will be published. The other book is called "Trains Trails and & Outlaws" this book was originally published through a hybrid publisher called USA Book Promoters, but unfortunately the process of publishing through this hybrid publisher has been a literal nightmare, and I will not be using their services again. (caveat emptor). I removed the book from Amazon to be reedited by another book company called Jones Book store, so far I'm pretty happy with their responsiveness to me, and I'm praying for  good results. 

Moving Towards the Future:

So... Writing seems to be a struggle against many dark forces, and trying to tell the story of American history isn't very popular right now. But there are many of us who are willing to take many risks to be story tellers of our American journey and there are those who take the risk and find themselves in different strata of emotionally charged opinion and social status. Not to mention that there are clear hierarchies within the western genre community. The days western magazines are coming to a close and very few opportunities exist for western writers to get their work published. That's where blogs like this one and social media comes in. It's up to us to keep telling the story anyway that we can. But what I've learned from this experience, is that staying the course, ignoring the social media attacks, being true to the mission here and networking with others who cherish our history, has been a formula for success. So...  I will stay the course for the history my country, because that's what is important to me

See you on the dusty trail!

Editor

G.C. Stevens 

The flag of my G, great grandfathers regiment 

the 54th Illinois Inf. 

250 YEARS OF AMERICAN HISTORY

, 

G C. Stevens U.S. Photographer

 

RECREATING EARLY PHOTOGRAPHY 

FROM THE LATE

 1800'S TO THE

 EARLY 20TH CENTURY

email

(right click to copy email)

PHOTO GALLERIES

Jefferson Iowa Civil War Days 2026

Zearing Iowa Civil War Event 2026

 I utilize both vintage cameras and digital to recreate old time photos. I have also developed a technique for recreating cabinet cards.

My cameras: A No. 2 Kodak Brownie, an Imperial SIX-TWENTY & A No. 2 folding Premo.

250 Years of History CSL&OH.A.

Historic items have a way of falling into my lap. I recently acquired this belt buckle that commemorates the 200th anniversary of the United States. I was alive to see it and remember it well.  

                                                    

    

    250 Years of American History

From the foundational 1620 Mayflower compact to Settlement of the vast American west. Our story is as sweeping as the Great Plains west of the Missouri River. Settlement of the west, the civil war, the railroads and great names such as Jim Bridger, Kit Carson, Jedediah Smith, William T Sherman, U.S. Grant, Robert E Lee, George Armstrong Custer, Lewis and Clark, John C. Fremont, Black Hawk and Sitting Bull, are all part of that landscape. Over the next twelve months the CSL&OH.A. will be creating articles dedicated to that legacy.

G.C. Stevens

                                                          

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