The Dalton Gang: Myths, Legends, and Stories about the Wild West's Most Wanted (ePub)

The Dalton gang terrorized Oklahoma and Kansas near the end of the 19th century, which was a period coinciding with the last moments of the fabled Old West. These bandit brothers, who were related to Jesse James and the infamous Younger gang though their mother, robbed train after train while being chased by fearsome lawmen like Ransom Payne and Heck Thomas. Living the outlaw life, they managed to escape trouble with the help of friendly locals and no small amounts of cunning.

Remarkably, the gang started off life on the other side of the law. In every stage of their amazing story, there are legends and myths, which makes it difficult to know why Bob, the elder brother, convinced Grat and Emmett, his younger siblings, to take up a life of crime. Some historians argue that a lack of financial reward for their labours pushed the young men into breaking the law. Others say it was not just financial a decision, and that the brothers were angry that the US Government did not try to arrest the man who had killed their friend. Whatever the reason, the Daltons started selling alcohol illegally to Native Americans and stealing horses. Eventually, the Daltons went on the run after Bob killed a man, which could have been as a result of an arrest gone wrong or the bloody conclusion to a fatal fight between love rivals.

Bob was by all accounts a womanizer, and he did not tolerate other men's interest in his lovers. All of his women were beautiful, dangerous and legends in their own right.

Despite their notoriety, the gang never made much money from their raids. Their desperate financial situation saw them take more and more risks, and in one dangerous brush with death, they somehow managed to escape a posse hiding on one train they were trying to rob. 200 bullets later, and with one dead bystander, the gang lived to rob another day.

Their journey ended in the 'Death Alley' of Coffeyville, Kansas. With increased attention from the law, Bob decided to try to pull off an audacious double-raid of two banks. The gang knew it was risky, but they wanted to make one big score before retiring. It did not go according to plan, and the gang was wiped out by the angry townspeople who were trying to defend their money. Only the youngest, Emmett, survived, and despite the danger of being lynched by the crowd after the robbery, he managed to live a long life, with more than the occasional diversion into Hollywood and book writing. In his post-desperado life, he committed his time to telling the Dalton story.

Though their reign of terror was brief, their actions have been forever sealed in the legend of the Old West. Today, we can look back and see how their story has influenced a wide array of books, movies, comics, and videogames. Their legacy is evidence of America's tortured relationship with the myths of its past, and at the shock and excitement the gang's drinking, gambling, fighting, stealing, and murder can still inspire in people today.