Jesse Evans Gang, aka: The Boys (1872-1879) - Lead by Jesse Evans, this gang was actively involved in cattle rustling and armed robbery in New Mexico in the early 1870's, and for a while Billy the Kid rode with the gang. When the feud between the Dolan-Murphy faction and H.H. Tunstall began, each trying to control business interests and the cattle industry in Lincoln County, the Dolan-Murphy faction hired the Evans Gang to act as "enforcers." It was after this occurred that Billy the Kid quit riding with the Evans Gang and would eventually support the opposing Tunstall faction, known as the Regulators. Some of the gang's members were eventually involved in the "posse" that was formed by Sheriff William Brady to confront H.H. Tunstall, an event that left Tunstall dead and ignited the Lincoln County War.

After the violence of Lincoln County had finally ended, the gang stayed in the area until February, 1879, then fled to Texas after Jessie and gang member, Billy Campbell were involved with another murder. In Texas , they continued their rustling and robbing activities until they tracked down by Texas Rangers near Presidio on July 3, 1880.

In the ultimate gunfight that occurred, Jesse Evans shot and killed Texas Ranger George Bingham, and gang member John Gross was killed by rangers. The members of the gang were finally forced to surrender. Evans was sentenced to prison in Huntsville but managed to escape from a work detail in May, 1882 and was never heard from again.  

Farrington Brothers – Hilary and Levi Farrington were confederate guerillas under the command of William Quantrill when he burned and sacked Lawrence, Kansas on August 21, 1863. When the Civil War was over, the two became outlaws and robbed the Mobile and Ohio Railroad in Union City, Tennessee in 1870. With the Pinkertons hot on their trails, Hillary Farrington shot William Pinkerton in the side when the detective cornered him on a Kentucky farm.

Though wounded, Pinkerton still managed to subdue Hillary and cuffed his wrists. However while the pair were en route to Columbus, Kentucky the next day, Hillary broke loose and grabbed Pinkerton's shotgun. Struggling over the weapon in a death fight, the gun discharged, grazing Pinkerton's skull and Hilary wrenched it free. However, before the train robber could aim, Pinkerton delivered an angry upper-cut that sent his foe spinning backwards over the paddleboat, where he landed on the paddle wheel and was chopped to pieces. Levi was captured in Farmingdale, Illinois before being lynched by the people of Union City, Tennessee where the robbery took place.

High Fives Gang (1890’s) - Led by "Black Jack" Will Christian and his brother, Bob, from Oklahoma, the gang operated in New Mexico and Arizona after the Christian brothers escaped from a Guthrie, Oklahoma jail in 1895. Along with additional gang members, Jess Williams and Bob Hays, the gang robbed banks, trains, and stagecoaches. After almost making off with the loot from the International Bank in Nogales, Arizona on August 6, 1895 the High Fives were aggressively pursued by a posse led by Sheriff Bob Leatherwood. When they caught up with the gang near Skeleton Canyon, a gunfight ensued, leaving Deputy Frank Robson dead. The gang then escaped across the border into Mexico. When authorities learned the outlaws were back in the area in 1897, another posse was organized. They soon tracked them to what is now known as Black Jack Canyon. In yet another gunfight, Will Christian was killed. 

Joaquin Murrieta

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The Five Joaquins (1850-1853) - The Five Joaquins were said to be responsible for the majority of cattle rustling, robberies, and murders that were committed in the Mother Lode area of the Sierra Nevadas between 1850 and 1853. Led by Joaquin Murietta, the gang also included members Joaquin Botellier, Joaquin Carrillo, Joaquin Ocomorenia, and Joaquin Valenzuela, hence the name of the gang. Also included was Murietta's right hand man, Manuel Garcia, known as "Three-Fingered Jack." The gang allegedly formed and began to terrorize the towns and gold camps because the Mexicans were being discriminated against in the mines and forced off their land by invading hordes of American miners. The gang is credited with stealing more than $100,000 in gold, over 100 horses, killing 19 people (mostly Chinese mine workers), and killing three lawmen while outrunning posses, killing three lawmen. In the end, the California Rangers were sent to capture them and once they caught up with them, allegedly killed Murrieta and Garcia in 1853. More...

The Innocents - The Innocents were allegedly a gang of road agents led by Henry Plummer in the gold rush days of Montana. Plummer, who served as sheriff of Bannack from May 24, 1863 to January 10, 1864 was widely thought to have lead a ruthless gang of highwaymen who terrorized the road between Bannack and Virginia City, stealing from stage coaches, freight caravans, and especially from the ore wagons hauling the gold shipments along the road. During this violent time, nearly a hundred people were killed during these many robberies. Finally, a group of men calling themselves the Vigilante Committee formed in nearby Virginia City to take matters into their own hands. Over the next month, 21 men were hanged, including Henry Plummer on January 10, 1864. The last man hanged by the vigilantes may have done nothing more than express an opinion that several of those hanged previously had been innocent. Today, the accuracy of Henry Plummer's guilt has been challenged, with many believing that the crimes were in fact committed by the Vigilante Committee, themselves, and that Plummer and the "Innocents" were in fact killed to cover their own crimes. More ...

James Gang (1879-1882) - Three years after the demise of the James-Younger Gang, when the Youngers were arrested in Northfield, Minnesota, Jesse James put together another group to continue on with his criminal career. The gang's members were comprised of Jesse and Frank James, Ed Clell, brothers, Robert and Charley Ford, Bill Ryan, Dick Liddel, James "Windy Jim" Cummings, and brothers, Wood and Clarence Hite. With members coming and going during various crimes, the gang robbed banks, stagecoaches, and trains in Missouri, Kentucky, Iowa, Arkansas, Kansas, and West Virginia up until Bob Ford killed Jesse James on April 3, 1882.

James-Younger Gang (1866-1876) - During the Civil War, both the James and Younger brothers had followed William Quantrill's lead in a band of ruthless bushwackers, getting a taste for violence in the bitter conflict that wracked the divided state of Missouri. Robbing banks, trains and stagecoaches for ten years, the gang became the most famous in America's history. Though the men who rode in the gang were thieves and cold-blooded killers, they also became heroes to many southern sympathizers and those yearning for tales of the Wild West. Though their crimes centered in Missouri, their deeds extended into several states, sometimes separated by only days, and other times by many months. At least 41 men were believed to have ridden with the James-Younger Gang at various times, including the Younger brothers -- Cole, Bob, Jim and John; brothers, Frank and Jesse James; Arthur McCoy, Charlie Pitts, John Jarrette, Clell Miller, and Bill Chadwell.