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Complete List of Old West Outlaw Gangs
More Lists: Explorers | Gunfighters | Lawmen | Native Americans | Outlaws | Outlaw Gangs | Scoundrels | Soldiers | Trail Blazers & Cowboys | Vigilantes | Women |
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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. |
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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. |
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Joaquin Murrieta
This
image available for photographic prints
HERE!
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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...
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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.
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Cole and Bob Younger
(rear), Jesse and Frank James (front.)
This
image available for photographic prints
HERE!
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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.
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Jennings Gang (1897) - Comprised of Al and Frank Jennings, former Doolin Gang member, Little Dick West, and brothers Morris and Pat O'Malley, the short-lived gang operated only a few months making several failed train robbery attempts in 1897. After blowing up a railroad car that held a safe, and finding no "booty" for their efforts, they robbed the train passengers. A few weeks later, they robbed a store, making off with just $15. The Jennings and O'Malley brothers were soon arrested and sent to jail.
Little Dick West remained on the "lamb" until the next year, when he was killed on April 8, 1898, by Deputy U.S. Marshals in Logan County, Oklahoma Territory.
John Kinney Gang (1870’s-1883) - Also known
as the Rio Grande Posse, the Kinney Gang were successful cattle rustlers and
hired gunmen in
New Mexico,
primarily operating in Dona Ana County in the early 1870’s. In 1877 they hired
out to fight in the El Paso Salt War and the
following year, made their guns available to the
Dolan-Murphy
faction in the
Lincoln
County War.
Upon their arrival in Lincoln County,
John Kinney was deputized by Sheriff
George Peppin.
With his gang acting as his posse, they were given the freedom to run rampant in
the county. Once the “war” was over, most of the gang members returned to Dona
Ana County and their profitable cattle rustling activities. However, a few of
them remained and joined up with another gang called Selman’s Scouts. The Kinney
Gang continued to flourish until leader
John Kinney
was arrested in April, 1883. Convicted of cattle rustling, Kinney spent the
next three years in prison, and by the time he was released his men had
scattered.
The Ketchum Gang (1896-1899) - Made up of a revolving list of members, the Ketchum Gang was led by Black Jack Thomas Ketchum, working with his brother Sam. Others who came and went were Will Carver, Elza Lay, and Ben Kilpatrick, who also rode with Butch Cassidy's
Wild Bunch. Other members included Dan Johnson, Sam Marr, Tom Thomas and Ed Bullion, brother of Laura Bullion, Ben Kilpatrick’s girlfriend. For three years, the gang robbed retail businesses, post offices and trains in New Mexico. However, everything began to fall apart when members, Sam Ketchum, Will Carver and Elza pulled a heist without Black Jack Ketchum on July 11, 1899 in Folsom,
New Mexico. Though they made off with some $50,000, they were soon pursued by a posse to a hideout near Cimarron, New Mexico. In the ultimate shootout that occurred, Sam Ketchum was seriously wounded, and Sheriff Edward Farr was killed. Carver and Elza were able to escape, but Ketchum was taken to the penitentiary in Santa Fe, where he later died of blood poisoning on July 24th. Lay was arrested on August 16th and was tried and convicted for the murder of Ed Farr and sentenced to life in prison. Carver escaped to ride with the
Wild Bunch.
In the meantime, Black Jack Ketchum decided to single-handled rob the the
Colorado & Southern train on its return to Folsom on August 16, 1899. In the process, he was shot and wounded. Taken into custody,
he was tried and sentenced to hang. On April 26, 1901, Black Jack Ketchum was the only person ever hanged in Union County, New Mexico and the only person ever hanged for train robbery in the State of New Mexico. More...
Lee Gang (mid
1880's) - Operating in Cooke
County,
Texas, and
just north in
Indian
Territory, were plagued by a gang of horse and livestock thieves led
by James Lee and his brothers, Tom and Pink.
Continued Next Page |
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Also See the Full Stories:
Bunco Men, Cardsharps, and Scoundrels
Explorers, Mountain Men, Trappers & Traders
Gunfighters & Lawmen of the American West
Native Americans - The First Owners of America
Old West Outlaws
Vigilantes
Women of the West |
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From the Rocky Mountain General Store
Vintage Photographs of the Old West - From our personal Photo Print Shop, you can now order prints that provide dramatic glimpses into the rich heritage of the American West. From notorious outlaws, to Indian Chiefs, buffalo roaming the range, and pioneers on the trail, this varied collection grows daily.
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