Description
Book SynopsisTrade ReviewDykstra and Manfra furnish a top drawer study of the history, legends, and memories of Dodge City, Kansas. Their well-written book provides a model for similar examinations of other Wild West towns. Superb work."" - Richard W. Etulain, author of
The Life and Legends of Calamity Jane ""
Dodge City and the Birth of the Wild West is a carefully researched, engagingly written, and well-organized study of the real and the imagined ""Dodge City.” It is also a timely book, considering the nation’s ongoing debate over the nature of Second Amendment rights and open/concealed carry, even though the historical Dodge City, upon which the ""Wild West” of legend and the Dodge City of metaphor (""get out of Dodge”) are based, ceased to exist more than 130 years ago."" - Virgil W. Dean, editor of
John Brown to Bob Dole: Movers and Shakers in Kansas History ""In
Dodge City and the Birth of the Wild West the authors have come close to creating actual time travel. Readers will find themselves transported in 1872 and the beginning of a town that became notorious nationally for wickedness and gunplay. Thanks to a wealth of original sources, this book reeks of authenticity with a dash of tongue-in-cheek humor."" - Tom Clavin, author of
Dodge City: Wyatt Earp, Bat Masterson, and the Wickedest Town in the American WestTable of Contents
- Introduction
- Gettin' Outta Dodge
- 1. Pioneers
- 2. Year of Living Dangerously
- 3. Deadly Prose
- 4. Case Histories
- 5. Circle Dot Cowboys
- 6. Dodge City's Sensations
- 7. End Games
- 8. Contesting Boot Hill
- Epilogue: Homicide, Moral Discourse, Cultural Identity
- Appendix: Homicide Victims, 1872-1886
- Acknowledgments
- Notes
- Index
