Dr. History's Tales Of The Old West

In 1894 Emilie Tremblay was living with her husband in a one room sod-roof cabin in the Yukon. As the only woman, she decided to make Christmas dinner for the local miners. Stuffed rabbit, roast caribou, beans, potatoes, sourdough bread and butter, with cake and plum pudding for dessert1. She remembers it as the best time she ever had. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Three German prospectors claimed to have a good gold find on the Snake River near Jackson Hole, Wyoming. They conned John Tonnar into funding the venture and being a partner. There were arguments, the three miners were found dead. Tonnar was suspected, arrested, but found innocent. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Hidden in Targhee National Forest is stolen treasure, buried by the outlaws who usually came to a bad end. Jim Locket and his gang were all caught and paid the price after burying their loot. A young man buried his stolen treasure, but died at the end of a rope. Some has been found, but more lies undisturbed. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Nellie Burgess drew on forty acres along the Snake River and called it the Rainbow Ranch. She planted a garden and trees, hauling water by bucket from the river. Along with the other homesteaders, they built a church and improved on their homes and ranches. It grew into the small Idaho community of King Hill. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Butch Cassidy carefully planned the robbery, arranged for horses and supplies and with help from other gang members made his escape from a sympathetic posse. He even rescued a stray dog. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Also called the "Sheepeaters." They lived high in the Rockies, were excellent hunters, well dressed and fed. They were a peaceful tribe, but became extinct due to smallpox. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Jake was a failure at being a rodeo star, so decided to be a rodeo clown. He had a trick mule, dog and skunk and once butted heads with a bull which left both knocked out. He brought a lot of applause and laughter with his act and retired at age 72. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Known as the Grey Fox, he had a habit of always getting caught when he committed a crime. He also managed to escape from prison several times, but eventually died in prison. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

They said Henderson Luelling was crazy to think he could take a heavy wagonload of fruit trees to Oregon. He made the trip, started the Luelling and Meek Nursery and sold grafting shoots all over Washington, Oregon, and California. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Because of a huge demand for feathers, Arizona ranchers imported ostriches in 1883. They were cheap to raise, ate less and produced $30 a year in income. The feathers were cut and sold at a huge profit until it became unfashionable to wear feathers. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Henry McDonald wanted his own freighting business, George Myers wanted to sell. McDonald ended up with Myers outfit, but how did he get it? Myers ended up dead, a jury found McDonald guilty of murder despite his many stories. His life ended on the gallows. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Ed Meyer was deathly sick in the hospital. He was recovering until he kept eating his wife’s daily picnic basket. Lyda Lewis's routine was to take out life insurance policies on her husbands, who soon died after marriage. Finally caught, she went to prison. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The Eddys and the Splawns used wooden molds of five, ten and twenty-dollar gold pieces to make their own money. With careful research they used plaster coins, coated with an alloy, then coated with a gold mixture and using an electric battery produced the counterfeit coins. Charley Reavis, an amateur detective solved the case, the family went to jail. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The 900 pound grizzly was caught in a huge cage by Dutch Schwartz. After being shown around Ketchum, Idaho, he was taken to New Orleans to the World’s Fair, then sold and exhibited as “Idaho Jack.” Grizzly Johnson supposedly choked a bear to death, and the Swede who attacked a bear and another bear who ended up in a bunkhouse. Some of these sound more fiction than fact. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

It took incredible teamwork to prepare for the shows. Carpenters, blacksmiths, painters, harness makers, tent makers, horse trainers and cooks. On the road, organizing the train cars, wagons and performers. The Cossacks, trained elephants, bronc riders, sharp shooters, trick riding, Indian battles all took precise timing.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Chief Gray Beard held two white girls captive. Lt. Frank Baldwin’s orders were to attack. Vastly outnumbered, he organized his men and 23 six-mule teams with wagons to charge the Indian Village. The Indians scattered and the girls were rescued. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Using camels for a pack train sounded like a good idea. Unfortunately, the camels smelled terrible and frightened horses and mules causing them to go crazy with fear, sometimes plunging to their death. The plan was a total failure. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

When Sumner Bacon found religion, he wanted to spread the word. With no formal training he began preaching, the first Protestant in Texas. He delivered hundreds of Bibles and helped General Sam Houston as a messenger. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

As Indians attacked a wagon train, the captain ordered the band to play. The Indians thought this might be a new powerful medicine, so they stopped and listened. The immigrants offered food and gifts, the Indians provided buffalo meat, disaster was averted. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Movies and TV show people dying a slow death or getting rescued just before going under. Experts today say you cannot drown in quicksand and there are techniques to get yourself out with help or even by yourself. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices