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This is a list of Old West gunfighters, referring to outlaws or lawmen, of the American frontier who gained fame or notoriety during the American Wild West or Old West. Some listed were never gunfighters.
- Gunfighter
Gunfighters, also called gunslingers (/ ˈ ɡ ʌ n s l ɪ ŋ ər...
- Gunfighter
This documentary traces the history of many of the Old-West's most notorious gunfighters and describes some of the most famous shootouts, including the James/Younger gang's bungled Northfield Minnesota bank robbery, the Daltons' attempt to rob two banks simultaneously and the carnage that resulted and the Earps and Clanton gang's shootout in ...
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- Documentary
- James Kelly
This is a list of Old West gunfights. Gunfights have left a lasting impression on American frontier history; many were retold and embellished by dime novels and magazines like Harper's Weekly during the late 19th and early 20th century.
- Origin of The Term
- Depiction in Culture
- Fact and Fiction
- Famous Gunfights
- Living on Reputation
- Outlaw Or Lawman
- Legacy
- References
- Further Reading
The term "gunslinger" was used in the Western film Drag Harlan (1920). The word was soon adopted by other Western writers, such as Zane Grey, and became common usage. In his introduction to The Shootist (1976), author Glendon Swarthout says "gunslinger" and "gunfighter" are modern terms, and the more authentic terms for the period would have been "...
Gunslingers frequently appear as stock characters in Western movies and novels, along with cowboys. Often, the hero of a Western meets his opposite "double", a mirror of his own evil side that he has to destroy. Western gunslinger heroes are portrayed as local lawmen or enforcement officers, ranchers, army officers, cowboys, territorial marshals, n...
Most gunfights are portrayed in films or books as having two men square off, waiting for one to make the first move. This was rarely the case. Often, a gunfight was spur-of-the-moment, with one drawing his pistol, and the other reacting. Often it would develop into a shootout where both men bolted for cover. In popular folklore, men who held notewo...
The image of a Wild West filled with countless gunfights was a myth generated primarily by dime-novel authors in the late 19th century. An estimate of 20,000 men in the American West were killed by gunshot between 1866 and 1900, and over 21,586 total casualties during the American Indian Wars from 1850 to 1890. The most notable and well-known took ...
Most Old West men who were labeled as being "gunfighters" did not kill nearly as many men in gunfights as they were given credit for, if any at all. They were often labeled as such due to one particular instance, which developed from rumors about them having been involved in many more events than they actually were. Often their reputation was as mu...
It is often difficult to separate lawmen of the Old West from outlaws of the Old West. In many cases, the term gunfighter was applied to constables. Despite idealistic portrayals in television, movies, and even in history books, very few lawmen/gunfighters could claim their law enforcement role as their only source of employment. Unlike contemporar...
Modern gunslinger
People relive the Wild West both historically and in popular culture by participating in cowboy action shooting events,where each gunslinger adopts his or her own look representing a character from Western life in the late 1800s, and as part of that character, chooses an alias to go by. The sport originated in Southern California, USA, in the early 1980s but is now practiced in many places with several sanctioning organizations including the Single Action Shooting Society (SASS), Western Acti...
In popular culture
Gunfighters have been featured in media even outside the Western genre, often combined with other elements and genres, mainly science-fiction space Westerns, steampunk, and the contemporary setting. Abilities, clothing, and attitude associated with gunfighters are seen in many other genres. An example of this is "Han shot first", in which Han Solo, a gunfighter-like protagonist in Star Wars, kills his opponent with a subtle, under-the-table draw. He also wore his holster low on, and tied to,...
Sources
1. O'Neal, Bill (1979). Encyclopedia of Western Gunfighters. University of Oklahoma Press. 2. Rosa, Joseph G. (1969). The Gunfighter: Man or Myth?. University of Oklahoma Press.
Cunningham, Eugene (1934). Triggernometry: A Gallery of Gunfighters(1996 ed.). University of Oklahoma Press."Slap Leather, Gunfighter Myth". utexas.edu. Archived from the originalon 2007-02-13.Apr 13, 2024 · The cowboys, marshals, and outlaws of the Old West make up some of America’s most colorful mythos. Both heroes and villains have come from this time and place and become legends. In the 19th century, out West, horsemen and bank robbers rode across the land, taking the law into their own hands.
Gunfighters of the Old West features all sorts of legendary historical figures from pioneers and scouts to lawmen, outlaws, gangs and gunslingers, to the American cowboy. An incredible historical overview!
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Gunfighters of the Old West. Filmmaker Dan Dalton relates the stories of legends like Billy the Kid, Wyatt Earp, and Frank and Jesse James.
- Documentary
