Between the middle of the nineteenth and the beginning of the twentieth centuries, the American frontier was frequently referred to as the “Wild West.” But “Wild West Outlaw” has come to be used interchangeably with the word “Wild West.” The frontier turned into a haven for criminal gangs who robbed steam trains and banks, rustled cattle, and murdered lawmen during a time when there was no formal court system and disagreements were typically settled by lethal duels.
Jesse James
Jesse Woodson James was an American bandit, train and bank robber, guerrilla, and the head of the James-Younger Gang. Jesse James carried out crimes as retaliation for the unjust treatment he, his family, and other Southern supporters had at the hands of Union soldiers during the Civil War.
Billy the Kid
Billy the Kid, also known by the alias William H. Bonney, killed eight men before being shot and killed at the age of twenty-one. Additionally, he took part in the Lincoln County War in New Mexico, where he is thought to have killed three people.
Butch Cassidy
Butch Cassidy, a.k.a. Robert LeRoy Parker, was an American train and bank robber and the capo of a band of outlaws known as the “Wild Bunch” in the Old West. Beaver, Utah.
Sundance Kid
With a cousin, he set out for the west when he was just fifteen years old. When he was twenty years old, he had stolen a horse, a saddle, and a gun from a ranch in Sundance, Wyoming, only to be apprehended very soon. After being found guilty and serving eighteen months in prison, he earned the moniker “the Sundance Kid.”
Bandit Queen
Belle Starr, real name Myra Maybelle Shirley Reed Starr, was a notorious American bandit who rose to fame after being killed brutally; her death still remains a mystery. She has connections to the James-Younger Gang and other criminals. In 1883, she was found guilty of horse theft.
Buffalo Bill
American soldier, bison hunter, and showman William Frederick Cody was better known by his stage name, “Buffalo Bill.” He is most well-known for, though, having given the Wild West its name. His spectacular production of Buffalo Bill’s Wild West and Congress of Rough Riders of the World gained him international recognition and contributed to the perpetuation of the Western American image.
Calamity Jane
Calamity Jane, also known as Martha Jane Cannary, was an American frontierswoman, sharpshooter, and storyteller. One of the wildest and most daring ladies in the Old West, Calamity Jane was a professional scout who was well-known for her friendship with Wild Bill Hickok and her appearance in Buffalo Bill Cody’s Wild West Show.
Wild Bill Hickok
“Wild Bill” Hickok, also known as James Butler Hickok, was a folk hero of the American Old West who was renowned for his life on the frontier as a soldier, scout, lawman, gambler, showman, and actor as well as for his participation in numerous infamous gunfights. For his courageous combat in the Union army during the Civil War, which included work as a spy, scout, and sharpshooter, Hickok may have earned the moniker “Wild Bill.”
Annie Oakley
American sharpshooter Annie Oakley (born Phoebe Ann Mosey) was a featured performer in Buffalo Bill’s Wild West act. When she was younger, Oakley learned how to hunt so she could help her struggling family in western Ohio. She defeated seasoned marksman Frank E. Butler in a shooting match when she was fifteen years old. They eventually wed in 1876.
Wyatt Earp
Lawman and gambler Wyatt Berry Stapp Earp served in the American West, in towns including Dodge City, Deadwood, and Tombstone. Earp participated in the infamous shootout at the O.K. Three renegade Cochise County Cowboys were slain by law enforcement during the corral.
Doc Holliday
In addition to being a gambler and a gunfighter, John Henry Holliday, better known as Doc Holliday, was also a dentist. Holliday, a close friend and business partner of lawman Wyatt Earp, is best known for his involvement in the activities leading up to and following the Gunfight at the O.K. Corral in Arizona’s Tombstone.