The Wild West.
Those three words are sure to spawn images in your mind of cowboys and American Indians, sheriffs and outlaws. Complete anarchy with a romantic ambiance. Back in the late 1800s when settlers were moving out west, it represented freedom. A wide open expanse where one could make their name or get lost in the annuls of history.
In the past 100 years, Hollywood has further romanticized these stories with countless movies telling the tale of the antihero outlaw. The bank robber that had a heart of gold and was only trying to survive. Likes of Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid or Billy the Kid fill western paperbacks transporting readers back in time to these golden fields.
Today, I had the pleasure of discovering where it all started, where the infamous Jesse James robbed a train for the first time in the history of the west, starting a quintessential trend that followed trains for years afterwards.
