Bloody Beaver

In this episode I just talk about myself, what motivated me to get into podcasting, and where I'd like to see this podcast go in 2020. Enjoy my nonsensical ramblings!

On the afternoon of April 9th, 1892, Nate Champion was holed up in a bullet riddled cabin. Outnumbered and surrounded, he had been able to hold off his attackers since sunrise. But once they managed to set the cabin on fire, Nate knew he had to act and act fast. He could stay inside and burn to death, or leave and face the small army of 50 paid killers that waited outside. Killers hired by cattle barons to get rid of small ranchers just like Champion. Today’s tale is that of an underdog. A true working class hero. The little guy versus the bully. So saddle up, oil your guns, and get ready to celebrate the life and death of Nate Champion on this OPEN RANGE episode of Bloody Beaver Podcast.

In 1908 members of the Bolivian military surrounded a home that historians believe was occupied by American desperados, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. While approaching the home gunfire erupted from inside. One soldier was killed and another wounded. This kicked off one hell of a gunfight that resulted in the death of both outlaws.

Butch Cassidy’s life was over, nearly 20 years after he robbed his first bank.

MAYBE.

15 years later, in 1924, a mysterious man drove up a dusty Wyoming road in a Model T Ford. They say he bore a strong resemblance to Butch Cassidy. This claim is further backed up by people who knew Butch in real life, I mean like REALLY knew him, including a former girlfriend as well as Butch’s own sister. They all swore that Butch didn’t die in Bolivia but in fact came back to visit family and friends in the 1920’s.

So did Butch really die in a tiny shack in South America or did he successfully change his identity and live a long peaceful life? Let’s explore the mysterious death of Butch Cassidy on this newest man this took way longer than expected rabbit hole edition of Bloody Beaver Podcast.

On December 7th, 1876, 8 strangers rode into the town of Northfield Minnesota.

Shortly before noon they stopped at a local restaurant and dined on fried eggs. Residents of Northfield would later testify that the men smelled of alcohol and were clearly under the influence.

After eating, the men left the diner, crossed a bridge, and headed towards the First National Bank of Northfield. They fanned out. Three of men entered the bank, two stood guard directly outside the door, and the other three took up positions in the nearby square, preparing to guard the gang’s escape route.

This wasn’t some amateur job or some green horn gang of wanna be’s. No, this was the infamous James-Younger gang, and they had been robbing and stealing and killing for years. They had perfected the art of robbing not only banks, but trains and stagecoaches as well.

But on this fateful day they picked the wrong bank in the wrong  town. The citizens of Northfield weren’t in the mood to have their bank robbed that day. Soon a suspicious  Northfield resident cried out “Get your guns, boys, they’re robbing the bank”

Before the James-Younger crew knew it, they were being riddled with bullets, having to escape town in a hail of gunfire that resulted in the death of two of them and the wounding of all the others. They were  shot all to hell. This kicked off a desperate manhunt and ultimately marked the end of the James-Younger gang.

Who were the James and Younger brothers? And more importantly, who were these bad ass normal citizens that stood up and said not fucking today!

Find out on this newest oh I’m probably going to piss a lot of people off episode of Bloody Beaver Podcast

On a frigid December day in 1866, Captain William J. Fetterman led his troops into the teeth of an estimated force of anywhere between 1 to 2 thousand Lakota, Cheyenne, and Arapaho warriors. These warriors annihilated the captain and his entire command in a short, brutal fashion. Fetterman allegedly once boasted “Give me 80 men and I could ride through the whole Sioux Nation. He died with exactly 80 men. Who was Fetterman? Was he really the Custer-like blood thirsty arrogant military officer that may people believe him to be? Why were the Lakota so pissed off? And who the hell was Crazy Horse? Find out all this and more on this newest history sure is complicated massacre edition of Bloody Beaver Podcast!

Admittedly not my best episode. I was exhausted and sleep deprived whilst recording and it shows. Low energy. Hope it’s not too boring!

Follow me on instagram @the_bloody_beaver_podcast

In Spring of 1871 the body of a man named Jones was discovered in Drum Creek, not far from present day Cherryvale, Kansas. The dead man’s throat had been cut from ear to ear and his skull caved in. Not long after that two more bodies were discovered, both having the same injuries as Jones. Their skulls brutally bashed in and throats slit.

By 1873, reports of missing people who had passed through the area had become so common that travelers began to avoid the trail altogether.

All told at least 20 people would disappear on this eerie section of the Great Osage Trail.

Was it wild Indians? Maybe roving bands of outlaws? Or was it a straight out of a Rob Zombie movie like family known as the Benders?

Find out on this latest man these are some creepy ass people Halloween edition of Bloody Beaver Podcast.

In the fall of 1868, John Wesley Hardin, a fugitive wanted for murder, was laying low when he got word that a group of three Union soldiers were on his trail. Not willing to be arrested and possibly hung, and not wanting to give the soldiers any chance at gunning him down, he ambushed them. Killing two with a double-barreled shotgun and finishing off the third with an old cap and ball six -shooter.

He was 15 years old. And had just killed his 4thman.

During the course of his life he would be responsible for somewhere between 30 to 40 more killings, all of them, in his opinion, justifiable.

So What went wrong with John Wesley Hardin? How’d the son of a preacher man become one of the deadliest gunfighters the west would ever know? Find out as we take a look at the crazy life of John Wesley Hardin on this holy shit did this guy really like to kill edition of Bloody Beaver Podcast!

John Joel Glanton, veteran of both the Texas Revolution and the Mexican American War, was survivor of Goliad, a former Texas Ranger, all around badass decorated war hero and also a mercenary, outlaw, scalp hunter & murderer, Hired  by the Mexican government to keep the violent Apache’s at bay, Glanton and his gang went rogue, killing and scalping anyone and everyone they could get a hold of. Apaches, peaceful tribes, Mexican citizens, even women. The Glanton Gang is the real life inspiration behind Cormac McCarthy’s Blood Meridian. And like Blood Meridian, we’re gonna go dark on this most recent extra bloody episode of Bloody Beaver Podcast.

John Colter, known as the first mountain man, came west as a member of the Lewis and Clark expedition. They braved the great Missouri river, traveled the plains, and crossed the Rocky Mountains, eventually finding the Pacific Ocean. On the return trip Colter turned back west again, this time with two fur trappers and headed to the beaver rich Yellowstone river. He was the first white man to see such sights as present day Yellowstone national park, Pierre’s hole in Idaho, the Teton mountain range, and to extensively explore the three forks region of present-day Montana. This OG mountain man survived many violent encounters with warlike Tribes, at one point even forced to run for his life, naked, while hundreds of warriors chased after him. So without further ado, let’s dive deep into the man, the myth, the legend - John Colter.

Quanah Parker, the son of a war chief and a white captive, the first and only principal chief of the Comanche Nation. And one of the last of the wild Comanche to finally surrender. He spent his entire early life preparing for and engaging in war, raiding at will and striking fear into the hearts of his enemies. Later he’d walk the path of his mother’s people, growing rich, at times,  and successfully lobbying and negotiating on behalf of his beloved Comanche. What was it that make Quanah both a skilled fighter and effective leader? What compelled his people to not only follow him on the warpath, but also the path of progress? Join me as we delve deep on this topic on this newest episode of Bloody Beaver Podcast.

On this episode we delve into the fascinating true events and real people who helped inspire what I consider to be the greatest story ever told, Lonesome Dove. We discuss Charlie Goodnight, Oliver Loving, Blue Duck, Robert Duvall, how to pronounce the word "route" and how I sometimes hate my job so much that I contemplate jumping out the window. Plus, lots of fun facts and behind the scenes info! 

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On the night of July 14th, 1881, the infamous outlaw Billy The Kid was killed in Ft. Sumner New Mexico.

Sheriff Pat Garret was questioning Pete Maxwell as to Billy’s whereabouts when the kid walked into the darkened room. Realizing he wasn’t alone, Billy spoke his final words “quien es?” who is it? Garret, recognizing the Kid’s voice, drew his revolver and shot twice, the first bullet struck Billy in the chest, just above the heart. Thus ending the short, yet bloody, career of Billy The Kid. 

But did things really go down like that? Did Pat Garrett really kill Billy The Kid?

In 1950, 69 years after Billy was supposedly killed, a man known as Brushy Bill Roberts met with the governor of New Mexico, claiming to be Billy The Kid and requesting the pardon he was promised decades before. 

The 90-year-old Roberts spoke fluent Spanish and like the kid, he too was ambidextrous. He had 4 signed affidavits from people who actually knew Billy The Kid back in the day swearing that he was, indeed, Billy.

And he had every bullet wound Billy was said to have. And then some.

Was Brushy Bill really Billy The Kid? And if not, who the hell was he?

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Born into slavery in 1838, Bass Reeves was one of the first African American deputy U.S. Marshals west of the Mississippi River. Time and time again Deputy Reeves would head into the heart of Indian Territory and bring back the bad guys, dead or alive. During a career that spanned 32 years, he arrested over 3000 outlaws and killed at least 14 men in the line of duty. So let's go ahead and dig in to this badass Black History Month edition of Bloody Beaver Podcast.