On Friday,
while taking my *ahem* break at work, I spotted a news story, followed a trail, dashed down a
rabbit hole and found…
Rose Dunn aka “Rose of the Cimarron”
Born September 5, 1878, Rose Ella
Dunn was the youngest daughter and one of ten children of William H. Dunn and
Sarah C. (Brenner) Dunn. She was four days shy of her 15th birthday and living
with her mother, stepfather, Dr. W.R. Call, and younger brother in Ingalls,
Oklahoma Territory, when the shootout between U.S. deputy marshals and members
of the Doolin gang occurred in front of the OK-Hotel. Rumor has it she was
sweet on one of the gang members, George “Bitter Creek” Newcomb.
She was dubbed "Rose of the
Cimarron" not because she was a sweetheart of an outlaw, but because she
could ride a horse better than most men and loved riding her horse across the
sandbars of the Cimarron River, that ran near her brother’s place.
“Rose of Cimarron” was first introduced
to readers in 1915 in a little red paper-covered book titled Oklahoma Outlaws. In the book and subsequent
movie portrayal of the Ingalls battle between 13 lawmen and six members of Bill
Doolin’s gang, Rose of Cimarron makes a dramatic exit from the OK-Hotel,
carrying a rifle through a hail of bullets to her wounded lover, Newcomb.
Now, historians doubt she was
anywhere near the gunfight, but an 1873 Winchester with the engraved “Rose of
Cimarron” plate in the stock was authenticated by U.S. Marshal E.D. Nix as the
rifle Rose Dunn took to Newcomb. It was picked up on an Ingalls street after
the gun battle.
Also in doubt was whether Rose was
involved with Newcomb at all. In fact, it is believed that Rose told her brothers that George
Newcomb would be at her home in Norman, OK on May 12, 1895. When Newcomb and fellow
gang member, Charley Pierce, arrived, Rose’s brothers shot and killed them both,
and collected the $5,000 bounty…which they, of course, shared with their sister.
For more
information, check out the article on Rose in True West Magazine:
http://www.truewestmagazine.com/who-is-rose-of-cimarron/
Tracy Garrett
I'm excited to announce my next release from Prairie Rose Publications -- TEXAS GOLD!
COMING APRIL 22, 2017!
Previously published as TOUCH OF TEXAS
First published in 2007, Tracy joined Prairie Rose Publications in its inaugural anthology in 2013. Tracy resides in Missouri with her husband and their fuzzy kid, Wrigley.
Find out more about Tracy at:
TracyGarrett.com
Prairie Rose Publications blog
Tracy, don't you just love those 'rabbit holes'? I have had so many great journeys as I followed the 'clues'.
ReplyDeleteI am also very excited about the new release from Prairie Rose. Wishing you all the best. Doris
Thanks, Doris! It's a rerelease of my very first published novel, TOUCH OF TEXAS.
DeleteAnd I LOVE this cover!!!
Well now, it truly IS difficult to know if she was in love with Newcome or if she just wanted to get in on that bounty. Still, I have to admire a woman who could ride a horse the way she did and had a special edition rifle named after them.
ReplyDeleteGreat post, Tracy.
Thanks, Sarah!
DeleteTracy,
ReplyDeleteRose must have had a colorful personality to have spawned such legends. I love these little-known gems of history.
I'm looking forward to you upcoming release. :-)
That photo is not Rose. It's a woman prisoner posing as Rose
ReplyDeleteMy Aunt married Bill Dunn one of her brothers. This was a family disgrace so Bill and his brother bushwhacked some of the Dalton gang and killed one. Bill rode away and came to Prinvelle, Oregon where he got a lifetime job as the foreman on a cattle ranch. Rose moved there and lived with Bill until his death. She then moved and lived with my family in Salkum, Washington. Years later they found the bones of Bill’s brother in the hills. He apparently had been shot by the Dalton gang.
ReplyDelete