Did you know that most Western lawmen were criminals themselves?

Many of the most well-known lawmen of the American Wild West had multiple criminal charges to their name. Some were murderers, some were thieves, and many were corrupt-in fact, sometimes it was difficult to tell who was on which side of the law. And if you want to learn which were which, as well as which lawman showed true integrity to his dying day, keep on reading.

Spanish conquistadors, British explorers, and then the famous Lewis and Clark expedition were some of the first Europeans to set foot in the Wild West. But by that time, the area had been inhabited for millennia by a people who would soon be swept aside in the tide of America's westward expansion. The West was filled with amazing plants, creatures, and peoples, and all of them would suffer as colonization drove toward the Pacific Ocean.

Wars would be fought. Explorers would discover incredible landscapes they could never possibly have dreamed of. Gold and silver, as well as buffalo and land, would be discovered in incredible abundance on the other side of the Mississippi, and in the ensuing chaos, larger-than-life figures would arise from the madness.

Cowboys and Native Americans, robbers and sheriffs, courageous lawmen, opportunistic prospectors, frustrated Confederate soldiers turned outlaws after the war-the Wild West was filled with all of these. And their stories are breathtaking.

There is so much about the Wild West that we don't know from popular culture. Just a few of these interesting stories include:

• What the Native Americans of the West were really like before colonization
• How the Spanish were some of the first Europeans to explore the West
• The seven years during which Texas was its own country
• How the mountain men were the first settlers of the Northwest
• The man behind the tall tales: who Davy Crockett really was
• How the California Gold Rush affected the start of the American Civil War
• Why Clay Allison's psychotic breaks made him a dangerous outlaw
• How many men Billy the Kid really killed
• What the Earp brothers were really like and what truly happened at the O.K. Corral
• How Seth Bullock tamed Deadwood without killing a single man
• And much, much more!

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