Texas Ranger Capt. William L. Wright of Company A was sent in 1927 to keep the peace in Wink, Texas, an oil boom town near the New Mexico border. There he learned about Jal, where "Two-Gun Dick" Herwig had taken charge after being chased out of Texas. Wright led a raid on Herwig's empire that included federal, state, and county lawmen, successfully using the tactic of having the latter "deputized" by a federal judge to operate across the line. The incident, just one of many connected with Prohibition and keeping the peace in Texas oil towns, is particularly interesting because of the interagency cooperation involved, and the ultimately peaceful outcome.
Meet Richard B. McCaslin, PhD
Richard B. McCaslin, TSHA Professor of Texas History at the University of North Texas, is the author or editor of nineteen books. These include Tainted Breeze: The Great Hanging at Gainesville, Texas, October 1862, which earned a Tullis Prize and AASLH commendation; Lee in the Shadow of Washington, which won a Laney Prize and Slatten Award and was nominated for a Pulitzer; Fighting Stock: John S. "Rip" Ford of Texas, which got a Pate Award and Bates Award; At the Heart of Texas: One Hundred Years of the Texas State Historical Association, 1897-1997, which won an Award of Merit from the Texas Philosophical Society; and Saratoga on the Cibolo: Sutherland Springs, Texas, which received a Publication Award from the San Antonio Conservation Society. His Tennessee volume for the Portraits of Conflict series earned the Douglas Southall Freeman Award, and the series received an AASLH commendation. A Fellow of the Texas State Historical Association and Admiral in the Texas Navy, he also has commendations from the Civil War Round Tables in Dallas, Fort Worth, and Shreveport for his academic work on the Civil War era.
The public perception of the American West has been heavily influenced by dime novels, books, movies, and television. Until fairly recently, the Hollywood version of the cowboy portrayed a hardy, self-reliant knight of the plains. With few exceptions, the Hollywood cowboys were typically Anglo males. Women and minorities were relegated to secondary roles or simply whitewashed out of the story. The stories of these "Neglected Cowboys" are integral to the history of the American West.
Meet Wayne Ludwig
Wayne Ludwig is a Fort Worth native, cattle trails historian, and author of The Old Chisholm Trail: From Cow Path to Tourist Stop (Texas A&M University Press, 2018). He created the Texas Cattle Trails History Group on Facebook and is a member of Western Writers of America, Academy of Western Artists, and Old Trail Drivers Association of Texas. The Old Chisholm Trail was awarded the Elmer Kelton Book of the Year award by the Academy of Western Artists. The book was also named a Finalist for 2018 Most Significant Scholarly Book by the Texas Institute of Letters. Wayne has been a guest speaker at various symposiums and historical association events and instructor for TCU Silver Frogs extended education.
Tom Ashmore and C.A. Maedgen conducted a new archeological study in 2022 to determine the layout of the cavalry sub-post of Fort Clark, Camp Meyers Spring. With over 1,000 hours of research and field work, and using new technology of satellite and drone imagery, as well as terrain reconnaissance and artifact mapping, they were able to determine the layout of the entire encampment, including the Seminole Negro Indian Scout Camp, right down the individual tents. They will present a presentation of their work, showing all of the entire 30 acre camp.
Meet Tom Ashmore
Tom Ashmore spent 21 years in the Air Force as a special intelligence analyst. After retiring as an analyst, he worked as a contractor teaching intelligence skills for the Air Force Intelligence School for 20 years at Goodfellow AFB, Texas. As a member and vice president of the Concho Valley Archeological Society, he headed up archeological investigations of Butterfield's Overland Mail's Johnson's Station in Irion County, Grape Creek Station in Coke County and Horsehead Crossing Station in Crane County. He also headed up investigations of Paint Rock 1800s Historic Camp Sites in Concho County; Tower Hill Military Lookout in Sterling County; and ancient rock shelters in the Lower Pecos region of Texas, working with both Conch Valley and the Iraan Archeological Societies. He completed a book in 2019 on his Butterfield Trail investigations, The Butterfield Trail Through the Concho Valley and West Texas. He is currently a member of the Iraan Archeological Society and the Southwest Federation of Archeological Societies (SWFAS). He has written several articles for Desert Tracks publications and SWFAS transactions over the years.
Meet C. A. Maedgen
C. A. Maedgen, a geologist, is also an amateur archeologist and photographer. He began taking photographs while stationed in Vietnam when he served there in the Air Force, and now focuses primarily on birds and wildlife.