Wildest of the Wild West: True Tales of a Frontier Town on the Santa Fe Trail

This book is one of the lost treasures of the southwest, written from recollections of the actual pioneers who lived their stories. I would recommend this and other books by this author for anyone who seriously wants to know what the REAL west was like.

A couple of years ago, after moving to Las Vegas,NEW MEXICO, our local bookstore proprietor suggested I read Howard Bryan's book regarding some of the more violent pieces of local history. I read with interest and disdain how it was that the US Army under General Kearney's command wiped out the village of Los Valles near here and nearly destroyed the Taos Pueblo, "leaving a few houses standing to shelter the women and children." That was in 1847 during the period of "pacification" after the US had defeated Mexico. As appaling the events at Los Valles and Taos Pueblo were, at least there was a modicum of human decency in US Military Policy. There was a certain respect for the humanity of the native peoples, a desire to provide some protection for the women and children. All that changed in the next 20 years or so as witnessed at Wounded Knee where women and children were slaughtered by the US Army. We have a beautiful public square known as the Plaza here in "The Meadow City." Bryan discusses the historical fact that public hangings were a frequent event of some degree of entertainment. The executions took place from a windmill in the center of the Plaza. Today a bandstand sits where the windmill executions once occured. As Bryan points out the hangings stopped when one day Las Vegans came to the realization that the executions were having detrimental effects upon the younger generation: children had taken to playing at hangings! What better rationale can we find in modern times to end our current versions of capital punishment? This is a must read especially for those fascinated with the history of the American West.

This is a very easy reading book, with some of the most compelling short stories (true short stories) of the Las Vegas, New Mexico area, during the 1800 and very early 1900s. You pick up some amazing historical facts... and hear some tales of famous, or infamous characters that simply amaze! Low cost, easy to read, and gives you several of those "Oh my ...." moments when you least expect them. A great read.Wildest of the Wild West: True Tales of a Frontier Town on the Santa Fe Trail

I'm a native of this town (born there in 1923) and found Howard Bryan's book an outstanding and worthwhile account. I've recounted some of his tales to people in other states and countries, and encountered disbelief. It sounds too much like a B movie to be credible, but it's all true. In fact, it's understated.My father had one of the original posters which is reproduced on the back of the jacket, and I can testify it is authentic.Most people find it hard to believe such a tough town could stay that way for as long as Las Vegas NEW MEXICO did. The original Las Vegas was established a hundred years before Bugsy Seigal the mobster started his air-conditioned, neon-lit palace for city dudes, hundreds of miles away, in the Nevada desert. The photographs are also historical artifacts of great value.I recommend the book with great enthusiasm.