Description

In the Twin Territories, as Oklahoma was known before statehood, renegades roamed, and attempted to rule, the land. Famous lawmen like Bill Tilghman, Heck Thomas, and Chris Madsen and infamous outlaws, including the Dalton and Bill Cook gangs, have been the topics of many books, documentaries, and magazine articles. Other lesser-known characters from Oklahomais past have received little, if any attention--until now. Train robberies, murders, prison breaks, and hangings were part of everyday life in the Twin Territories, and they are all featured in More Oklahoma Renegades . Stories like that of Ira Terrill are included here. Serving on the Oklahoma Territorial House of Representatives, Terrill advocated for tougher murder laws, enacting a law that allowed Kansas to work prisoners in the coal mines. After a particularly heated argument, Terrill was the first to be arrested under the law and serve under such conditions. After his release, he concentrated his efforts on exposing the injustice of forcing inmates to work as slaves, inspiring lawmakers to later cancel the arrangement. Others mentioned include doctor-turned-deputy Zeno Beemblossom and the banker-turned-hero Ben Kiehn. ABOUT THE AUTHOR What began as research for a short article by author Ken Butler quickly turned into five years of work, resulting in his first book, Oklahoma Renegades: Their Deeds and Misdeeds . Ken Butler was a lifetime member of the National Association for Outlaw and Lawman History and a charter member of the Association for the Preservation of Lawman and Outlaw History of Oklahoma (Oklahombres).