Description:

Emmett Dalton TLS "The 1st Time Bill Doolin Ever Broke the Law.... We had Robbed a Train"

1p, [8.5” x 11”] Single Page TLS Emmett Dalton, San Francisco, CA, Dated March 27, 1937. Signed “Emmett Dalton”, and addressed to journalist and raconteur Bertrand “Frisco Bert” Couch. Written four months before his death, Dalton discusses his famous book “When the Dalton’s Rode” and brags about his misadventures with Bill Doolin.

Reads in part:

“.. THE FIRST TIME “BILL” “DOOLIN” EVER BROKE THE LAW, WAS WITH US. WE HAD ROBBED A TRAIN AT “ADAIR” IT, BULL DOOLIN WAS WITH US IN ABOUT THREE TRAIN ROBBERIES AND QUIT US IN AFTER THE ADAID (Adair) ROBBERY. MRS DALTON AND I WONT BE ABLE TO TAKE THE HOUSE, WE ARE GETTING TOO OLD AND I AM TAKING “CHRISTIAN” SCIENCE TREATMENTS TWICE A WEEK WHICH WOULD MAKE IT IMPOSIBLE FOR ME TO TAKE IT. THANK YOU ANYWAY FOR THE OFFER..”

Signature dark and bold, with expected folds from mailing and a slight tear on the left side of the paper not affecting any words.

The letter is accompanied by the original envelope with a cancelled 3 cent Washington stamp, and the printed address and return address.

William “Bill” Doolin (b.1858) was an American bandit outlaw and founder of the Wild Bunch, also known as the Doolin-Dalton Gang. Like the earlier Dalton Gang, it specialized in robbing banks, trains, and stagecoaches in Arkansas, Kansas, Indiana, and Oklahoma during the 1890s.

In early 1896, Doolin was captured in a bathhouse as he would soak in the sulfur springs which helped relieve the rheumatism in his foot that set in after an earlier gunshot by deputy marshal Bill Tilghman. Doolin would end up escaping from jail on July 5, and taking refuge with his wife in the Oklahoma Territory. There, on August 24, Doolin would famously be killed by a shotgun blast in confrontation with Deputy U.S. Marshal Heck Thomas. The posthumous photo of Bill Doolin is one of the most iconic photos to come out of the Old West.

Emmett Dalton (b. 1871) was an American outlaw, train robber and member of the Dalton Gang in the American Old West. Emmett's older brothers briefly worked as US deputy marshals in Indian Territory, and shared a position held by their older brother Frank Dalton after he was killed in the line of duty. They hired Emmett to serve as a guard at the jail at Fort Smith, in present-day Arkansas. The elder two started working for the Osage Nation to help them set up a police force, but fled after being pursued for stealing horses. Shortly after, they began to conduct robberies of banks, stagecoaches, and trains. Emmett would later join them forming The Dalton Gang.

The Dalton Gang ended on October 5, 1892 when the crew attempted to rob two banks on the same day in Coffeyville, Kansas with the hope of making enough money to flee the country. Four of the gang were killed in a gun fight with law enforcement and townsmen. Emmett Dalton survived, but was severely wounded. It is said that he had the chance to escape, but upon seeing his brother Bob hurt, he turned back to help him on his horse. It was then that he was injured, receiving more than 23 gunshot wounds. Upon capture Emmett was arrested and sentenced to life imprisonment in Lansing. Dalton, considered a model prisoner, was pardoned by the state governor, and released after 14 years.

He would later move to Oklahoma and write two books including “When The Dalton’s Rode”, which would later be adapted into a movie of the same name directed by George Marshall and starring Randolph Scott, Kay Francis and Brian Donlevy.

This item comes with a Certificate from John Reznikoff, a premier authenticator for both major 3rd party authentication services, PSA and JSA (James Spence Authentications), as well as numerous auction houses.

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