Isom Dart

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Isom Dart, with two guns in his belt.[1]

Isom Dart (1849-1900), born Ned Huddleston, was a rodeo clown and stunt rider, rancher, and horse and cattle rustler during the late 19th century in the Wild West. He changed his name to Isom Dart when he bought a ranch and settled in Browns Park in northwestern Colorado. He was also known by a number of nicknames, such as "Quick Shot" and "Tan Mex".

Early years[]

In 1849, Ned Huddleston was born into slavery in Arkansas. During the war, when he was twelve years old, Dart was taken to Texas by his master, a Confederate States Army officer, to steal supplies and food for Confederate soldiers. At the end of the war, he was returned to Arkansas and was freed.[2][3]

Westward bound[]

After he was emancipated, Dart headed west. At some point,[4] he worked as a cook at a railroad construction camp between Green River and Rock Springs of the Wyoming Territory.[1][2] It was known for the traders, trappers, and hunters of diverse races who passed through the town. Its reputation was also as a town of saloons and outlaws. In a meadow of Green River, he shot the heads off of five sage chickens with a six-shooter, which earned him the nickname "Quick Shot". The incident became one of the tales of his notorious life. He also assumed the nicknames "Calico Cowboy", "Black Fox", and "Tan Mex".[2]

Dart worked in Texas, along the Texas-Mexico border.[2][4] He worked at the Goodnight Ranch[1] and became a stunt rider and master horseman.[5] He worked in rodeos as a stunt rider and rodeo clown, but found that he made more money stealing horses and cattle in Mexico, swimming them across the Rio Grande into Texas, and selling them there.[2][4] He worked with a man named Terresa.[1] In 1875, Dart worked with a group of cattle rustlers. They were ambushed and Dart was the only person who was not killed.[4]

Browns Park[]

Dart was a member of a cattle drive to the Browns Park area[5] in northwestern Colorado, near the borders with Wyoming and Utah. Due to the lack of law enforcement, the area attracted outlaws, like Butch Cassidy and the Wild Bunch, which meant that ranchers were reluctant take full use of the open range land.[1]

Known until that time as Ned Huddleston, he changed his name to Isom Dart,[2] also spelled Isum[6] and Izum Dart.[7] Around 1890, he bought a ranch near Browns Park,[2][5] also called Brown's Hole. He fell in love with a Shoshone woman, ran his ranch, and was a broncho buster.[2] He branded the wild horses that he broke with the "I D Bar".[1]

After a period of time, he returned to the life of an outlaw, where his life was filled with cattle rustling, fights, and gambling. He joined the Tip Gault Gang. He coupled up with Ann Bassett, known as "Queen Ann", who was a cattle rustler and operator of the Bassett Ranch. They stole cattle from the Two-Bar Company.[2]

J.S. Hoy, a cattle rancher, intended to remove small ranchers from the area. His ranch was burned down and Dart and two other men were charged with the crime. He was taken to a jail north of Steamboat Springs on Hahns Peak. He escaped from the jail, and having returned to Browns Park, he was not tried for arson.[1]

Colorado Range War[]

The Colorado Range War began by 1899 where large ranchers, like the Snake River Stock Growers Association and Two-Bar Ranch Cattle Company, attempted to overtake smaller ranches and put an end to rustling.[2] They hired Tom Horn, a stock detective and former Pinkerton detective,[1][2] to intimidate the operators of smaller ranches.[2] His arrangement included a $500 payment (equivalent to $15,554 in 2020) for each rustler that was killed. The money would come from the stockmen's association dues. Horn assumed the persona of a horse buyer to gain evidence of rustlers, which was found to include Dart.[1] Like other ranchers in the area, Dart received a note asking him to leave Browns Park. Although many of his neighbors left, Dart stayed at his cabin[2] near Cold Spring Mountain's summit near Browns Park. After Matt Rush was killed, Dart invited his friends—including Sam and George Bassett—to stay at his cabin, which he assumed would be safe. Horn shot Dart on October 3, 1900. He was killed instantly as he exited his cabin. The Bassetts heard the gunshot, but saw no sign of the shooter. Dart was buried near his cabin.[1][2]

Popular culture[]

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Jensen, Kenneth (2017-09-23). "Black cowboy Isom Dart assassinated". Loveland Reporter Herald. Retrieved 2021-05-22.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Rawlings-Carroll, Richelle (2010-08-26). "Isom Dart (1849-1900)". Retrieved 2021-05-22.
  3. ^ "Black Cowboys". Texas Ranch House. Retrieved July 31, 2021.
  4. ^ a b c d Slatta, Richard W. (1996). The Cowboy Encyclopedia. W. W. Norton & Company. p. 6. ISBN 978-0-393-31473-1.
  5. ^ a b c "8 places to celebrate black history in Colorado". History Colorado. Retrieved 2021-05-22.
  6. ^ Barancik, Sue (2005). Guide to Collective Biographies for Children and Young Adults. Scarecrow Press. ISBN 978-0-8108-5033-0.
  7. ^ "11 Black Coloradans' Stories of Emancipation". History Colorado. Retrieved 2021-05-22.
  8. ^ Genzlinger, Neil (2012-06-08). "Has Guns, Wears Dress, Seeks Justice". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2021-05-22.
  9. ^ Slatta, Richard W. (1996). The Cowboy Encyclopedia. W. W. Norton & Company. p. 8. ISBN 978-0-393-31473-1.

Further reading[]

  • Isham, Dell (September 24, 2010). Isom Dart and an Assortment of Scoundrels (paperback). Outskirts Press. ISBN 978-1432744274.
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