Sheriffs of the Old West

by Laura Strickland

 

What made a good sheriff, in the world of Wylder, Wyoming? Back in the 1870s, when many of our stories take place, the West was in transition. Some people had come west looking for opportunities—land they never could have dreamed of owning, back East. Gold or pelts they could sell. Honest jobs. Freedom. Following the war between the states, a lot of folks were cut loose, with few skills and no good way to make a living. Most of them, though, did know how to handle a gun.

There were two ways a man good with a gun could go. He could break the law, or he could try to uphold it. A surprising number of men moved from one extreme to another, and went from gunslinger to sheriff. Being a gunfighter is a perilous life, and doesn’t get any easier with the passage of time. And a good sheriff better be able to draw as fast as the gunfighters who walked or rode into his town.

Some examples of outlaws who crossed the line and took up a stance upholding justice are Bill Tilghman and Wyatt Earp. Our Wylder sheriff, Earl Hanson, never was a gunslinger as such, but he did have a storied past, and used his gun on both sides of the law a time or two. In my upcoming Wylder West book, Forever Wyld, we get a glimpse of Earl’s backstory, and find out why he made such a good sheriff for our beloved town.

At the time of our series, Wylder was dangerous and rough around the edges. The ranch hands, cowboys, mountain men, and others who passed through town liked to kick up their heels on a Saturday night. It wasn’t always safe for a lady to walk the streets on her own. But more and more people migrated in, once the railroad went through. Some came to start legitimate businesses. Many brought their families. Wylder wanted to be respectable. It just wasn’t there, quite yet.

A man like Earl Hanson understood this. He’d seen a lot in his life, and comprehended what Wylder could be. He also grasped the balance it would take between the wild and the settled, the perilous and the safe, if Wylder were to shelter such a wide variety of folks. Earl was a man willing to take on the responsibility to help make it so.

And after he retired from a long career defending the honor of Wylder? Maybe he’d take up defending one particular lady’s honor, instead. It’s my opinion that a man like Earl deserves a love story of his own. My book, Forever Wyld, gives him one as unique as he is. It releases August 18, and is available now for preorder:  https://www.amazon.com/Forever-Wyld-Wylder-Laura-Strickland-ebook/dp/B098LXXZKK/ref=sr_1_1

I hope you’ll take a look and discover what made Earl Hanson a good sheriff, and what makes him Forever Wyld!

 

 

 

                                                                                                                 


Comments

  1. Sarita LeoneAugust 13, 2021 at 2:34 PM

    Great post, Laura! Thank you!

    I am so much looking forward to your next Wylder book. I've already pre-ordered and can't wait to read Earl's story! :)

    ReplyDelete
  2. Tena StetlerAugust 14, 2021 at 12:45 PM

    It’s on my tbr list and I just preordered it. Yippee! I’ve read and reviewed each book as it’s come out. Now with all of them coming out so quickly I’m getting a little behind, but I’ll get them all! Love the ones I’ve read so far. Don’t expect that to change!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Sarita LeoneAugust 16, 2021 at 9:26 AM

      Tena, that's so awesome! I'm reading Wylder, too--and loving every story I've read so far. Love those wild west days!! :)

      Delete

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