Wyatt's Female Bandits

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Wicked Women:

Notorious, Mischievous, and Wayward Ladies from the Old West.

It was almost eight in the morning on June 3, 1895, when Jennie Freeman and Belle Black rode into the quiet, unassuming town of Fairview, Oklahoma. The women, who would later be described by the people they robbed as “neither young, fair, nor dashing”, steered their rides toward a large, brick building that was a combination mercantile and post office. Although few paid much attention to them, the women smiled politely to passersby going about their daily routines. When Jennie and Belle reached the store they tied their horses to a hitching post in front of the business and went inside.

A handful of customers browsed through the assortment of merchandise on display; blankets, canned goods, material, brooms, etc. Belle and Jennie did the same. Jennie concentrated on the back of the store and Belle the front. She lingered around a long counter near the entrance, inspecting a decorative row of ladies hats laid across it. She tried one of the hats on then reached for a nearby hand mirror to check her look. Belle glanced behind the counter and spotted a rifle leaning against a back wall close to the cash register. She caught Jennie’s eye as she removed the hat and put it back in place.

Jennie inconspicuously scanned the shelves and barrels around the section of the room where she was at. A pair of six-shooters resting on a table next to several neatly stacked cans of chewing tobacco gave her pause. She gave the weapons a closer look. They were new, unloaded guns with price tags hanging from the barrels.

After a several minutes shopping, both women strolled nonchalantly toward the exit. A store clerk called out to them just before they reached the door. “Was there something I could help you ladies find?” The courteous man asked. “Now that you mention it,” Belle said as she stopped and turned around. “That lovely hat on the end…,” she said, pointing. “How much is it?” The clerk walked over to the item Belle referred to and she followed after him. The clerk located the price tag, tucked inside the brim of the bonnet and showed it to Belle. She studied it for a moment then sadly shook her head. “Thank you for your help,” she said as she headed for the exit. She glanced thoughtfully back at the hat one last time before joining Jennie, waiting for her outside.

The two women climbed onto their horses and rode out of town in the same slow, deliberate fashion they arrived. Jennie smiled at Belle and patted the rifle cradled in her lap. The gun was the same one that had been sitting behind the register at the store. Jennie had stolen the rifle. Belle almost laughed.