Barbara Fifer | Bad Boys of the Black Hills

Published: November 30, 2008

… and some Wild Women, Too

In her new book, Barbara Fifer introduces readers to the Black Hills of the 1880s, and a wide range of rowdies ranging from madams to stagecoach robbers, and from tall-tale tellers to killers.

Bad Boys profiles more than 95 rascals, wild women and engaging events in this historic region of South Dakota, including such famous historical figures as Wyatt Earp and Gen. George Custer, and such wild and wooly types as killer "Persimmon Bill" Chambers and gambler and actress Lurline Monte Verde.

The author invites readers to meet "gunmen who were good with their weapons, robbers who did everything wrong, and women who made their livings beyond the pale of respectability." The book also includes 20 historical photographs, an extensive timeline of Black Hills events and a map of Deadwood in the 1870s, as well as a map of the Black Hills.

Fifer, a freelance writer and editor who lives in Helena, is the author of numerous books on regional history and geography. Her book was published by Farcountry Press and sells for $14.95; visit www.farcountrypress.com.