Reminiscences of a Ranger: Early Times in Southern California (Volume 65)

by Horace Bell

Gunfights and general lawlessness were common in the frontier cities of the American West. Tombstone and Dodge City are legendary. But neither saw violence approaching that of Los Angeles in the 1850s.

In his Reminiscences of a Ranger, Horace Bell reports that "midnight raids and open day robbery and assassinations of defenseless or unsuspecting Americans were of almost daily occurrence" in southern California, a territory newly acquired from Mexico. To combat this lawlessness, in 1853 the citizens of Los Angeles formed a volunteer mounted police force known as the Los Angeles Rangers. Under the command of Captain Alexander Hope, the Rangers strove to keep the peace within the city, and they hunted down bandits and murderers in the surrounding region, including several connected with Joaquin Murrieta’s band.

The life of a mounted ranger appealed to Horace Bell, a civilian who later became an attorney and ran a newspaper. As John Boessenecker says in the introduction to the book, Bell’s memoir is a history of early Los Angeles, an essential and highly entertaining source for this period of the California Gold Rush. With a sharp eye for detail, Bell sketches numerous pioneers, politicians, military figures, and outlaws, and he vividly describes riots and shootouts in the city streets and campaigns against Indians and bandits.

Genres: History

528 pages, Paperback

First published October 1, 1881

Reviews

[patrick Lorelli · Rating 4 out of 5]

A collection of stories about Southern California when it was being handed over from Mexico. The man telling the stories of gunfights, robberies, and other happenings was a Ranger by the name of Horace Bell. True stories are always the best to read and this was one of the better ones. Having grown up in Southern California I had only heard of a few of these stories and a few of the other ones I had always thought to be just legion not any truth behind them. A really good book and a must-read for any historian.

[cerise · Rating 1 out of 5]

An account from the inception of the first mounted patrols that would become the LA County Sheriff’s Department. The rangers from long ago had a tendency to be blowhards with garrulous, racist stories, which continues today.

[Scott A. Nicholson · Rating 4 out of 5]

A nice collection of Southern California's history told from the perspective of an author who lived through it. Horace Bell is known to have exagerated frequently, but even his tallest tales generally have some foundation with reality. Outlaws, gamblers, and gringos make for an intriguing read through gunfights and hangings. Although Horace Bell attempts to skirt around the more violent episodes, the prolific crime and muder throughout the area make it an impossible task. Also notable in the text are the early, generous lives of the Rancheros, anecdotes from the lesser known Los Angeles gold rush, and the unlawful, but highly popular, revolutionary spark of American fillibusters.

[Ebook Reader · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book, the e-book version can be found at:
https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/remi...