Growing Up with the Wild Bunch: The Story of Pioneer Legend Josie Bassett

by Linda Wommack

The life of Josie Bassett was nothing short of a female pioneer adventure. Josie came west in a wagon train at the age of four. Settling in rugged Brown's Park in the extreme northwest corner of Colorado, Josie learned to ride and rope by the age of six. Like all girls, as a young teenager she discovered boys, but Josie's first real boyfriend was a future outlaw, none other than Butch Cassidy. As a young rancher's wife with two young boys, Josie witnessed first-hand the strong-arm tactics of the cattle barons trying to steal the land from smaller ranch owners. When it happened to the Bassett family, Josie's husband and father fought back. Murder occurred at the ranch when a man was hung from the gate post at the entrance of the Bassett ranch. Following a bitter divorce and a few more marriages, Josie moved to the remote area of Cub Creek in western Utah. Here she managed to make a living by hunting, making moonshine and possibly cattle rustling. (She was brought up on charges but acquitted.) Josie married a few more times, running off one husband with a frying pan. He later said, "Josie gave me fifteen minutes to get off her land, I only needed five!" Josie was the feature of a LIFE magazine article in 1948 and was a rodeo queen when she was in her 70s. Josie Bassett lived a long adventurous life, dying in 1963.

160 pages, Hardcover

Published March 1, 2020

Reviews

[DeWayne Neel · Rating 4 out of 5]

While there are many western tales told of the Wild Bunch, there are only a few of the ranchers that operated in the Utah, Wyoming, and Colorado borderlands which were often visited by the likes of serious criminals of the late 1800s and the early 1900s. This story of Josie Bassett details the happenings of Brown's Park during her lifetime and the role she played in its history. One does not have five husbands and not leave an amazing story, much of which is not pretty.
In the isolated NW corner of Colorado, there remain signs of this early ranching culture and a variety of histories depending on which family one is trying to protect. Truth is there somewhere within all the lies and fantasies that have filled books the past hundred years. This read quotes from interviews and news accounts of recent survivors of the "troubled times" and Linda Wommack, being a skilled Western writer, captures the spirit of the real West.
A good read!

[Rachel Santino · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was a thrill to read about Josie Bassett’s wild and adventurous life. She was an early pioneer of the northwest corner of Colorado, a place called Brown’s Park. Her family became ranchers and homesteaders—something she continued to do her entire life. It’s surprising to hear that a woman of that time in history could marry so many times, but she did. She had several turns at marriage and before all that had a love affair with Butch Cassidy himself. Author Linda Wommack’s style of storytelling pulled me in and made me feel like I was sitting on the porch with my family gabbing about people in town. I really enjoyed it!

[Gail DiVico · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is not a long book but definitely gives you the feeling of being out there in the wild wild west. I thoroughly enjoyed this read about Josie Bassett. Although I knew about Butch Cassidy and visited the area and the prison, I didn't know much about Josie. Definitely a woman ahead of her times. The author goes into detail about her marriages, her various careeers and family life in the mountains of Colorado and then Utah. Definitely keeps you wanting to read more. I recommend this book to all those interested in the history of the early west and, of course, the outlaws.