Hi! You're looking at a BRAND NEW and PERFECT and UNREAD condition book which is a fascinating examination of the men who drove and protected Wells Fargo Stagecoaches in the American West written by JOHN BOESSENECKER--the book is a collectible STATED FIRST EDITION and FIRST PRINTING and a HARDCOVER with the ORIGINAL DUSTJACKET and is NOT a remainder copy and NOT price-clipped, with the original $29.99 price in the upper corner of the front inner flap. The book is titled Shotguns and Stagecoaches: The Brave Men Who Rode for Wells Fargo in the Wild West and it was written by JOHN BOESSENECKER; it was published by St. Martin's Press in October 2018 and is a STATED 1st EDITION and 1st PRINTING with a publication line reading 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1.

The phrase "riding shotgun" was no teenage game to the men who guarded stagecoaches and trains the Western frontier. Armed with sawed-off, double-barreled shotguns and an occasional revolver, these express messengers guarded valuable cargo through lawless terrain. They were tough, fighting men who risked their lives every time they climbed into the front boot of a Concord coach.

Boessenecker introduces soon-to-be iconic personalities like "Chips" Hodgkins, an express rider known for his white mule and his ability to outrace his competitors, and Henry Johnson, the first Wells Fargo detective. Their lives weren't just one shootout after another―their encounters with desperadoes were won just as often with quick wits and memorized-by-heart knowledge of the land.

The highway robbers also get their due. It wouldn't be a book about the Wild West without Black Bart, the most infamous stagecoach robber of all time, and Butch Cassidy's gang, America's most legendary train robbers.

Through the Gold Rush and the early days of delivery with horses and saddlebags, to the heyday of stagecoaches and huge shipments of gold, and finally the rise of the railroad and the robbers who concocted unheard-of schemes to loot trains, Wells Fargo always had courageous men to protect its treasure. Their unforgettable bravery and ingenuity make this book a thrilling read.

A fantastic find, and a beautiful copy of this book!