Library: PIRATES OF THE PRAIRIE: OUTLAWS AND VIGILANTES IN AMERICA'S HEARTLAND by Ken Lizzio. 2018. 9781493036591.
Pretty neat. A history of crime on the frontier of West and Northwest Illinois in the 1830 (ish). I read this a couple months ago. What I recall is:
The area was recently taken from the local tribes and there is little to no court system or law enforcement. It was a crook's paradise in a lot of ways with the thieves working together and protecting one another. If a crook was caught and put to a grand jury or court trial his pals would show up as witnesses and lie-lie-lie. They would pack juries. They would threaten and beat and kill those willing to pursue charges or oppose them.
Nauvoo was a center of crookery. The Mormon church would protect their own people and own community and did not care what the crooks did outside the immediate area. Crooks would bring their earnings and stolen goods back to Nauvoo.
Horse thieving was a constant threat. They was a loose association of crooks running from Missouri/Iowa all the way to Pennsylvania. Horses would be sold and traded all along the line. Highly valued animals could pass down through a couple states. Other animals just needed to get far enough away from the owner's pursuit.
Speaking of pursuit, crime victims would travel to find and identify stolen property. This also created a con. A thief would be suspected of horse theft and apprehended. One of his crook pals would show up and claim to be the horse owner, take the horse, and leave. The crook under arrest is let go when the evidence disappears. The crooks would be very mobile as well and willing and able to travel farther than a Sheriff.
Other things:
1. Murder.
2. Long distance pursuits and investigations to catch murderers from a killing in Rock Island. The pursuit went over months and hundreds and hundreds of miles.
3. River crime and land traveler crime caused many disappearances. A traveling peddler would be robbed, murdered, and no trace of the guy. River pirates would capture a flatboat, kill everyone, keep the loot, sink the boat.
4. Don't expect bad guys to get caught. Don't expect your neighbors to be trustworthy. Don't expect the courts to be successful. Did your crook get caught and convicted? Well, his jail is a log cabin with a dirt floor and he escaped last week. Keep a look out because he'll be back for vengeance.
5. Yeah. Your neighbors. Did you flash some cash? mention you've got a gold watch in a box at home? You're fucked because armed guys will show at 2AM.
