My Girlhood Among Outlaws

by Lily Klasner, Eve Ball (Editor)

Lily Klasner learned the harsh realities of frontier life at an early age. Born in Texas in 1862, she was only five when her family lost most of their provisions in an Indian raid while trekking to New Mexico; their ranch on the Pecos became a stopover for outlaws; and she assumed leadership of the family at thirteen when her father was murdered.

In My Girlhood Among Outlaws , Lily recalls her experiences with Billy the Kid and other desperadoes, and sets the record straight on popular misrepresentations of events. Of particular interest to historians is her preservation of the diary of famous cattleman and family friend John Chisum.

Genres: Nonfiction

336 pages, Paperback

First published May 1, 1972

Reviews

[Brian · Rating 4 out of 5]

Unearthed by Bill Vollmann's references in Rising Up and Rising Down, Klasner's personal narrative of life on the American frontier is a story that seems to want to remained Buried. This memoir was nearly lost to the world of letters; written and unfinished, Klasner's manuscript was placed in a chest which was then stashed in an adobe storage units for decades. The editor of this work, Eve Ball, was instrumental in finding the manuscript and getting it published. Since publication it has again become Buried in the avalanche of literary works. I certainly would never have known about this book if it weren't for Bill; now that I've finished the book will probably disappear again. Check out the number of times it has been read here on Goodreads. It's a goner.

The simple style and directness of the writing makes the subject matter even more weighty; living in a constant state of awareness of violence, death as a young girl in frontier New Mexico is captivating. Long passages of the back-breaking work that had to be done on a daily basis in order to live are the best parts of the book. A meager 120 years later, could we live like that again? I certainly couldn't. Civilization has made me soft and worthless to exist in the world that my great-great grandparents inhabited.

Another important part of this book is the author's perspective on Indians. My 21st century opinions and sensibilities on the mis-treatment of Native Americans is an unwelcome anachronism to Klasner's story. Born into a frontier life of violence committed by a warring tribe of people bent on your destruction makes for a different Moral Calculus than mine. Attempting to see the world through Klasner's eyes yielded a different way of seeing. Something that WTV certainly noted - and why he referenced this work in his magnum opus.

Thanks, Bill, for pointing me to Lily Klasner.

[Jacqui N · Rating 4 out of 5]

Detailed account of a young woman's growing up in the lawless region of Lincoln County in New Mexico. It is as much an autobiography as it is a documentation of the way of life there. Ms. Klasen cites in detail numerous rivalries, killings, persons of note, and other history of the town very extensively. The latter half of the book is an informal biography of one of the largest cattle ranchers in the area, and a dear friend, John Chisum. For some reason she felt it necessary to record his character for posterity. The book is an unfinished work which ends abruptly, but gives the reader a real taste of the old west from her firsthand account. An important book in the history of the west.

[Linda Wiener · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a delightful book. It tells of the life of a girl growing up in Lincoln County, New Mexico during the turbulent period in the 1860s - 1880s, the period of Billy The Kid and the Lincoln County Wars. It is a personal narrative of family, ranching, friends, and experiences. Most of the histories about this time have a narrative arc that stress conflict over cattle contracts and the struggle between two major cattle purveyors. This book has all the same people in it, but they are mentioned as Lily and her family meet them in their travels or when they show up at the family ranch or become family friends. Lily's Dad was one of the casualties of the Lincoln County Wars as was her fiancee. There are many details about life in the territory that I've never read in other histories as well as alternative portraits of some of the players such as John Chisum and Billy the Kid himself.

[Joy · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of my favorite books EVER!! It helps that I am familiar with the area her family lived and travelled around. I love this glimpse into frontier life.

[Bev]

great book...Lincoln County History

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a pretty interesting book. I love reading about people in the old west and I think this was very interesting.

[Erika Edwards · Rating 5 out of 5]

Being a descendent of this amazing woman is pretty awesome! Great read! Great family history!

[Susan · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was published from an incomplete manuscript after Lily Klasner had died. There are places where the writing is a little hard to understand and incidents are told in more than one spot. But overall this is a very informative book written by an individual who experienced first hand what life was like in eastern New Mexico in the mid to late 1800's.