It Ends Here: The Last Missouri Vigilante

by Joe Johnston

In early January 1904, a reporter from the St. Louis Post-Dispatch traveled to Oklahoma City to meet with a washed-up relic of the Wild Edward Capehart O’Kelley. On the dusty streets of the former Indian Territory, O’Kelley struggled to stay sober and describe his childhood friend, the outlaw Jesse James, to the reporter. O’Kelley once had the opportunity to join his gang, but declined in order to set out for a career as lawman in Colorado, where his violent tactics earned him the reputation of a man with a quick temper, a ready gun, and a penchant for bending the law to suit his needs. It was there, in Creede, Colorado, that O’Kelley met—and murdered—Robert Ford.

Ford was known all across the frontier as the assassin of Jesse James. When they met in Colorado, O’Kelley viewed Ford as the worst kind of vermin and was egged on by local miners to avenge his old friend Jesse James’s death. Imprisoned for the murder, O’Kelley emerged ten years later a broken man, entering a modern world of telephones and streetcars—a world where people no longer cared about his Wild West exploits. It was there, on the whiskey-drenched backstreets of Oklahoma City, that the Post-Dispatch reporter found him, and where on the night before their last meeting, a drunken O’Kelley was killed in a prolonged street shootout with a brave policeman.

It Ends Here by Joe Johnston draws on the reporter’s accounts to tell O’Kelley’s tragic story. The third in the Missouri Vigilantes series, the book unravels a circular tale of frontier vigilantism and ponders America’s progress beyond it. An engaging narrative touching on bank robberies, Butch Cassidy, and elaborate tales of frontier justice, this book will delight true crime enthusiasts and students of history alike.

256 pages, Paperback

First published November 15, 2015

About the author

The Storyhound, Joe Johnston, continues to delight readers as a powerful author of narrative history, with his newest book, "Grits to Glory: How Southern Cookin' God So Good. His criminal histories include "It Ends Here: Missouri's Last Vigilante," "Necessary Evil: Settling Missouri with a Rope and a Gun," and "The Mack Marsden Murder Mystery: Vigilantism or Justice?" all three in the Vigilante Series from Missouri History Museum.

Born in Missouri and reared on the plains of Oklahoma, he naturally became a student of the blending of American culture. His family vacations centered around such Western destinations as the Rocky Mountains, Buffalo Bills grave, and Taos, and his fascination with the history of people, places, and families is unending. He restored a log cabin in the woods of Tennessee, enjoys wilderness adventures, and enjoys outdoor adventures.

Beyond his love for history, Joe is a creative whirlwind, an author, an accomplished artist, and an award-winning songwriter. A career in advertising included the invention of McDonalds now-famous Happy Meal.

Johnston has also published s "Jesus Would Recycle,"other ebooks: "How To Fail in the Music Business or Succeed if You'd Rather," and "Somethin' from Nothin: the Four Dimensions of Creativity." He illustrated books for Thomas Nelson and other publishers, and his writing is published regularly in various magazines.