Wildcat: The True Story of Pearl Hart, the Wild West's Most Notorious Woman Bandit

by John Boessenecker

The little-known story of Pearl Hart, the most famous female bandit in the American West.

On May 30, 1899, history was made when Pearl Hart, disguised as a man, held up a stagecoach in Arizona and robbed the passengers clean at gunpoint. A manhunt ensued as word of her heist spread, and Pearl Hart went on to become a media sensation and the most notorious female outlaw on the Western frontier. Her fate after her later release from prison has long remained a mystery to scholars and historians--until now.

Drawing on groundbreaking research into territorial records and genealogical data, John Boessenecker's Wildcat is the first book to uncover the enigma of Pearl Hart. Hailed by many as "The Bandit Queen," her epic life of crime and legacy as a female trailblazer provides a crucial lens into the lives of the rare women who made their mark in the American West.

Genres: History, Biography, Nonfiction, True Crime, Audiobook, Biography Memoir, Womens

1 pages, Audio CD

First published November 2, 2021

Reviews

[Janta · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ebook note: narrative text comprised 79% of the total; remainder was notes, etc.

While I enjoyed this book -- I'd never heard of Hart prior to coming across this book, and her story is quite interesting and a nice look at the "real" American West -- I do feel like it suffered a few flaws. Boessenecker makes a lot of assumptions about what Hart and her various siblings did to survive, especially her sisters. (Spoiler warning: mostly prostitution) I'm really torn -- I think probably he was right to assume this, because what alternative did they have in their situations? -- but it also feels like the actual evidence to support this is pretty dang thin (to be fair, a lot of the evidence concerning Hart's life is pretty thin). It feels like reinforcing a stereotype: any woman in the "Old West" must have been a prostitute at some point in her life.

Boessenecker also did that annoying thing where all the women in the text are mentioned by their first names while almost all of the men are referred to by their last names. It's a pet peeve of mine and I always find it irritating.

[Scarlet · Rating 3 out of 5]

This storytelling was a little bit of a disappointment. I do applaud the author’s research though. The facts were quite extensive and I appreciated the photographs that accompanied the information. However, I felt like the storytelling of the comprehensive info was a little dull. When I read “The Wild West’s Most Notorious Bandit” on the front cover, I was anticipating more of a suspenseful and active story about Pearl Heart and her actual moments of robbery. The book centered on only a small portion on her one stagecoach robbery and much more on her time in jail, her promiscuous and prostitution wiles, and the life of her siblings. I will say that I feel bad for her childhood and growing up with her physically and sexually abusive father. Her entire family seemed to be in a hot mess stemming from her roots. There were very interesting elements of this book and I think during her life time it was a big deal for her to be a bandit in the west as a woman, but I was not impressed with the book.

[Amy Hagberg · Rating 2 out of 5]

DNF AT 40%. Would have been better as a novel. Too much narrative, not enough dialogue.

[Amanda · Rating 1 out of 5]

Western history isn't usually my jam but this was a bookclub pick. I finished it and thought, "and?"

Mediocre story telling left me wondering what the point was. Layer on a white-centered point of view, a healthy dose of passive voice, and a conclusion that read something like, 'I did all this research then called the library where Hart grew up and realized they'd already done all the work long before I did' and, well, I just wasn't impressed.

[Maryam · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very interesting story of Pearl Hart and her siblings. Honestly didn't know a thing about some badass woman originally from Canada (Ontario) who terrorized some but at the same time was loyal to her family and tried to live the best she knew. Not only hers, but I was also fascinated by Katie's story and even Henry's.

[Kim McGee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Life for most women in the late 1800's midwest and western states was one of drudgery. Pearl had a tough childhood and early adulthood where she was expected to stop caring for her family only to marry and care for another family so she did the unexpected - she ran off and became an outlaw. Dressed as a man she robbed stage coaches, broke herself out of jail as well as whatever man she was with and became quite a celebrity for her good looks, unusual situation and her choice of a pet wild cat. She also became quite the thorn in the side of most of the western lawmen. I wouldn't call her life a happy one but she certainly did live it on her terms. Well researched and entertaining as it is informative, this spotlights an unusual family and the extremes that some went to to make it big in the west. My thanks to the publisher for the advance copy.

[Maggie Carr · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had never heard of Pearl Hart until this book but the investment of time to get all the information correct must have been a huge undertaking. This book not only shares her story but that of her siblings and their awful father and forgiving mother. Some of them started running away at 2 years of age just to get out from under their father. Across the board the amount of names and relationships each of these kids had is staggering and only goes to show what systematic abuse can do to a young family. Most of their are notorious for one thing or another and are whip smart. I specially liked this portion, spoken of someone well ahead of her time... "Pearl heart declared in herself that she would never consent to be tried under a law she or her sex had no voice in making, or to which women had no power under the law to give for consent. Now there is much to this declaration. Why should a woman be indicted, put on trial, convicted and sentence for an offense under a law that she nor her sex had no voice in making?"

[Amanda Peters · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nephew Colin,

This book should be titled one antitode of a stage robbery, and a cumbersome history of the family that she came from.

Aunt Amanda

[Charleigh]

I knew of Pearl Hart from touring the Lindsay Gaol and Historic society. There's really only a very slim connection to Canada, since Lillie Davy (her original name) spent most of her life in the States. The fact that her father became the Hermit of Emily Creek and drowned while drunk-canoeing home from Fenelon Falls will haunt me.
In truth her "notorious woman bandit" bit is only a small part of her story. She robbed one stage coach! After reading the book, I feel like her sister Katy is the real heroine.
It's a fascinating history read. The fact that (almost) all the siblings lived into the mid 20th century really drives home the incredible changes between the late 1800s and then. The fact that the Davy family got into so much trouble with the law must have provided a wealth of research material.
There's am extremely upsetting description of a rape within the first 10% of the book that almost put me off reading it entirely. I'm also irked at the way the author prefaced almost every romantic relationship breakup with "not surprisingly". The repetition reinforced this impression that the women's love lives were doomed to play out the same sad song every time. It may not be surprising in retrospect, but have some respect for their hopes and dreams??
There's a lot of information in this book and I had to finish it fast before it's due back at the library (the same Kawartha Lakes library that the author credits in the acknowledgments!). I'll need to get my own copy. I'd like to see more of Pearl Hart's life fleshed out, rather than a mashed account from newspaper reports. If I have to make that myself, so be it.

[Lynn · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Story of Pearl Hart

Pear Hart is an interesting character and it shows that at one point, people could just travel the country and rename themselves and become someone else outside but they always had to deal with what they had inside. Pearl Hart became a legend in Arizona for her exploits and used other names, other places. I’m from Rochester so Pearl getting her start in my city was very interesting to me. Pearl spent much of her childhood in the Industrial School which taught troubled kids who could go home.

[Ryann · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

An enjoyable read overall. A bit frustrating, as I’m sure the author experienced, dealing with a character who was full of crap and could not keep her stories straight. Boessenecker did a great job researching Hart’s life and establishing as much truth as could be found in her and her family’s troubled lives.

[Ashley Wilson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very interesting read. Lots of information and dates so could be a bit overwhelming at times but some pretty interesting characters made up for that

[Carol McCarthy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very interesting. An excellent book, especially for lovers of history, the early American west or badass women.

[Sarah Grafman]

This was…the wildest family I’ve ever read about.

[Dorothy Mahoney · Rating 4 out of 5]

An amazing amount of research went into this book as the "Queen Bandit" had so many names and
travelled so many places. After her fame robbing a stagecoach in Arizona in 1899, Lillie Davy, who was born in Lindsay Ontario, encouraged fictions of her life, even giving a full interview to Cosmopolitan
magazine. She liked to wear men's clothing, smoked, used opium and encouraged the attention of handsome but notorious men. This unthreading of her real life and that of her siblings becomes a recounting of chronological facts, which at times can be very dry. Perhaps Boessenecker should have
made himself a character and written the story as a discovery of the real facts of Pearl Hart as he
uncovered them, thus creating a detective story rather than a historical research report.

[Kass Reads Books · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ok. So. I love Pearl Hart. But I also think biographical books on women - especially women whose lives were so far outside societal norms of their times should not be written by men. There are just certain things that while factually accurate are presented to make it seem like Pearl had more choices and control than she did sometimes. In a time when women had no rights and were viewed as their father or husbands property - was she liberated or doing what was necessary to survive?

[tinaaaaaa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Pearl Hart's story is both adventurous and tragic. Her early life consisted of poverty, abuse, neglect, alcoholism, and prostitution. It wasn't pretty or glamorous. There was little in the way of social safety nets in the late 1800's. The poor could only rely on charity and good neighbors for help, and there wasn't much of that in Pearl's life. One of the few constants in her life was that Pearl Hart was a born rebel.

I was surprised to discover that Pearl, (or Lillie Davy, or Mrs. Bandman, or any of the numerous pseudonyms she had) spent most of her youth in Canada, New York, Chicago, and Ohio. Her family did a lot of moving around as her alcoholic father failed to maintain steady employment, while her mother had more mouths to feed year after year. But eventually Pearl drifted westward and found herself in small boom towns connected by new rail lines. Although the era of coach robberies was drawing to a close, there was still money to be made if one had grit, or 'sand' as it was referred to.

The strange thing about her famous robbery was that Pearl claimed she was in desperate need of money. She had gotten word that her mother was in poor health (which was not exactly the case) and that money was needed to buy a train ticket home. In order to get enough money, Pearl somehow convinced herself a stage coach robbery would be just the thing. So she bought horses, she bought guns, she bought supplies, the price of which all exceeded the cost of a train ticket... It certainly leaves one wondering.

After her famous stage coach robbery in Arizona, Pearl didn't shy away from talking to the press or posing for photos. I sometimes wondered if she enjoyed having a say in how her narrative was presented to the public, as so much of her early life had been outside her control. On that note, the author doesn't speculate much about Pearl's thoughts or beliefs. He just presents the facts as they were recorded and for that I thank him. Too many biographies go on and on about what the subject might have been thinking, or why they justified certain actions. But not here. We are given the facts, unclouded by guesswork. And considering all the different places Pearl lived and names she acquired, laying out her entire history, and the history of the Davy family, is pretty damn impressive.

[Jim Peplinski · Rating 3 out of 5]

i love westerns and western history.

Wildcat is more about a crazy dysfunctional family in the late 1,800’s who were shaped by an abusive, alcoholic, puke of a lowlife who had multiple kids and never cared for any of them let alone his wife.

It’s a sad story of filth, pain, heartache, prostitution, drugs, crime, dishonesty, theft and disappointment.

Embedded in the history is Pearl Hart who was a lying, thieving, prostitute, attic who did rob a stage coach and do time at Yuma and other lesser jailhouses.

It was not what i expected, had some interesting history and imo reads more like a staccato ricocheting list of events tied together by the Lillie’s (aka Pearl) family and a plethora of other wild west names from Wyatt Earp to Billy the Kid.

Not sure i read it again if i knew then what i know now.

It does shine a light on the reality, roughness, grit and luck need to survive (let alone thrive) in those times.

[Gia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Superbly researched and remarkably narrated, Boessenecker delivers to the reader the incredible life of Lillie Naomi Davy, aka Pearl Hart, the Wildcat of the Wild West.

Born into poverty and abuse, we read as Lillie roams recklessly across Canada and the US, in and out of trouble with the law, famous for disguising as a boy, to ultimately robbing stagecoaches.

A historically informative, exceptional read that I highly recommend.

Thank you to NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing, Hanover Square Press for the read of John Boessenecker’s, Wildcat The Untold Story of Pearl Hart, the Wild West’s Most Notorious Woman Bandit.

Opinions expressed are my own.

[D · Rating 4 out of 5]

I always enjoy reading the "untold" stories of the Wild West and this was certainly one of them. I hadn't heard about Pearl Hart and the wild life she lived and this book was so enlightening. This fact-based examination into the life of one of the West's most intriguing outlaws was a refreshing take on the history of the America West. Very fun read.

[Shaunterria · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting read about a figure from the Wild West - her true story, not the mythology. Recommended read for those interested in little-known historical figures.

[Debbie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Her story was interesting but the book was a bit sluggish and was as much about her sister as Pearl Hart. I am glad to know her story so am thankful the author wrote the book.

[Colleen · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love reading books about little-known women from history who would have been much more familiar to us had they been men, but have been pretty much forgotten simply because of their gender. Some deserve to be remembered for their good deeds; others, like Pearl Hart, basked in notoriety during her time but still deserves to be remembered. Take the good with the bad.

Pearl Hart was an alias for Lillie Davey, who was born into an extremely violent and dysfunctional family in a small rural village in Ontario in 1871. She and her siblings grew up under the care of a mother who was physically and emotionally abused by her husband, a man who spent as much time in jail as he did at the family home. They ended up moving to the States, where Lillie and the family continued their wild, unlawful ways. Lillie began to use the alias Pearl, and eventually she ended up dressing as a man and robbing a stage coach, thus becoming the West’s best-known female bandit.

I’m torn about how I feel about this book. Parts of it were fascinating and the author obviously did a lot of research into the lives of Lillie and her family members. I certainly can’t condone Lillie’s actions, but I have to admit there’s a little piece of me that admires the independence and gumption that this woman had.

On the other hand, I ended up skimming a few sections of the book because even though it was factual, the actions of Lillie and her siblings just got to be too much for me. They were absolutely out of control: the most hellish, lawless bunch of kids/adults you could ever imagine. Or not. This family was the stuff of nightmares, which certainly explains why they ended up being the way they were, but it actually got difficult for me to read about one more robbery, one more con job, one more assault. Rape, murder, drug addiction, prison escapes. They just kept piling on relentlessly. This is not a problem of the author, though; he was simply relating the facts. It’s a “me” problem that I couldn’t deal with as the telling of their actions was necessary to understanding Lillie’s actions.

For anyone interested in finding out about the Canadian woman who became one of the West’s most notorious bandits, then definitely read this book. Just be aware that you have to wade through a LOT of child abuse, dysfunction and neglect in order to get to the “Wild West” part of her life.

[Mark Drinnenberg · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a well-written, thoroughly researched history of a Wild West figure who, like virtually all Wild West figures, has had histories written of her that relied on rumors and outright lies to tell stories that bear little resemblance to fact. In "Wildcat," John Boessenecker has cut through the fog of fables to shine the light of the truth of Pearl Hart's life. Like any good historian, he is honest in reporting gingerly on events where the facts remain sketchy.

Pearl's bandit exploits are far from prolific. She was no Jesse James, Butch & Sundance, or Billy the Kid. I think she may have become so famous because a woman holding up a stagecoach in the Wild West was a very rare thing. But her story is about much more than being a bandit. It includes the dreadful family situation from which she came, perhaps a fascination for things that could get someone in trouble, maybe some wanderlust, and the need to survive. It is an interesting tale peppered with brothels, prisons, a stagecoach robbery, a frequent failure to tell the truth, and bad decision making.

Pearl's (not her real name, by the way) siblings are featured in this tale, sometimes at great distances from each other and sometimes crossing paths. A difficulty telling the truth and a penchant for trouble seemed to accompany most of them. In fact, some of the difficulty for the author in telling this tale was in sorting through the lies told by Pearl Hart and the people around her.

One of the most fascinating parts of the book are the final two pages of the epilogue. There, Boessenecker gives a glimpse into how his research began and unfolded. If you love history and research (as I do), you may love reading that.

[Kristi Thielen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Boessenecker’s nifty book about Pearl Hart is an especially fun read for those interested in the history of the “Wild” West. It is lively, engaging and obviously represents a great deal of research, as information about Hart is far-flung and not often correct. Hart herself – her real name was Lillie Davy – confused things further by going by many names during her lifetime and by telling colorful whoppers to appeal to the media or throw law enforcement off the track. Getting her story straight had to have been a real labor of love by the author.

In addition to learning about Hart and her irrepressible but dysfunctional family, the reader also learns about the cultural history of the late 19th century and early 20th: the manners, mores and tastes of those living in the west as it grew from its pioneer past to the west of today.

I have a special interest in Pearl Hart. I am a writer of museum theatre and one of my plays, “Buffalo Gals,” about women of the old west, includes her as a character. Although she is not one of the main characters, she has always been an audience favorite. And I’m glad to see that, although I didn’t have access to much material about her when I wrote the play nearly a decade ago, at least I did not include any of the misinformation Boessenecker had to wade through to write this book. I am now inspired to revise the play and make Hart a bigger part of it. Thank you, Mr. Boessenecker.

[Todd Kiger · Rating 3 out of 5]

After reading John Boessenecker’s book “Texas Ranger:” about the life of Frank Hamer, I was anxious to read “Wildcat” by Boessenecker. I found the book very interesting in regard to the real lifestyle of the 1890’s -1910’s. I also thought the Davy family (Pearl Hart’s legitimate name and family) was an interesting yet very sad tale of the misfortunes and troubles of the entire clan. I thought the continued reference to Lillie Davy as Pearl Hart was a bit overdone. That was an alias she used when she robbed the stagecoach which gave her the notoriety she found. I also found the book a bit choppy and maybe that was due to the characters, their lifestyle and available historical information.

The buildup of the book as “Pearl Hart” the “most notorious woman bandit” while may be true (??) I found a bit misleading. The author did an excellent job in researching this family of misfits and small time criminals and the family story is intriguing. I almost felt a book either further expounding on the escapades of the entire family, or even a book more concentrated on her sister, Katy, would have been a very interesting read, as I felt she (Katy) lived a more intriguing life.

Definitely a book you should read if you have any interest in the American time period of the 1890’s through 1910’s. A very realistic look at one family’s life. I’m glad I selected it to read and would recommend it.

[Susan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Pearl Hart grew up in poverty and abuse. Her sisters and brothers did what they could to make money or stole things including food. Pearl’s mother never seemed to stop having babies even though her husband would beat her. Her father was a drunk who would easily get mad. That caused him to lose most of his jobs. It also caused him to get in trouble with the police. This would make the family to move often. Pearl and her younger sister ran away from home. They disguised themselves as boys by cutting their hair short and wearing boys clothing. Pearl didn’t care about what the latest fashion for women or what they were suppose to do. She was a feminist before anyone had heard about it. She got arrested after trying to rob the stage coach. After getting out of prison, he did her best to b forgotten so she could live a normal life.

Pearl’s extraordinary and unconventional life recreating the drama and exciting life she had. The biography of Pearl Hart was fascinating as I couldn’t believe how independent she was. The author has written a fascinating book. I enjoyed reading it very much.

Disclaimer: I received an arc of this book from the author/publisher from Netgalley. I wasn’t obligated to write a favorable review or any review at all. The opinions expressed are strictly my own.

[Antonia · Rating 2 out of 5]

Wildcat could have been an awesome story about Pearl Hart but the detailed writing style drags it down. The author's contemporary suppositions about women's motivations to act as they did, and armchair psychology on dysfunctional families is dated, sexist, and judgemental.

Most of all it was CONFUSING, in that the frequent moves by Pearl and associates: she went to this city and back and then to another city and then to that state where her mom lived and her brother was not there, and her sister moved there and her husband went elsewhere, and her paramour went here and there.

Further confusing were the name changes, aliases, and sheer numbers of family members, husbands, lovers , compadres, criminal cohorts, and children, etc.

Obviously, this is a story about Pearl's family and associates, not just Pearl, so the scope of info was overwhelming in trying to keep everyone and where they were straight.

Two separate books were needed-- one about Pearl, and one on her sister, Katy. Their stories would have been greatly enhanced in a historical fiction style, but that's not this author's just-the-facts, ma'am, forte. Somewhere an author will use this book to mine a genuinely compelling read about fascinating real women of the Old West who did not live according to the pious pioneer stereotypes.

[Michèle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Une intéressante biographie qui en même temps révèle la pauvreté extrême des taudis dans lesquelles s'entassent des familles nombreuses, la difficulté pour une jeune fille de s'échapper d'un milieu violent, sinon en sautant la barrière de la loi, de rapine en rapine... et en se déguisant en homme pour voyager en train sans se faire embêter!
Le Far-West n'est pas que bagarres de saloons et diligences attaquées! L'auteur ne cache pas les fréquents épisodes de prostitution dans le parcours de Pearl (et de ses sœurs!), bien que les sources auxquelles il s'abreuve ne soient pas toutes claires (si vous cherchez ailleurs sur la toile, les versions de la vie de Pearl y sont variées). Le livre est aussi riche en photos d'époque.
Et l'amour de Pearl pour sa mère est touchant. (C'est pour trouver l'argent du voyage pour voir sa mère malade au Canada qu'elle a attaqué cette fameuse diligence! Une attaque très polie, car Pearl n'a tiré sur personne. Elle passera du temps en prison pour ce crime.)
Touchant, aussi, que cette femme-bandit a fini, après sa vie d'aventures, par se marier et s'établir sur un ranch, si si ! avec son cowboy d'époux. Ils vivront ensemble presque 50 ans, unis par un amour des grands espaces et des chevaux...

[Sharon · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pearl Hart - one of the most well-known of the women desperadoes, lived in the late 1800's Born in Canada to parents who had very little, Pearl eventually moved to New York, and from there to Ohio and Chicago. She was used to hard-scrabble and she did whatever she had to to keep herself and her siblings alive. At that time the only thing a woman could look forward to was being married, oftentimes to someone as abusive as the situation she had at home. Pearl was a rebel and she ran off to become an outlaw.She dressed as a man and she robbed stage coaches. When caught, she and her accomplices broke out of jail, not once but just about every time. Most western lawmen found themselves bested by her. She lived life on her own terms.

Well researched and informative, this biography draws attention to the extremes that some went to to make it big in the west.

I received an e-ARC from NetGalley and the publisher, in exchange for a review.