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Transcription
Jess and Tiff talk about their recent break and how much has happened in the last month. They thank their listeners for their support and talk about upcoming events and birthdays. They mention a ghost walking tour and a recent book signing they attended. They also discuss jury duty and Flora Mundus, an outlaw from Oklahoma. Flora was born into a wealthy family but rebelled against societal expectations and got involved in criminal activities. Her story will be shared in the next episode. Hi, I'm Jess and I'm Tiff and we're your curious cousins where we talk about everything kooky and spooky in the state of Oklahoma welcome to episode 50 or episode 1 season 2 It feels like it's been forever Like a month I know but it I mean so much has happened in the last month. Oh, yeah for sure. So Yeah, hi guys, how are you? It's good to be back. It's good to be back. It's good and All of y'all been supportive of us Taking our break and even the sweet ones who have reached out and like I can't wait for you guys to come back I listen to you on our drives. That's so humbling Yeah, so humbling and so thank you. Welcome cousins. Welcome back. Yes. Welcome back It's good to be back. Yeah How are you? I'm really tired. Honestly, I Don't know this week. I've just been it's just been I've been tired Yeah, how about you? I'm good. It's You know, I've jumped headfirst and to year number 11 at my school and teaching fifth graders and teaching science to fifth graders and It's been really good. It's been really gonna have a really good group this year and I'm just excited. They're real excited. I know it's it's very odd because now I Have a reputation as it's like I'm a well-established and known teacher. And so I've gotten to the point now the last several years that I've had children who have seen me since pre-k uh-huh, and have finally gotten the opportunity to have me and it's just and It's just it's it's like humbling and I love it. I just love how apparently I have this like reputation and For the most part. I think it's all good But and then also, you know, you always get the siblings and you know You've already have established relationships with their families and that's always a good thing to you. Well speaking of siblings. Oh so My brother and my niece Had birthdays while we were off so I have to shout out to Jeff and Anna. Yeah late birthday. Happy birthday but Tomorrow comes out. Happy birthday, Jay. Happy birthday My big brother. He's 40 Lordy lordy Happy birthday to him. I hope you have a great day. I hope you have a great day, Jane Anyway, and then your friend Jenny, well, yeah, I mean I were friends too. Yes, my best friend Jenny yesterday was her birthday And so happy birthday, Jenny. She's a longtime listener to you And then of course my niece had a birthday also I don't think she listens, but I know her mom does so one thing my sister One birthday after another right? Right. It's busy so much has happened. I feel like so anyway Happy birthday to all of y'all. Yes. Happy birthday all y'all so Guys we have October yeah, 14th. We have our Oh Gosh art deco. Yeah, those two downtown Pulsa art deco ghost walking tour. Yes, and luckily is that 1030 in the morning? You can clearly see who's scheduled it. Well, yeah, I think all they had were like morning Yeah, okay. So anyway, I think that's gonna be a lot of fun. I think it would be and We got to we got to go on a Jeff Provine tour. Oh, yeah That's a hospital in a city walk. He signs both of our books. It was so much fun It was so fun his knowledge Just the history I could have just listened to him talk. Oh, yeah history I was not even the ghosty part of it history of like downtown and Bricktown like it was just so interesting Right, so I highly recommend Signing up for one of his Oklahoma City tours If you're in the Norman area go to the Norman one and I feel like even This gal here who bleeds orange And go to Norman if they'd have me so gracious of you I will grace Norman with my brother But I think that's really what we have coming up. Oh, I did get someone for jury duty Oh, I have that in right? Ah, if it were me, I would be so excited. Well, okay. Here's the thing I'm not gonna lie. I'm not gonna lie. I'm not gonna lie. I'm not gonna lie. I'm not gonna lie I'm not gonna lie. I'm not gonna lie. I'm not gonna lie. I'm not gonna lie This is my fourth time to be summoned. I've never been twice I got out of it because I was away at college. Yes, so I was able to get out of it And then I think I was about like nine years ago was the last time I was summoned. Yeah, so like The likelihood of you getting out of it though is probably pretty high the moment you say I hope I mean, I know this is probably exciting a lot of people. My mom would love to be I Just like for me it's an interruption to my daily Like living life Making you know money I mean, I'm not about just making money, but it's my livelihood Right, right, right Is there like a max someone can hit maybe the problem is I just need to get married and change my name Oh, yes. It's yes. And then maybe I won't get summoned. I mean even though you have to register your new name But maybe I'm with I feel like it's this name. Oh So any eligible bachelors just slide in with your DM Will probably cut this whole thing out make sure that you address it to tip Thank you, I will take care of that for you. You're welcome. Oh, that's funny Anyway, but yeah, so I have that coming up in October. So The next few weeks will be interesting because they're very busy for us My other cousin on my dad's side. Mm-hmm. My cousin Rachel another longtime listener. She had a baby And I get to see it next weekend. I get to see it all weekend at my other cousin our cousin me and Rachel's cousin Our cousin Taylor's wedding. Yeah, so I hope that's why the family's gonna be there. It's gonna be a good time Yeah I will I will so Alright, we are gonna go back to our roots. We are we started season one We started a show off with outlaws famous Oklahoma outlaws And so this show this episode and actually the next episode because it ended up being Huge the two people we chose. I'm excited though. I am so excited The two people that we are actually really the two couples we chose If I am correct, they just turned out to be have huge histories that we yeah It was like we didn't even really talk about it. We just know exactly it was like, oh I'm doing this oh, I'm doing this and it turned out like yeah, well, this isn't gonna work for us, so Jess is gonna go first. I am and tell me a story about some outlaw Okay, I'm excited to tell you this. So I am doing Flora quick Mundus and Ernest the killer Louis. Oh I'm gonna tell you right now. I have no idea who they are I only know who they are because their predecessors to my right. I honestly Ellen couple. Um, I have read about her way back when I first read the hundred outlaws of Oklahoma books that we have to use all the time but like I didn't remember her really if that makes sense because there's so much in the in that book, but So I didn't remember anything about her and I'm kind of glad I didn't because this was honestly super interesting, but Anyway getting into it My source is really quick are wild women of the West for Mundus by Chris. I'm from cowgirl magazine.com outlaw tales of Oklahoma by Robert bar Smith 100, Oklahoma outlaw 100 Oklahoma outlaw 100 outlaw. Oh good gravy. I did make some good gravy. You did you did? 100 Oklahoma outlaws gangsters and lawmen by Dan Anderson and Lawrence Lawrence Yodin Floor quick aka Tom King by Marshall trimble from true West magazine.com Okay, so getting just getting into it I'm gonna talk about flora mainly There really isn't much about earnest. Okay, um, it's a cooler name. So I won't Really talk about him much until later So let's just go ahead and let's just go ahead and get into it. So flora Mundus Was born flora quick in Holden, Missouri and Johnson County in 1875 Her father Daniel quick was a wealthy rancher and a farmer He was married twice and fathered 15 children. Oh So what happened was he his first wife? I believe she died in like childbirth. Oh, and then he got remarried and Had more children. I don't know how many was on each side. I didn't look into it that closely Flora was the youngest daughter and was actually his favorite child. Oh One sort of said that flora possessed Considerable talent. I don't know what kind of talent Maybe she was just really smart Clever, she was a clever person. So maybe she was just I mean, I don't know. I don't know how what's how they're talking about Right. Okay. She was talented. All right At the age of 14 her father enrolled her at Holden College and it was a school for the arts So maybe she was artsy and this was also in Holden, Missouri Flora wasn't even at school a month before she left and returned home It was said that she didn't like being confined to a classroom Oh, and she preferred instead to ride her horse around the family estate Okay. Mm-hmm in 1894 father died at this time. I believe she was 15. Okay At the 24,000 acre of land he owned as well as $13,000 in personal property. Nice nice nice in today's money would be equal to about 437,000 Wow, nice. I need a burp. I Don't I guess this was divided up equally among his children So when he died his assets Like I said, we're divided among 10 out of the 15 children and I believe this is because The other five children had already passed away Before he had died, so I think they had died as children Like so I think they were you know, yeah Anyway, so Daniel had named his oldest son Executor of his holdings and in addition to taking charge of his of the finances He assumed responsibility for his siblings. No This older brother and it never really gave the name of the older brother But this older brother decided to send his headstrong sister Flora to a school in nearby Sedale Sedalia, I think that's how you say it and What he had hoped would happen was that while there? Flora would settle down and marry a man of good moral character Yeah, that's exactly what she did right flora did the exact opposite Yeah, I guess she wouldn't be on this episode. She did Right. So one thing about flora was that she was Considered to be beautiful. She was an attractive Clever and charming young lady and she was definitely She definitely will use this to her her advantage later After a very brief stay at the school in Sedalia flora dropped out and She married an older Disreputable man by the name of aura Mundus That was his name aura Mundus. Uh-huh That sounds like a bad pun, well It could be That's just my opinion And you know what opinions are like. Mm-hmm Well flora's family and friends tried to warn her that he was no good and not Trustworthy and that his only interest in her was her share of her father's estate Of course, she didn't believe them She thought or it was exciting and handsome You know all the things well The couple like I said, they were married. They had a very fast lifestyle and By that I mean they spent their evenings in Holden Visiting the saloons along the main road of town Yep, they did this together. Okay, drinking and gambling This got old pretty fast for the couple. They quickly grew bored of this nightly routine So the newlyweds made the decision to take off on a hunting trip This hunting trip lasted a year When the couple a British couple A year When the couple a British honeymoon almost yeah I don't even know where where all they went but they were apparently gone for a year and then when they came back they went back to Holden and This is what's kind of funny. They bragged to anyone who would stop and listen to them about their run-ins with the law and how the Indian nation feared them and Oh, yeah By the Indian nation. They were talking about the Pawnee Osage Kiowa and Arapaho nations So all four Indian territory all four of those nations apparently feared the two of them. Okay They warned the residents of Holden that they were Quote bad bad people that they were not to be trifled with If you have to say that then you're probably I'm gonna how does that conversation start? Oh, hey, we're just passing through. We're just passing through. Okay, that's fine Don't mess with us. We are bad bad people You're crazy people. That's Fun fact not kooky, but a fun fact. Oh The city marshal of Holden was not intimidated by the couple at all I can't imagine why in fact He took away their guns and strongly suggested that they leave town So just a short time later Flora and I'm sorry. Let me read that just a short time later. Flora sold her share of the family estate and Her and or a or a her and aura skedaddle out of town like they They left The couple ended up in Guthrie, you know at this point. It's a growing royal town and this was in November of 1892 Flora was just 17 years old. Oh my goodness and aura was 30. Oh And I mean granite. I know times back then were different But my niece is 17 years old and honestly, I can't even begin to fathom her being married at this age Like I just can't even I can't even Get it in my brain, you know It's everything okay So Anyway, again the couple were living a fast lifestyle gambling drinking Purchasing fine clothes and fine horses until Flora's money ran out. Oh Guess who made himself scarce when that happened? Oh, I can't Well now desperate and penniless Flora turned to prostitution. Oh This that is not a turn. I believe I thought she was going to go down So during the day Flora could be seen riding her horse through town dressed in an equestrian costume That she had bought with her inheritance before it ran out one newspaper described that outfit as follows she dressed in green and black gowns and Quote wore upon her head a black turban trimmed with a gold braid which glistened Brightly in the Sun or under the electric lights. Oh Fancy right see so during her time in Guthrie a Flora became good friends with a madam and a gambler named Jesse white wings And the pair then began to still horses. They went to horse thieves When they weren't stealing The pair was trading their services for horses and money To acquire a place to keep their stolen livestock They both but have services. Yes Okay So, okay. Okay. Okay. Now, okay. Now, this is kooky Flora's first Skirmish with the law had nothing to do with horse stealing or prostitution shockingly enough It had to do with a claim of assault against a prominent physician in the area. Oh so Frustrated that this doctor declined her advances Or oh the doctor doctor her. Okay, like no. Thank you, ma'am. Okay So she was frustrated that her Womanly wiles weren't working on him, and he said no. Thank you Flora Flora falsely accused dr. Jordan with attacking and trying to rape her. Oh My goodness, so dr. Jordan was convinced that a jury would believe the teary-eyed Tawny Complicated beauty so he decided to get the heck out of Dodge Oh, geez, what's a territory rather than go to court? Oh my goodness however This backfired on Flora big-time. Oh This allegation caused irreparable damage to Flora's business Once I said that Flora had become a madam and began Running a quote-unquote boarding house at the intersection of 4th and Grant Streets for women only so Essentially she had her own brothel is what they're insinuating During the spring of 1893 Flora, all right Hang on one second I Think I completely missed putting this I Think I missed a whole thing. Oh, no, okay So she was essentially running her own brothel Well, I didn't put this in my notes I thought I did but I didn't and the reason why I did so much damage was because a lot of her clients Decided oh if she did this to dr. Jordan, what is she gonna say about that? They wanted nothing to do with her. So it like caused her to like Essentially lose money like because nobody wanted to associate with her because they were afraid that she would Spout these false allegations about them During the spring of 1893 Flora brazenly started to steal multiple horses from hitching posts That were outside stores and from family farms and ranches Excuse me there it went She would then take the stolen animals to her hideout and any animal that had a brand on it was quickly Any animal that had a brand on it was quickly rebranded and sold in an area called Hell's Fringe So kooky fact Kooky fact Hell's Fringe was the imaginary border between Oklahoma Territory and Indian Territory Mm-hmm, and I think it was named this by the early u.s. Deputy Marshals Mm-hmm, Oklahoma lawmen didn't have jurisdiction in this area right and they were forbidden to set foot in it however, the federal marshals Didn't have this hang-up and could and would go and cross the border And I've never actually heard it referred to as Hell's Fringe before In fact, I didn't even know that it had a name I feel like I've heard that probably through reading and research that I did this time last year because I definitely remembered them saying that Like US Marshals had to patrol the area and I really I thought maybe you had mentioned something similar to it when You were covering. What's his name? Bath reeds, maybe But maybe I don't remember. I didn't remember but I could have I don't remember. I mean like what a name though Right. Hell's Fringe. I mean I wouldn't want to go there A couple of well-known lawmen from Oklahoma City named Chris Madsen and Heck Thomas Tracked a few hundred stolen animals to Flores hideout in Canadian County. Oh He was eventually arrested So Flora had given herself the alias of Tom King And she did this hoping to confuse the law by dressing in men's clothing Impersonating like a male bandit Give and and I will say Kind of from here on out. I will kind of refer to Flora as Tom yeah, because that's what all the sources do interesting, but Yeah, so But yeah, so she so she changed her name She started going by Tom Tom King and started dressing like like a male outlaw So given her rough appearance and the men's clothing she was wearing when she was arrested the lawman had no clue that she was a woman and They didn't suspect it was like they didn't suspect a thing like they didn't suspect her to be a woman at all from what I gathered so When Flora was apprehended, she told them that her name was Tom King. So she told them I don't know if she changed her voice. I don't know if she Really Tom King. I don't know if she naturally had a husky voice. I don't know like I'm kind of like How did she get away with it? Right? Anyway in June of 1893 Tom King was thrown in jail Alongside a man by the name of Ernest Lewis. This is where I was thinking if she gets arrested how Long does it take before they figure out that she's not a he They eventually do So cookie fact Lewis was nicknamed the killer right? He was incarcerated for murder and suspicion of robbing a train Okay Well, Tom and Ernest become fast friends and Ernest convinces Tom That train robbery was the better undertaking than stealing horses Tom then agrees to help his new partner. Well help her new partner. I should say They're gonna help help their new partner. It's confusing So Tom then agrees to help the new partner To escape the Oklahoma City Jail and start concocting a plan to hold up a train At this point the lawmen are still kind of clueless that To the fact that Tom is actually Flora I'm not sure if Ernest knows at this point, but being in jail in a cell next to him I'm like her have to notice. I'm right. It was true. I'm not a hide room thing. Yes, and But I think that the Lawmen still didn't really yeah, no on June 27 1893 Tom revealed her true self to a persuadable guard Now Hey big boy, right Exactly one source said that Flora seduced the guard and then locked him in her cell She then let Ernest out of his cell and the two took off on stolen horses Quick I'm telling you man The team made their way to a place called the outlet Which one source described as a 68 mile wide strip of land south of the Oklahoma, Kansas border and That the criminals immediately set their sights on robbing the Santa Fe Railway train now Okay, side note here the outlet, okay? When I first read that I immediately was like that sounds exactly like no man's land. Yes, so I Think I Mean I wouldn't want to say I assume but it sounds like it's the same place honestly. Yeah. Yeah So another source stated that the two bandits were anything but efficient and their chosen criminal career path Okay, I really can't imagine. Oh, oh, oh, it's just wait, okay Apparently Flora and Tom decided to rob number 408 a Passenger train that made a regular run between Red Rock and Wharton which Wharton is now Perry so Tom aka Flora Hired a friend named Manville to help get the job done Okay at 3 30 in the afternoon on June 29th 1893 the trio went into action trouble was Tom and Ernest recruited a moron to hide on and stop the train Recorded a moron Recruited. Yep. The event was anything but successful. Okay There's two different versions, okay One source said that the inside man Manville This is something I would do Okay It tripped over his dangling Knights of Pythias sword as he started toward the conductor now Angling that is not what I thought you said at first. What do you think? Ding-a-ling. Oh, well, he wasn't ding-a-ling But he had a sword this says he had a sort of why Anyway, I know that's interesting. I don't know which one's actually correct. The second one sounds more plausible but anyway, so he trips over to this dangling sword and And He was quickly tackled and shackled by some of the passengers until lawmen heck Thomas Remember who arrest? Yes was one of the ones he arrested for us Arrived and took him into custody The source also described Manville as Wearing a hat that was so threadbare that his hair was actually actually sticking out from most of it. Oh my goodness, but where Were an old pair of worn-out plow shoes and that he was immediately committed to an asylum in, Illinois so another source said that Manville was carrying a rifle in his coat He boarded the train in Oklahoma City and hid himself in the smoking car When the train reached Black Bear Creek between Red Rock and Wharton Manville was just was supposed to overpower the conductor and order him to stop the train So Tom and Ernest were waiting there to board the train and then rob it however, the conductor Did not let the outlaw get the best of them. Okay. Oh my gosh The conductor was able to get a hold of Manville's gun Taking it from him and knocking the handle out in the process So either way like it was like a clusterfuck all That sounds like a circus I Yeah, right Manville was arrested but not before singing like a canary and telling the whereabouts of Tom and Ernest So when the train felt to stop Tom and Ernest immediately like immediately realized that Something had gone wrong They made the decision to split up and go separate ways and then leave the area before law enforcement arrived Ernest went in the direction of Colorado while Tom flash Flora stayed in Oklahoma This one failed train robbery attempt was enough for Flora Like she was like, I'm I'm done and she decided to just stick with what she knew which was horse left The law did eventually catch up to Ernest Lewis in Bartlesville in An Indian territory where he had been running a saloon in addition to running his mouth These people so it that's kind of where their little relationship ends It seems like it was very short. Yeah, it's being cohorts in jail but So To deputy marshals came upon Lewis on November 16th, 1907 the day, Oklahoma became a state There were other things going on besides just everyone was celebrating right except for Lewis unfortunately For Lewis he didn't get to celebrate Oklahoma's statehood much He got into an altercation with the deputy marshals Fred Keeler and George Williams and Lewis was shot and killed so done done done That's what he That's what happened to good old Ernest the killer. We was the end for him So authorities searched all over Oklahoma territory for Tom King on July 12 1893 Deputy rowback er of Guthrie spotted the wanted horse thief at a livery stable in town She was sitting on top of her horse talking to a few men around her completely oblivious that To the fact that she was recognized by a lawman, right? She was then arrested and taken to the same jail that she had escaped from my goodness Just like a month before not even a month before goodness now this I will say this girl was clever Not even a month later on August 8 1893 Tom broke out of jail again and fled to the town of Yukon, which is just about 20 miles west of right, right? So the Cedar Rapids Evening Gazette reported on September 26 1893 and this is what they wrote Quote the chase after King was marked by two incidents one tragic and the other Sensational in the darkness two parties of searchers mistook each other for horse thieves and open fire With Winchester's. Oh my goodness will fight master son of the sheriff was killed another party of deputies discovered a young woman in male attire in Company with a young man in a secluded spot in the woods They thought of course they had caught Tom King But this young woman turned out to be a well-known railroad man's wife out for a lark. Oh Given some tea Tom was eventually recaptured and taken back to Oklahoma City this time the jailer wasn't taking any chances and Locked her into a still cage. Oh so once again Her stay was only for a brief short time Law enforcement agents in Canadian County demanded Tom be turned over to them to be tried for horse theft Our two favorite deputy marshals Chris Mattson and Heck Thomas Loaded Tom and several other prisoners and onto a wagon and transported them across, Oklahoma to El Reno surprise surprise Guess who managed to break out of jail for a third time? No, I don't know little miss horse thief This happened on December 5th 1893 I'm telling you it's like at some point. Do you just say you know, we gave it the college try Let's move on let someone else go we got bigger fish to fry right I Know but I know I know stealing horses and cows back then that was a hanging event. That was it really was Lucky she didn't meet up with Judge like she's on was on the west side of the state and not right inside exactly so once again the headline across the top of the December 8th 1893 issue of the Cedar Rapids Evening Gazette read Tom King the romantic horse thief breaks El Reno jail in her third escape She is bound to make a record She is bad. I make her record So, okay. I have to read this to you. Just look at what this article said about her It seems there is no jail that can hold her even the Oklahoma City jail Which is considered the strongest in the territory yielded before her magic art She is very cunning and clever The vigilant officers usually get her but getting her does not seem to be Of much effect and curing the mania with which she is inflicted She finds the same delight in horse stealing as other women would in reading novels or playing croquet It is her ambition to be the most famous horse thief of her generation and already She has taken more of them than any man in the history of the Southwest. I Just love how they used to write I was so exactly about say I was like wow just descriptive and float like flowery like 1900 all you know Authors could really paint a picture Really pain I mean, there's no question none whatsoever. They make everything sound so much like better been like Like my bad situation like they make it sound like oh, it's just another yes sunny afternoon with a horse thief so during the search for good old Tom's recapture in the winter of 1893 a Pack of bloodhounds were actually brought in to aid in the search. They're bringing up big guns. Mm-hmm Tom managed to evade All but one of the dogs The dog followed her all across southern Canadian and Wichita County's to a spot near the Kiowa Comanche Apache reservation the reservation line at one point she was able to gain the upper hand over the dog and Prevent it from following her again So on December 17 1893 the Guthrie leader reported that the hound had been shot at close range Dog was gonna die. No, I'm sorry It was reported that next to where the dog lay was a piece of scotch tweed of an irregular shape and about the size Of the sole of a man's shoe it was said to be a piece of men's clothing that matched Tom King's that she was allowed to wear in jail and This was proof to the lawman That the hound had actually caught up to King close enough to catch Her pant leg and tear the right hair it from her body So now we have some conflicting information. We have some conflicting stories first one between January and August of 1894 Tom kept a low profile rumors were being flung around that she had actually started her own gang and Was crisscrossing all over, Oklahoma committing various crimes This was circulated amongst law enforcement officers and Guthrie and Oklahoma City One of the men suspected of partnering with Tom in a series of horse thefts around Comsta, Oklahoma was Bill Dalton Bill Dalton was a bank robber and So we can believe what he said, right Bill Dalton was a bank robber and brother of Grayton Bob and Emmett Dalton Dalton of the famous Dalton gang, which I'm sure we're going to cover. Yeah. Yes According to the San Antonio Daily Light on August 16th 1894 Bill Dalton participated in a poker game where he put up Tom's prized horse as a bet Oh my goodness, and this incident Happened as follows This is what they reported so Flora Mundus alias Tom King's career as a horse thief ended with her arrest on August 7th 1894 in Fredonia, Kansas She was extradited to Canadian County Oklahoma and a trial was set She was visibly pregnant when she went before the judge and although convicted of stealing horses He did not sentence her to serve any time in jail King was released on bail and left the territory. Are you serious? So here's the second story. There is some speculation that in 1891 Bob Dalton from the Dalton King had a mistress and shared a quote-unquote love nest with Eugenia Moore Eugenia was the mysterious lady supposed to be Bob Dalton's lover and was said to have acted as a spy When the Dalton gang started robbing trains she would ride up and down the railroad between Texas and Kansas and sweet-talking and seducing station guard station agents and eavesdropping on the telegraph waiting for any news on money shipments, so You're probably wondering why I'm bringing up a woman named Eugenia who was an outlaws mistress Oh Well folks Eugenia might have been an alias used by flora quick for amongst Tom King well Who was a known horse thief and who dressed like a man and went by the name Tom King? So now all of this is speculation, of course She could have been Bob Dalton's mistress. She may have even rigged with the Dalton gang on their train robberies. There's no evidence Saying for sure it was for a quick It's just speculation third story Another account said that all the Tom King foolery finally caught up with Flora Some speculated whether her previous quote-unquote jailbreaks were Actually jailbreaks and not just Flora who was uniquely aware of her carnal agility will say one source put it and episode Didn't know what you got into the gym And that she used her feminine wiles to convince jailers into releasing them claiming they had you know escaped and I'm using quotation marks instead and They're referring to like Tom King and her cohorts that she helped. Yeah break out of jail after one arrest in 1894 Flora became pregnant Due to either the embarrassment of her claims that it was a jailer at the prison who got her pregnant or simply the expense or the expense of and The trouble of having a prisoner deliver a baby in jail the expectant cross-dressing horse-dealing train robbing promiscuous Slash Tom King was released There are so many speculations about Flora Quick-Minded her email signature would be You know, I mean, it's it's like it's just crazy like even today. There's just so much speculation So some think that she was the sixth man of the Dalton gang She was attractive and was a real charmer So it would be no surprise if it if she was Bob Dalton's sweetheart like she was the sixth man of the Dalton gang As mentioned earlier, it was rumored that her real name may have been Eugenia Moore and to further complicate matters Another persistent rumor is that she wasn't any of those people but was actually Emmett Dalton's future wife Julia Johnson I'm telling you this lady has all the Oh my god Flora's disappearance from this earth is not a coincidence So Flora's disappearance from this earth is just as puzzling and confusing as her true identity Some people said that after Flora became pregnant She moved to Tombstone, Arizona Where she was shot and killed while committing a holdup dressed as a man and calling herself Tom King Okay, okay, okay She's pregnant and then she's holding people up dressed as a man I feel like Well, I don't I mean, I guess we don't know how pregnant she I don't know how pregnant or if she was not pregnant at This point, but she left Oklahoma while she was pregnant and lost. I Don't know the time frame but Oklahoma lawman heck Thomas Believes that Flora was killed in an attempted bank robbery in southern, Arizona Thomas told a reporter for the Guthrie Daily Leader that the description and the measurements of the outlaw shot at the scene of the crime matched those Of the infamous Tom King now She was also says she was like, I think she was very short pretty short of stature and she was kind of petite But she had curves and all the things so like I think she had a very specific Profile profile that I like it wasn't like any other. Yeah, you know, whatever but um, I'm Surprised there aren't pictures. I know because you know during that time to prove that these outlaws were dead They often photographed them. Yeah, I mean that was that was a practice that happened well into the 1950s, right? But when you're like you have like 50 million names, that's true I mean, there's no telling Another source has floor quitting the outlaw life altogether and settling down to a nice quiet life as a housewife Richard some thought she had been killed in Wichita, Kansas in 1893 during a hold up there and some think she may have fallen victim to a bullet All right. I'm sorry. I misread that I'm just gonna read the whole thing. Some thought she had been killed in Wichita, Kansas in 1893 during a hold up there and Something that she may have fallen victim not to a bullet but to cancer Dying at Silver City, New Mexico in 1892 The last that anyone heard from Tom King Tom King was late April 1896 Oklahoma City attorney DC Lewis one of Tom King's friends received a letter from her that stated She was headed west by train She promised to visit Lewis around Christmas, but never showed up The most common scenario is that Flora headed west to Arizona and ended up in the rowdy mining town of Clifton Where she took up with a Chinese man and began calling herself China dot She grew tired of him and hooked up with a man named Bill Garland in late January 1903 the two were high on opium and Quarreling when he shot her four times Then took his own life and I think a lot of people believe that scenario What actually happened to Tom King and her child and how she finished her wild crazy? Life still remains a mystery even to this day. No one actually really knows She left a tangle of fact and fable Regarding her world which continues to plague the minds of some historians today Historians and like her child never surfaced. I Mean not potentially maybe not even knowing who he was or who his mother was, right? I mean, there's no I mean, there's absolutely no telling like if she could have lost the baby She could have the child could have died early in life I mean it could have survived and gone on and done other things like there's just no telling what right, right? Okay One writer put it as follows Flo or Tom King was quite a character and the West was a little less wild when she finished her earthly race That is Flora quick Mundus Tom King China dot Eugenia more Julia Johnson Slow Good story Wow, that's a crazy life. I've that yeah, that's that is Wow What's a twist and turns like I was like I was not prepared for this to happen right but yeah, wow, hey so I mean like like I Heard her and Ernest it didn't seem like they were really together very long. They just like like next to each other in a cell and then escape together and Rob a trick train and it didn't work out. So It's just interesting how some people which will probably get into you when you do you but like how they I don't know if idolizes is the right word or They're they're definitely romanticized. So, you know interesting to me because I really wasn't I Mean, honestly, she wasn't all that violent No I mean, I didn't really I mean there was a few like tips and tuffles, you know here and there but you would mostly just Jack and horses. Yeah and getting out of it, but exactly getting out of it It's just You know and you think during that time period and even into like the 20 the 1920s and 1930s, you know people who are also romanticized like that they were rather violent and even early outlaws like The Doolin Dalton gang and even Jesse James and you know, we've got into the star family Yeah, they were violent as well. And she really isn't violent, but what's interesting is there's so many like It's like yeah, they know certain things horse stuff. They know for sure. Yeah, but like She may or may not have been with the Dalton gang. They don't actually know. Yeah, and So it's just which is interesting too because and I think that's what makes her. Yeah, we're Fascinating is because well during that same time period that the Doolin Dalton game was hiding out in, Oklahoma They were sissy with the star family as well So she very I mean, I mean she she I'm not saying she didn't yeah Well could have you would think she would have probably learned from the queen of the outlaws Herself. Yeah so Wow, I Mean, that's one heck of a life. They're real not quite what you expected, right? No, not at all. Not at all. So We hope that you Stay tuned and join us next week. Yeah for part four part two of our outlaws Mine mine is a very minor very famous. My are very famous. So We just will focus a lot on their lives and some of their, Oklahoma Them being in Oklahoma, but yeah, everything stayed the same, please rate rate review and follow us on your favorite podcast streaming platform you can find us on Apple and Spotify and I heart radio and Amazon and Google We are also very active on our Facebook and Instagram and Twitter pages or X do we call it X or Twitter now? I have no idea But yeah, it's at curious cousins. Okay on all of them And if you would like to reach out to us, you know You can DM us through any of our social medias or even email us at curious cousins Okay at gmail.com We also have a patreon if you'd like to keep the spooky and kooky going We encourage you subscribe to our patreon page for ad free content and just tell them what to keep it Keep it kooky and spooky. Bye
