Growing Up with the Wild Bunch: The Story of Pioneer Legend Josie Bassett

The life of Josie Bassett was nothing short of a female pioneer adventure. Josie came west in a wagon train at the age of four. Settling in rugged Brown’s Park in the extreme northwest corner of Colorado, Josie learned to ride and rope by the age of six. Like all girls, as a young teenager she discovered boys, but Josie’s first real boyfriend was a future outlaw, none other than Butch Cassidy. As a young rancher’s wife with two young boys, Josie witnessed first-hand the strong-arm tactics of the cattle barons trying to steal the land from smaller ranch owners. When it happened to the Bassett family, Josie’s husband and father fought back. Murder occurred at the ranch when a man was hung from the gate post at the entrance of the Bassett ranch.

Following a bitter divorce and a few more marriages, Josie moved to the remote area of Cub Creek in western Utah. Here she managed to make a living by hunting, making moonshine and possibly cattle rustling. (She was brought up on charges but acquitted.) Josie married a few more times, running off one husband with a frying pan. He later said, ＂Josie gave me fifteen minutes to get off her land, I only needed five!＂

Josie was the feature of a LIFE magazine article in 1948 and was a rodeo queen when she was in her 70s. Josie Bassett lived a long adventurous life, dying in 1963.

Colorado native Linda Wommack is a local historian and historical consultant. She is also the award-winning author of several books on Colorado history. Linda has been a contributing editor for True West Magazine since 1995. She has also been a staff writer, contributing a monthly article for Wild West Magazine, since 2004. She has also written for The Tombstone Epitaph, the nation’s oldest continuously published newspaper, since 1993. As a longtime member of the national Western Writers of America, Linda has served as a judge for the acclaimed national Spur Awards in Western Americana literature for eight years. She is also a member of Women Writing the West. She currently serves as a board member and is the Chair of the Women Writing the West DOWNING Journalism Award.