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Isam Dart (1858–October 3, 1900), also known as Isom, was a cattle driver, rancher, and horse and cattle rustler during the late 19th century in the
Wild West The American frontier, also known as the Old West or the Wild West, encompasses the geography, history, folklore, and culture associated with the forward wave of American expansion in mainland North America that began with European colonial ...
. He settled in
Browns Park Brown's Park or Browns Park, originally called Brown's Hole, is an isolated mountain valley along the Green River in Moffat County, Colorado and Daggett County, Utah in the United States. The valley begins in far eastern Utah, approximately do ...
in northwestern Colorado, where he was considered by his neighbors to be a "superlative rider and roper, a good neighbor, and an expert and industrious cattle thief." He and his partner Mat Rash were gunned down in separate events and were believed to have been assassinated by
Tom Horn Thomas Horn Jr., (November 21, 1860 – November 20, 1903) was an American scout, cowboy, soldier, range detective, and Pinkerton agent in the 19th-century and early 20th-century American Old West. Believed to have committed 17 killings as a ...
, a hired gunman. In 1927, a biographical fiction book about a Black cowboy was published that erroneously stated that Dart was born in Arkansas nine years before his birth. It also incorrectly stated that Dart also went by the name Ned Huddleston.


Early years

According to the
Museum of Northwest Colorado The Museum of Northwest Colorado, located in Craig, Colorado, was established in 1964 as the Moffat County Museum to house artifacts and preserve legends of the Old West. The museum features a large, nationally recognized cowboy gear collection, ...
, Dart was born in Texas about 1858. His father was Cyrus (also Silas) Dart, a farmer in
Seguin, Texas Seguin ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Guadalupe County, Texas, United States; as of the 2020 census, its population was 29,433. Its economy is primarily supported by a regional hospital, as well as the Schertz-Seguin Local Government C ...
. He had a sister and two brothers. The family lived amongst a diverse community of Hispanics, Native Americans, Blacks, and whites. He began earning money wrangling cattle in his teens, when he rounded up wild cattle. He worked at the Goodnight Ranch. He stole horses with a man named Terresa.


Wyoming and Browns Park

In 1881, Dart was one of a group of men who drove cattle north to
Wyoming Territory The Territory of Wyoming was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from July 25, 1868, until July 10, 1890, when it was admitted to the Union as the State of Wyoming. Cheyenne was the territorial capital. The bo ...
. He worked on a large ranch there, wrangling horses. He worked as a cook at a railroad construction camp between
Green River Green River may refer to: Rivers Canada *Green River (British Columbia), a tributary of the Lillooet River *Green River, a tributary of the Saint John River, also known by its French name of Rivière Verte *Green River (Ontario), a tributary of ...
and Rock Springs of the Wyoming Territory. In 1883, Dart was a member of a cattle drive to the
Browns Park Brown's Park or Browns Park, originally called Brown's Hole, is an isolated mountain valley along the Green River in Moffat County, Colorado and Daggett County, Utah in the United States. The valley begins in far eastern Utah, approximately do ...
area in northwestern Colorado, near the borders with Wyoming and Utah. He worked for Herb and Elizabeth Bassett in Browns Park. The couple had five children, including Josie and
Ann Bassett Ann Bassett (May 12, 1878 – May 8, 1956), also known as Queen Ann Bassett, was a prominent female rancher of the Old West, and with her sister Josie Bassett, was an associate of outlaws, particularly Butch Cassidy's Wild Bunch. Early life Bass ...
, who became famous. Due to the lack of law enforcement, the area attracted outlaws, like
Butch Cassidy Robert LeRoy Parker (April 13, 1866 – November 7, 1908), better known as Butch Cassidy, was an American train and bank robber and the leader of a gang of criminal outlaws known as the " Wild Bunch" in the Old West. Parker engaged in crimin ...
and the
Wild Bunch The Wild Bunch, also known as the Doolin–Dalton Gang, or the Oklahombres, were a gang of American outlaws based in the Indian Territory in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. They were active in Kansas, Missouri, Arkansas, and Oklahoma Terr ...
, which meant that ranchers were reluctant to take full use of the open range land. While working for the Bassetts, Dart was a ranch hand who also cooked meals, washed laundry, cut wood, and performed other household duties. Elizabeth Bassett was believed to be the mastermind of a group of cattle thieves, a group that included Dart. Dart was fond of children and babysat the children of Josie Bassett and her husband Jim McKnight. He played the harmonica and fiddle. Dart sang for the children, put on shows for them, and taught them how to ride and rope. Dart was accomplished and considered a skilled bronco buster and a "top hand among cowboys". Joe Davenport, his friend, stated in 1929 that "I have seen all the great riders. But for all-around skill as a cowman, Isam Dart was unexcelled and I never saw his peer". Although it was common for African Americans to be subjected to hostility at that time, he was well-respected. He and Madison (Mat) Rash ran their own cattle operations and were accused of rustling cattle. He was known as a notorious outlaw, but he was never convicted. In one case, Dart was said to have been arrested by a deputy sheriff, who drove the two men in a buckboard wagon and headed for jail. The wagon slipped off the side of a mountain and the deputy was injured. Dart rescued the deputy, gave him first aid, and then surrendered to the sheriff. The deputy was a character witness for Dart in his trial. As the result of his testimony, Dart was acquitted of his crime. In addition to being a cattle rancher and rustler, Dart captured, broke in, and sold wild horses that were branded with "I D Bar". J.S. Hoy, a cattle rancher, intended to remove small ranchers from the area. His ranch was burned down and Dart and two other men were charged with the crime. Dart was taken to a jail north of Steamboat Springs on
Hahns Peak Hahns Peak is a summit A summit is a point on a surface that is higher in elevation than all points immediately adjacent to it. The topography, topographic terms acme, apex, peak (mountain peak), and zenith are synonymous. The term (mountai ...
, where he awaited the start of the trial for arson in 1890. He escaped from the jail, laid low in Denver for some time, and returned to Browns Park in 1894. He was not tried for arson. In 1898, Dart was a member of a posse that tracked down men who had killed a teenager, Willie Strang, in Brown's Park. They cornered the men on a rocky hillside where Harry Tracy killed Valentine Hoy.


Colorado Range War

The Colorado Range War began by 1899 when large ranchers hired
Tom Horn Thomas Horn Jr., (November 21, 1860 – November 20, 1903) was an American scout, cowboy, soldier, range detective, and Pinkerton agent in the 19th-century and early 20th-century American Old West. Believed to have committed 17 killings as a ...
, a stock detective and former
Pinkerton detective Pinkerton is a private security guard and detective agency established around 1850 in the United States by Scottish-born cooper Allan Pinkerton and Chicago attorney Edward Rucker as the North-Western Police Agency, which later became Pinkerton ...
. His arrangement included a $500 payment () for each rustler that was killed. The money came from the stockmen's association dues. Horn assumed the persona of a horse buyer to gain evidence of rustlers, which was found to include Dart. Dart lived near
Cold Spring Mountain Cold Spring Mountain is a summit in Moffat County, Colorado. It was also known as O-WI-YU-KUTS Plateau. It is on the United States Geological Survey (USGS) topographic maps of Sparks, Beaver Basin, Willow Creek Butte, Big Joe Basin, and Irish Ca ...
's summit near Browns Park. After Matt Rush was killed on July 8, 1900, Dart invited his friends—including Sam and George Bassett—to stay at his cabin, which he assumed would be safe. On October 3, 1900, Dart was shot and killed instantly as he walked from his cabin to his corral. The Bassetts heard the gunshot, but saw no sign of the shooter. Eb Bassett removed leather wrist cuffs from Dart's body before he was buried. Dart was buried near his cabin. By the time of his death, Dart and his partner Mat Rash were said to have amassed two good ranches and a lot of cattle and horses. An impaneled jury found that "Isam Dart came to his death, by a rifle shot at the hands of a party unknown". Tom Horn was charged in 1902 with killing a fourteen-year-old boy, Willie Nickels, the son of the rancher Kels P. Nickels, in July 1901. Journalists suspected Horn of killing Dart and Rash.


Erroneous historical information

According to the Museum of Northwest Colorado and others, much of what is known about Isam Dart has been erroneous. Dart was not Ned Huddleston and was not born into slavery in Arkansas. The museum states: The erroneous information about Dart began with W.G. Tittsworth's book "Outskirt Episodes" that was published in 1927 and subsequent books repeated the story. One modern author said that Tittsworth's book was at least two-thirds fiction. As an example, there are no public records for Ned Huddleston and researchers found that no one who knew Dart knew of Huddleston.


Popular culture

* He was portrayed by
Danny Glover Danny Lebern Glover (; born July 22, 1946) is an American actor, film director, and political activist. He is widely known for his lead role as Roger Murtaugh in the '' Lethal Weapon'' film series. He also had leading roles in his films inclu ...
in ''
Hannah's Law ''Hannah's Law'' is a 2012 American/Canadian Western television film from the Hallmark Movie Channel. The movie stars Cameron Bancroft, Sara Canning, John Pyper-Ferguson, and Julian Black Antelope. Synopsis The film is centered on the chara ...
'' (2012 film). *
Louis Gossett Jr. Louis Cameron Gossett Jr. (born May 27, 1936) is an American actor. Born in Coney Island, Brooklyn, New York City, He had his stage debut at the age of 17, in a school production of '' You Can't Take It with You.'' Shortly after he successfully ...
played the role of Isom Picket, which was a fictional character based upon Bill Picket and Isam Dart, in the ''
Return to Lonesome Dove ''Return to Lonesome Dove'' is a 1993 American four part television miniseries, written by John Wilder involving characters created in Larry McMurtry's Western novel ''Lonesome Dove'' which was broadcast by CBS and first aired on November 14–1 ...
'' (1993 television film).


See also

*
Dr. John Parsons Cabin Complex The Dr. John Parsons Cabin Complex is a historic pioneer settlement on the Green River in the Browns Park region of Daggett County, Utah. Dr. John D. Parsons, a rancher and physician from Denver, settled at the site between 1874 and 1876. Pa ...
*
History of slavery in Colorado The history of slavery in Colorado began centuries before Colorado achieved statehood when Spanish colonists of Santa Fe de Nuevo México (1598–1848) enslaved Native Americans, called Genízaros. Southern Colorado was part of the Spanish territo ...
*
List of African American pioneers of Colorado List of African American pioneers of Colorado includes a list of early settlers or notable "first" figures in Colorado's history. The list includes women inducted into the Colorado Women's Hall of Fame, like Clara Brown and Justina Ford. Where ...
*
Bill Pickett Willie M. Pickett (December 5, 1870 – April 2, 1932) was a cowboy, rodeo, Wild West show performer and actor. In 1989, Pickett was inducted into the ProRodeo Hall of Fame. Personal life Pickett was born in the Jenks Branch community of Wil ...
*
Bose Ikard Bose Ikard (1843 – January 4, 1929) was an African-American cowboy who participated in the pioneering cattle drives on what became known as the Goodnight–Loving Trail, after the American Civil War and through 1869. Aspects of his life in ...
*
Nat Love Nat Love (June 14, 1854 – February 11, 1921) was an American cowboy and writer active in the period following the Civil War. His reported exploits have made him one of the more famous heroes of the Old West. Early life Nat Love, (pronounced "N ...


Notes


References


Further reading

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Dart, Isam 1849 births 1900 deaths People from Arkansas Outlaws of the American Old West American cattlemen People from Routt County, Colorado American freedmen 19th-century African-American people African-American equestrians