Myth of the Hanging Tree: Stories of Crime and Punishment in Territorial New Mexico

by Robert J. Torrez and Robert J. Tórrez

Book Overview

The haunting specter of hanging trees holds a powerful sway on the American imagination, conjuring images of rough-and-tumble frontier towns struggling to impose law and order in a land where violence was endemic. In this thoughtful study, former New Mexico State Historian Robert T rrez examines several fascinating criminal cases that reveal the harsh and often gruesome realities of the role hangings, legal or otherwise, played in the administration...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0826343791
• ISBN13: 9780826343796
• Release Date: February 2008
• Publisher: University of New Mexico Press
• Length: 200 Pages
• Weight: 0.75 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 6.3" x 9.0"

Customer Reviews

A close study of various criminal cases

Former New Mexico state historian Robert J. Torrez presents Myth of the Hanging Tree: Stories of Crime and Punishment in Territorial New Mexico, a close study of various criminal cases that tell of the often gruesome role that legal hangings and lynching's had in enacting frontier justice. In these violent episodes lie an indelible legacy influencing America's modern perception of the Old West. Myth of the Hanging Tree sorts truth from fiction. Illustrated with a handful of black-and-white photographs, Myth of the Hanging Tree is a singularly fascinating addition to crime history reference shelves and collections.