Ozark Jack Berlin

[Deleted]

This interesting character claimed that Brushy Bill Roberts saved his life (gunfight) in around 1888. Brushy also mentioned the incident in interviews with Morrison.

lawrencelore.blogspot.com/2012/08/ozark-jack-and-rest-of-story.html?m=1

Ozark Jack, like many others, was prone to embellish and exaggerate (even fabricate) his life story. He claimed to have met Jesse James, but later omits ever having known Jesse James from his life story.

Like Brushy Bill he said he worked for Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show, and like Brushy was quite familiar with Judge Isaac Parker (Arkansas).

lawrencelore.blogspot.com/2017/02/ozark-jack-berlin-and-train-wreck.html?m=1

The drawback to Ozark Jack was that he, too, had a connection to J. Frank Dalton the fraudulent Jesse James. Dalton, who had a career in circuses, undoubtedly met Brushy & Ozark Jack in that field.

Still, it's interesting to note that if the story is true (1888) then Brushy couldn't have been Ollie Roberts because he'd of only been a little boy when that occurred, and Ozark Jack in reality was born 1857, not 1867 as cited. In 1890 he married Mary French while in the Ozarks and any records from there ought to prove that out.

youtu.be/Kv_ZtOMAepk

Olva M. Everhard, mutual friend of Brushy & Ozark & Dalton, being interviewed by William Tunstill in 1986. Unfortunately, she's still pushing the lie that Dalton was Jesse in this interview, and unfortunately Brushy's brought up in the whole mess (ie, Billy knew Jesse & were friends).




It does hurt Brushy's credibility a lot having association to Dalton, and maybe to a lesser degree Ozark Jack although Jack's story is more truthful than Dalton's by a longshot.

Although to Brushy's credit, he tells Morrison that he was embarrassed to have been involved in the whole Dalton mess. That he knew Dalton was a fraud, but that friends talked him into doing it. Brushy, also, never quite said that Dalton WAS Jesse James, but rather he knew of him as Jesse James. Brushy, contrary to popular belief, never claimed to be apart of the gang either but rather that he knew people from the gang.

Whether these are the words of a man walking back stories after getting exposed, or not, is up to the reader to determine. It IS conceivable that Roberts learned to rope & ride & shoot and picked up knowledge on the Old West while in the circus--- but according to the skeptics in Roberts family he never left to go anywhere or did anything, so it's hard to explain all of these friendships even to conmen & conwomen if that be the case. People just don't randomly pick people out of thin air to perpetrate hoaxes.

The skeptics can't have it both ways. There must be some leeway. Roberts had to of traveled beyond Texarkana, otherwise how would he know Ozark Jack (Illinois) and Dalton (Missouri) and how would Cyclone Denton, a noted bronco rider, in the 1920s basically confirm Brushy's account that he (Cyclone) worked with Billy The Kid in a Wild West show long before Brushy ever even got involved with Dalton?

Either Brushy Bill Roberts is a genius storyteller capable of closing every conceivable loop hole one can think about, or, he was The Kid, or at the very least knew The Kid and/or his friends.

[Deleted]

Further notation...

And this breaks my heart as a Brushy Bill Roberts fan, because I see it pretty clearly that he had to of been an imposter.

According to Morrison, after allegedly talking to Jesse Evans (Joe Hines) in Florida he went to Missouri to get further information on the whereabouts of Billy The Kid... The man who said "O.L. ROBERTS" was Billy The Kid, was none other than J. Frank Dalton.

This is a fact that I never knew until now, I just happened to come across it on a genealogy site that talks about J. Frank Dalton and Ola Everhard.

If Dalton's the one who tipped off Morrison to Brushy, I'm confused as to why Brushy would later tell Morrison that going to Dalton's alleged birthday party and other events was something he regretted because he knew Dalton wasn't really Jesse James.

This whole genesis wouldn't have ever been known without the fraudulent Jesse James claimant telling Morrison who was The Kid. This majorly looks bad for the whole case for Brushy Bill Roberts, looking at it dead-to-rights.

Listening to Ola's account, at first my impression was that without Roberts "backing up" Dalton the fraudulent Jesse James had nothing to really lean on because he intertwined so much of his story with Brushy's story--- saying that he fought alongside James Henry Roberts in the Civil War, that he knew Brushy since he was 7 years old, and of course their mutual friendship with Ozark Jack (among other things).

Now, it could be the fraud basically conned information out of Roberts and ever since the fake Dalton's have claimed it as evidence of Dalton being Jesse James--- after all, only until AFTER Brushy was dead did you see Dalton and Ola Everhard tie Roberts "out in the open" to Dalton.

But that's really giving Brushy the benefit of the doubt. More than I'd like to give a man. It's more feasible these men all knew each other from days working circuses and rodeos, and all basically had each other's backs regardless of what anyone said about themselves.

Maybe the kernel of truth is this: Maybe "Frank Dalton" (born and raised in Texas) actually did know Bill Roberts when Brushy was a kid, and Dalton being a pretty learned man--- after all he wrote editorials about Jesse James and the Wild West--- and that Oliver Pleasant Roberts learned everything he knew from Dalton, which might explain how he could concoct lineages & knew certain things that weren't really well known. That seems feasible because Dalton had access to such information.

And maybe, just maybe, when things got "too real" Brushy Bill Roberts had guilty feelings and told Morrison he wanted no part of Dalton anymore, and begrudgingly went to Mabry's office out of obligation to Morrison (rather than spill his guys) and the stress of it all combined with the press ambush gave the man a stroke or heart attack.

THE ONLY WAY I CAN SEE A CASE FOR ROBERTS BEING STILL A VIABLE CASE FOR THE KID AT THIS POINT IS THE FOLLOWING:

That he did know Dalton, and maybe Dalton was a criminal who had some ties to the Dalton Gang but definitely wasn't a relative of any kind, and the two men did business together (crimes) and Brushy went along with Dalton's bullcrap not so much out of obligation but rather fear that if he didn't that Dalton would out Brushy Bill Roberts as The Kid to the whole wide world when Brushy only wanted a private audience with Mabry.

Even at that, it's quite the benefit of the doubt to give Brushy Bill Roberts. Not comfortable with that. Until I see greater evidence painting Brushy as a victim of Dalton's schemes, I cannot believe the claims (or most of the claims) of Brushy Bill Roberts.

Furthermore, either Ola Everhard was the most naive woman on earth to basically buy into Dalton's story so much so she took him into her home and took care of him, or quite frankly this woman was a willing accomplice of Dalton's prior to him coming to the hospital in the vicinity where she lived. Just how much of a coincidence could that really be? I don't buy it.

[Texas Truth Teller]

"Furthermore, either Ola Everhard was the most naive woman on earth to basically buy into Dalton's story so much so she took him into her home and took care of him, or quite frankly this woman was a willing accomplice of Dalton's prior to him coming to the hospital in the vicinity where she lived. Just how much of a coincidence could that really be? I don't buy it. "

Rufus,
J. Frank Dalton was a bull shipper supreme, and could sell ice to Eskimos.

Dalton convinced Ola Everhard that she was his 3rd or 4th cousin through the Dalton family. He convinced Garland Farmer, editor of a small east Texas newspaper, that William Clarke Quantrill had survived the Civil War (he was wounded and died in Kentucky in June 1865), moved to Texas, and taught school in Osceola, Texas.

In 1940, Dalton was the author of a 5 part series about events is Missouri during the Civil War. If you subscribe to Newspapers.com, search for Frank Dalton, 1940.

In one of the stories, he said that Jesse James was killed in 1882. He said that the real name of Wiliam Clarke Quantrill was Charlie Hart, but census records confirm that his name was William C Quantrill. The Quantrill family lived in Canal Dover, Ohio, in 1850 census, incorrectly indexed as William C Guantvill.

[Texas Truth Teller]

"Ironically enough, according to Ola Everhard, she insisted that James "Wild Henry" Roberts was there to help identify the body--- the alleged name of Brushy Bill Roberts alleged father."

Rufus,

It appears that Ola simply repeated many stories told by "Uncle Jesse", as she called J Frank Dalton.  She actually believed he was Jesse Woodson James.

Very little is known for certain about J Frank Dalton prior to 1940.  It is very difficult to sort his statements into fact and fiction. He was in McLennan County, TX, in the 1930 census, and in Gregg County, in the 1940 census.  He wrote several articles about the Civil War that Garland Farmer published in the Henderson newspaper, and some of the same articles were included in "The Crittenden Memoirs".  He said multiple times that he was born 8 March 1848 in Goliad County, Texas, and that might be true even though one census report indicates he was born in Georgia, and the Crittenden Memoirs implied Missouri was his native state.  Dalton's claim that he served with Quantrill in the Civil War; served in the Spanish-American War, and World War I is not credible.

[Wayne Land]

It seems to me the entire debate about Brushy and Dalton for that matter is an exercise in deciding what one wants to believe and then lookin for evidence to support that belief. The most amazing thing about the story(s) is how easy it is to take either side and defend it so staunchly. And how badly everyone wants to claim "they" have figured out what the truth is. I think it's actually a lot of fun to keep an open mind to the possibilities either way.

I have tried to refrain from making a point blank statement that "Brushy Bill was BTK". But I truly, truly do believe he might have been.

[mckinley412]

When the name Ola Evarhard gets mentioned I cringe. Also the story about Cyclone Denton saying he worked with Billy the Kid or that they worked together or whatever it said is from a W.C. Jameson book and he cites a source which does NOT exist in real life otherwise it would have been a huge credit to Brushy. I like how you are thinking, Rufus but some info you are repeating does sound like it came from internet geneaology stuff and the internet is screwed up when it comes to facts. You have to get to the original source material. Even the books are all messed up.

[Deleted]

I'll add further, that while I like W.C. Jameson I'm not sure I can really call him a historian. He's more like the "alien alligator treasure hunter pawn shop" history persona.

No offense to him, cus he does write pseudo-history, but when he's claiming Amelia Earhart was Irene Craigmile Bolman, and that John Wilkes Booth also survived, etc--- someone has to be the voice of reason and stand up and say, "Enough!"

The odds are too enormous that Billy The Kid, Jesse and Frank James, John Wilkes Booth, etc all faked their deaths and lived to be old men and old women. It's ridiculous.

Yes I admit it was far and away easier back then to assume another identity and disappear, but that so many well known figures all did it? Horse****. Not possible. The odds of even one doing it is improbable.

That's why Jameson is relegated to nothing more than someone like the ancient aliens guy people make memes out of and they all got to know what they say and write is complete crap. Anything to be relevant and famous, just like J. Frank Dalton and Uncle Kit Carson and several others.

[mckinley412]

I agree with you plus all three came from Grandbury/Hico. There was a book that came out about 1909 or something about Boothe faking his death and it is interesting. but there is one real article about Cyclone Denton working with Billy and then there is another fake one cited that says he worked with Brushy who was Billy. or something like that. Jameson's book made it sound like Denton was another witness but really that article/newspaper/magazine never existed.

[mckinley412]

plus no matter what Jameson wrote about Boothe it is possible Boothe survived. But Jameson books are not books I want to read anymore.

[Deleted]

Anything is possible, the real question is what's the more probable. I've heard the Booth story long before I ever heard of Jameson or even Brushy Bill Roberts. But I think it's most likely that he died in that barn during the manhunt.

The bizarre thing about Texas, particularly the area of Gladewater, is just how many people exist who claimed to be somebody else. Texas, it seems, was the place to go and start your life over, literally.

I forget the author of the article, but this one man makes the point with "Granbury, The Place People Go to be Buried", noting how many genuine historical figures & genuine frauds are buried there.

Which makes me look at the bulk of Brushy's affidavits as basically worthless, since DeWitt Travis was a conman* and Robert E. Lee was too because he vouched for Dalton as well. Ozark Jack, though the more honest (but not by much) of the various characters cannot be relied on either.

The only affidavits worth anything, then, are Gallegos & Able. People may bring up "Joe Hines" as evidence, but are we even sure that man actually was Jesse Evans or just claimed to be? After all, once upon a time in America circuses and carnivals and sideshows and cowboy exhibitions generally retired to Florida in the wintertime. It's more likely the man was just a performer who knew Brushy, Dalton, etc.

Anyways, if people want to chase down stories about Booth or Jesse James, etc--- that's their prerogative. But there is something "off" about all the claims and stories, and it's the fact all of these men, in real life, and that includes Billy The Kid, were hardly the quiet types who stayed gone and out of the limelight.

The fact none of them ever really popped up, and blew their oppressors out of the water, is really the strongest evidence in the world against them. Especially when it comes to John Wilkes Booth, who was such a pompous s.o.b. that I find it difficult to believe he'd of kept his mouth shut for decades.

I look at the time period of 1920-1940, as a rather interesting one, at least in terms of showbusiness and ballyhoo. So many of the real people involved in the old west were dropping like flies, and Hollywood & radio & newspapers couldn't get enough of telling the stories.

So it's no surprise to me that a bunch of men, ages 60 to 90, started coming out of the woodwork claiming X, Y, and Z because such a thing was almost worth it's weight in gold.

Dalton himself quipped, basically, "I made more money in a single month as Jesse James than I ever did as Frank Dalton." I think that says it all. It's like professional wrestling, where you want to believe what you're hearing and seeing so bad, you ignore the obvious: It's just for show, it's just entertainment.

That's why I try to be neutral about different things when it comes to Brushy Bill Roberts. My main goal is to see just how long did he tell some of these stories. I did see a newspaper from 1946 where it mentions him as an "Indian fighter" and basically a former employee of Pawnee and Buffalo Bill. I'm trying to see if these stories he told go back to the 1930s or earlier.

Why is this important? Because if the stories only go back to a certain time, it is reasonable to conclude that maybe he was just creating things little by little. After all, before coming to Hico he was a resident of Gladewater and guess where Dalton was when he wrote his twenty pages for the Crittenden book? Also Gladewater, in 1935.

*It's a well established fact that DeWitt Travis was a long-standing friend of Dalton's and that he would refer to himself as "Bill Dalton" and say from time to time he was Dalton's big brother. The picture of Dalton and Roberts together side by side was allegedly taken in 1942 at the request of Ola Everhard and was on DeWitt Travis's ranch.

That's why it's so important to comb through all available newspaper sources for "O.L." or "O.P." or even "O.N." Roberts, because the farther back he's tied to certain stories the better it is for his claims. The more recent they appear, the less likely they're true.

It's more probable to say he was an imposter than to say he was Billy The Kid, although the testimony of Joe Salazar is probably his best piece of evidence that he was who he said he was. Then again, we cannot genuinely tie Martile Able and certain others to the real Billy The Kid. Tons of people claimed to have known him, or was there in Fort Sumner, or dug the grave, etc--- and they in fact were telling lies.

Sadly, Roberts has little to really hang on to other than his word and some facts and figures that he knew about that few people did--- although it's more probable that he learned those details while working for Susan McSween Barber back around 1902.

Still, I'll investigate until I am satisfied that he is to my point of view proven a fraud concretely. I'd say it's almost there. What I see is a lot of proof of the post 1881 years, and virtually zero proof of the prior years--- which makes me believe that maybe Roberts original tombstone birthdate of 1868 is likely true, which would account for him knowing much of the details of post 1881 because he'd of been 14 in 1882 and by 1902 would've been 34. Both ages certainly old enough, for that time period, to start working ranches and travel interstate.

Jesus bless you and your family

[kallexlog]

I am married to Jackie Berlin of Veedersburg Indiana, great granddaughter to Ozark Jack Berlin. It is interesting to see all of the stories....some real and some totally fabricated. Photo taken 12/25/19 at Rockfield Cemetary east of Veedersburg Indiana.

[clydec]

Dec 26, 2019 21:45:23 GMT -5 kallexlog said:

I am married to Jackie Berlin of Veedersburg Indiana, great granddaughter to Ozark Jack Berlin. It is interesting to see all of the stories....some real and some totally fabricated. Photo taken 12/25/19 at Rockfield Cemetary east of Veedersburg Indiana.

Welcome to the board,  I guess the question would be for me was the story that Brushy Bill told of saving Ozark jack's life in a shootout real or fabricated?

[Deleted]

Welcome to the message boards. Jesus bless you and your family. If your wife has any "first hand information" as to the relationship between Berlin and Roberts as well as Uncle Kit Carson and J. Frank Dalton, it'd be much appreciated if you could (or she could) relay that information here.

Whether we be skeptical or believe in the Brushy claims, it is necessary to really cross examine the claims of alleged eyewitnesses and friends and family. Whether he was telling the truth or lying doesn't detract one iota from Ozark Jack being one of America's most interesting characters of the early 20th century.

[Lonz]

Hi. Direct descendant of Ozark here. Grew up on his property. Most of his stories have been exaggerated by people who didn't know him. But he did in fact know Bill and Jesse both, Jesse at a young age and Bill much later in life. I have pics and written evidence. ❤

[tboor74]

Any chance of a peep at the evidence...it'll save a whole lot of aggro on here......