Rose Elizabeth Dunn (September 5, 1878 – June 11, 1955) also known as Rose of Cimarron and later Rose of the Cimarron, was best known for her good looks and for her romantic involvement with outlaw George "Bittercreek" Newcomb when she was a teenager during the closing years of the

Old 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 ...

Early life

Rose Dunn was born near

Ingalls, Oklahoma Ingalls is a census-designated place (CDP) in eastern Payne County, Oklahoma, about east of Stillwater. The town was settled as a result of the "Unassigned Lands" land run in 1889, and had a post office from January 22, 1890, until October 31, ...

. Her family was poor, but she received a formal education at a convent in

Wichita, Kansas Wichita ( ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Kansas and the county seat of Sedgwick County. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 397,532. The Wichita metro area had a population of 647,610 in 2020. It is located in ...

. Dunn's two older brothers became minor outlaws by the time she was 12. She learned to ride, rope and shoot from her brothers. Through them, she met and became involved romantically with George Newcomb ''circa'' 1893, when she was either 14 or 15 years of age.

George "Bittercreek" Newcomb

Dunn met and became involved romantically with George "Bittercreek" Newcomb around 1893. The

gang A gang is a group or society of associates, friends or members of a family with a defined leadership and internal organization that identifies with or claims control over territory in a community and engages, either individually or collective ...

that Newcomb ran with worshipped her due to her good looks and her calm and kind demeanor, and were fiercely defensive of her, spawning her loyalty to them. She was completely infatuated with Newcomb and began supporting Newcomb's outlaw life by venturing into town for supplies, as he was a wanted man and could not. Newcomb by that time was riding with 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 ...

gang led by outlaw

Bill Doolin Bill(s) may refer to: Common meanings * Banknote, paper cash (especially in the United States) * Bill (law), a proposed law put before a legislature * Invoice, commercial document issued by a seller to a buyer * Bill, a bird or animal's beak Plac ...

. By this time her brothers had left the outlaw life and had become

bounty hunter A bounty hunter is a private agent working for bail bonds who captures fugitives or criminals for a commission or bounty. The occupation, officially known as bail enforcement agent, or fugitive recovery agent, has traditionally operated outsid ...

s, calling themselves the Dunn Brothers. On September 1, 1893, the

was cornered in Ingalls by a

posse Posse is a shortened form of posse comitatus, a group of people summoned to assist law enforcement. The term is also used colloquially to mean a group of friends or associates. Posse may also refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Posse'' (1975 ...

US marshals The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

, in what became known as the Battle of Ingalls, resulting in an intense shootout. A western legend has it that Newcomb was badly wounded, and while he lay in the street, Dunn is alleged to have run from the "Pierce Hotel" to him with two belts of ammunition and a

Winchester rifle Winchester rifle is a comprehensive term describing a series of lever action repeating rifles manufactured by the Winchester Repeating Arms Company. Developed from the 1860 Henry rifle, Winchester rifles were among the earliest repeaters. The Mo ...

. She fired the rifle at the marshals while Newcomb reloaded his revolvers, and Newcomb was able to escape. However, that account has never been verified, and was never mentioned by the US Marshal official report, which indicated that Newcomb at best fired two shots then fled. Three deputy marshals were killed during the shootout. Newcomb and Charley Pierce were wounded, but escaped. Gang member "Arkansas Tom" Jones was slightly wounded and captured by Deputy Marshal

Jim Masterson James Patrick "Jim" Masterson (September 18, 1855 – March 31, 1895), was a lawman of the American West and a younger brother of gunfighters and lawmen Bat Masterson and Ed Masterson. Early life After working on the western frontier as a ...

. Together with Newcomb and other members of the gang, Dunn hid out for at least two months nursing the remaining gang members back to health. By 1895, Newcomb had a $5,000

bounty Bounty or bounties commonly refers to: * Bounty (reward), an amount of money or other reward offered by an organization for a specific task done with a person or thing Bounty or bounties may also refer to: Geography * Bounty, Saskatchewan, a g ...

placed on him, dead or alive. Newcomb and Pierce hid out near

Norman, Oklahoma Norman () is the third-largest city in the U.S. state of Oklahoma, with a population of 128,097 as of 2021. It is the largest city and the county seat of Cleveland County, and the second-largest city in the Oklahoma City metropolitan area, b ...

, both of them having been wounded in a gun battle with US marshals. On May 2, 1895, the Dunn Brothers shot and killed both Newcomb and Pierce as they dismounted in front of the Dunn house to visit Rose. The brothers collected the bounty, believed to have been $5,000 each.

Later life

After the killing of "Bittercreek" Newcomb, Dunn was often accused of having set him up, revealing to her brothers where the outlaws were hiding. She denied this, and her brothers later defended her, stating that she had no knowledge of their intentions, nor did she reveal the hideout to them. She was never prosecuted for her involvement with the gang. Her short outlaw life launched her to the level of western legend. In 1898 she married local politician Charles Albert Noble, and sometime after 1900 (a census year), they left Oklahoma and all outlaw associations behind them. Charles Noble died in 1930 and she married Richard Fleming (whom she first met when 16) in 1946. She died at the age of 76 in Salkum, Washington.

In pop culture

The name "Rose of Cimarron" (not that of Rose Dunn) first came to popular attention with the publication of

Bill Tilghman William Matthew Tilghman Jr. (July 4, 1854 – November 1, 1924) was a career lawman, gunfighter, and politician in Kansas and Oklahoma during the late 19th century. Tilghman was a Dodge City city marshal in the early 1880s and played a role in ...

's booklet, ''Oklahoma Outlaws''.

References

External links

Find a Grave
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Dunn, Rose Outlaws of the American Old West People of Indian Territory Gunslingers of the American Old West 1878 births 1955 deaths