I firmly believe that the reason Jesse James stood out from the rest of his gang was the alliteration in his name. Everyone knows Jesse James, but names like Frank James and Cole Younger are only known to cowboy historians and Western fans. He might be tied with Billy the Kid for outlaw fame.
Mr. James was a Bushwacker early in his life. Bushwackers were guerillas in the Civil War who fought for the Confederates. After the war, he became a bank robber and outlaw. He is often romanticized as a Robin Hood-like outlaw. In reality, he took advantage of the frontier lawlessness and used violence to get his way.
Almost 150 years ago, he was assassinated by Bob Ford, and since then, dozens of different guns have been credited as Jesse James’ guns. It’s entirely possible that he was quite the gun collector, and these were authentic outlaw guns, but that’s simply not the case.
Jesse James and His Mom
Jesse James married a woman named Zerelda, and his mom was also named Zerelda. Yeah, it’s an odd one. Zerelda means armored battle maiden in Teutonic, so it’s a pretty sick name. Zerelda James, Jesse’s mom, was married three times and had eight children, but according to what I can find, only two became outlaws.
She wasn’t spared from Jesses’ actions. A raid led by Alan Pinkerton of the famed Pinkerton detective agency firebombed her home. She became famous in her own right as the mother of the famed outlaw. After the death of Jesse and during the trial of Frank James, the American consumption of Jesse James was at an all-time high.
Dime novels were popular, although unapproved by the James family. With interest at a high, it wasn’t long before people began stumbling onto the farm owned by Zerelda James. Zerelda James saw an opportunity and took advantage of her son’s fame and his death. She began offering tours of the farm where he had grown up.
Zerelda was an industrious lady. The tour ended at the grave of Jesse James. It sat outside her window. Famously, they buried him deeper than most to help keep grave robbers away. Tourists could take pebbles from the top of Jesse’s grave for just a few more coins. When the pebbles ran dry, Zerelda would go to the creek and gather more. This is just one example of her industrious nature.
With that in mind, she realized there was an extra income stream she hadn’t tapped into. Jesse’s guns.
The Fraudulent Guns of Jesse James
If you were a mega fan of Jesse James and you stuck around long enough and pried hard enough, Zerelda might show you some of Jesse’s guns. If you pried a bit more, she might even sell you one. It only made sense that people wanted to own a gun belonging to Jesse James. He was an outlaw. He made his living by wielding guns, robbing banks, and fighting it out with lawmen.
Jesse James was a man made by his guns. Who wouldn’t want a gun owned by the famed outlaw? If you wanted one, Zerelda would sell it to you. Plenty of happy customers left with empty pockets and a gun from the famed outlaw. Or did they?
They certainly had empty pockets. Jesse James never owned the guns these tourists purchased. Zerelda, as the enterprising woman she was, would sell guns, often rusted, inoperable weapons on the second-hand market, as Jesse’s guns. This lead to a number of folks who proclaimed they owned a Jesse James gun, but in reality, they were scammed.
There is something poetic about that. Even after his death, his name was used to steal money from others.
The Real Guns of Jesse James
Due to the prolific sales of fraudulent guns credited to the outlaw, the market for his guns is interesting. Anyone proclaiming that they are selling a Jesse James gun has to provide a vast amount of provenance. For example, a listing at Heritage Auctions proclaims that a Colt 1873 Peacemaker is the “Most Thoroughly Documented Jesse James Gun to Ever Appear at Auction.”
The auction lists an impressive historical provenance, including speeches, letters, and similar examples of ‘proof’ that the gun belonged to Jesse James. It’s been well known that Jesse carried a Colt Peacemaker.
The NRA Museum housed an S&W Scholfield that belonged to Jesse. Say what you want about the NRA, but their museum is amazing.
The Library of Congress has a photo of a 44 Hopkins and Allen 1873 pistol that is said to belong to James. It’s complete with the skull-bashing grip.
Worth a Hoot
Those are three of his confirmed handguns. There is also a variety of rifles credited to his name. While many of the supposed Jesse James guns have been debunked, a fake would still be valuable. The legend of Zerelda and her fraudulent guns is its own interesting story, and if you could prove it was a fake sold by Zerelda, it would still likely be highly collectible. Personally, I’d love one.
