|
 |

We wish to swap links with websites related to ours. Links are in alphabetical order

Soapy Smith Descendants
websites on family members
|
 |
Soapy Smith's Soap Box blog
The
history blog of the Soapy Smith Preservation Trust and Friends of Bad Man Soapy Smith. This
blog is an extension of Jeff Smith's book, Alias Soapy Smith, the Life and Death
of a Scoundrel. Feel free to ask questions
or leave comments. To do so click the "comments" link below each article.
Soapy Smith Discussion Board
THE place to go for the latest news and discussion relating
to Soapy Smith, the people he associated with, the places he went, etc. In association with the Soapy Smith Preservation
Trust and the Friends of Bad Man Soapy Smith.
Site includes section on U.S.S. Wake Commander Columbus Darwin Smith, whom was captured
in 1941 just hours after the Japanese December 7, 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor. Columbus escaped his captors in 1944 and traveled
some 700 miles to safety.
(Soapy's son) Mount Mercy College in Cedar Rapids, Iowa created
a nice website on famous American artist Grant Wood and his 1933-34 Stone City Art Colony, Iowa. This is where Soapy's
son Jefferson R. Smith lll, and his 2nd wife artist Florence Sprague., met. This site has a biography on Jefferson. Jeff Smith
(Soapy's great-grandson) was key in helping this site with information.
Luther Martin Smith
(Soapy's uncle) This site covers the history of Luther's position as Emory University President, 1867-71.
Randolph "Little Randy" Smith
(Great-grandson) This site is devoted to Randy's love of Harley Motorcycles and his custom parts work.
Randolph "Little Randy" Smith
(Great-grandson) This site is devoted to Randy's company that he founded, Custom
Cycle Engineering.
Florence (Smith) Sprague
Mount Mercy College in Cedar Rapids, Iowa created a nice website on famous American artist Grant Wood and his
1933-34 Stone City Art Colony, Iowa. This is where Soapy's son Jefferson R. Smith lll, and his 2nd wife Florence Sprague,
a well known artist, met. This site has a biography on Florence. Jeff Smith (Soapy's great-grandson) was key in helping
this site with information.
Soapy's Virtual Gravesite
Leave a thoughtful message, and even a flower or cigar, at the Soapy Smith virtual grave site (Find A Grave).
You can also vote on how popular Soapy is, and we ask that you please do so. The Smith family asks you to take a little time
and leave your thoughts, whether pro Soapy, or not.
Confidence
Men, Gamblers & Crime History, Products & Entertainment
Blacksheep Ancestors
Search for your black-sheep ancestors
in free genealogical prison and convict records, historical court records, executions, insane asylum records and biographies
of famous outlaws, criminals & pirates in the United States, United Kingdom and Canada.
The Blonger Brothers
Sam and Lou Blonger were the rivals and successors of "Soapy's" empire
in Denver. This is a wonderful "tell all" website that is beautifully detailed and a well written history of one
of the longest underworld reigns in criminal history. Operated by Scott and Craig Johnson, the g-g-great grand nephews.
A must see.
Clews
Clews: The Historic True Crime Blog. Clews is a weblog devoted to the discovery and dissemination of the fascinating
stories to be found where murder, history, and journalism overlap. It is written by Laura James, former news reporter turned
trial lawyer and devotee of forgotten true crime stories and the fascinating people who wrote them.
The Days of '98 Show (With Soapy Smith)
Strangely it is our favorite! Advertised as "the longest running show in the North!" Starting in
1925. Owner Jim Richards is a good friend of the Smith family and was instrumental in starting the very first Soapy Smith
Wake. If you go to Skagway you CANNOT miss this show.
The Encyclopedia of Scams
Find your favorite scams, swindles
and bar bets at the Encyclopedia of Scams. Written by Nicholas J. Johnson, “Australia's honest con man.” The
Encyclopedia teaches readers the difference between the pigeon drop and a cackle bladder and much more.
The Faro King
This is a great source for faro and other old west gambling supplies. Featuring quality reproduction old west
playing card decks, clay composition chips and faro dealing boxes. Check them out whether you play at home or plan to
set up a stake at an up coming annual match or civil war/old west reenactment.
The Frontier Gambler
Bob Wood's site dedicated to
those men and women that made their living by the turn of a card. The site includes a lot of history on the gamblers, including
Soapy Smith, Wyatt Earp, Bat Masterson, Lottie Deno and Poker Alice. History of the games include faro, keno, hazard, chuck-a-luck,
craps and roulette.
Gambling Collectibles.com
This fun site contains crooked gambling equipment, especially
dice, used by hustlers and scoundrels to fleece the unwary. Steve, owner of the firm says, "The number of ways dice were
rigged is quite interesting." We agree.
Whit Haydn
Award winning, master sleight-of hand magician. Vice President of the Magic Castle in Hollywood, California.
Co-founder of the School For Scoundrels. Producer of the annual Soapy Smith Wake held at the Magic Castle. If you want to
see how bunco men worked their games then Mr. Haydn is a must see. He can be found performing at the Magic Castle. Please
check their site for dates. Whit Haydn is a huge fan of Soapy's and a good friend of the Smith family and this website.
He holds a place of honor here.
Knights of the Green Cloth
19th century reenactment organization
preserving the legend and spirit of the professional frontier gambler, their name was taken from the book of the same
title. Very nice and informative site, that includes links to information on several old west saloon gambling games that are
no longer played, but were once very popular; including faro, brag, monte, chuck-a-luck and hazard.
The Magic Castle
This
is magic central in southern California. A very plush, members and their guests only club where
magicians get together and perform. They host the annual "Soapy" Smith wake in Hollywood,
California.
Pharobank
A website owned by friend Phil Gessert.
Phil manufacturers and sells reproduction and original faro (pharo) equipment. He also hires out for those needing a casino
affair. The site is an interesting look into the history and the characters involved with the old west game. There are some
great photographs of various events Phil has worked at, including the July 8, 2006 Soapy Smith night at the Magic Castle.
The School for Scoundrels
THE store and school
for the entertaining con man. They have fantastic products and DVD's on the shell game, three-card Monte, Billiard know-how
and a host of other games played by the hustler. There is a great history section on the bunco men of the past. The school
is taught at the world famous Magic Castle.
The School for Scoundrels Forum
Now here is a fantastic forum with
numerous threads relating to gambling and the bunco man. It is the brain-child of Whit Haydn of the School for Scoundrels.
Perhaps the most educational forum on bunco activities in the world! Visitors can view threads on topics of old west con man
history, pool hustling, laws, and Soapy Smith. Visitors with an interest can join the section entitled SOAPY'S GANG that
contains four topic threads. A must see!
Wichita Faro
This is the most authentically detailed
and entertaining version of the gambling game of faro in the world. This award winning site takes place in a virtual saloon
setting complete with crowd and gambling noises. Even saloon music is supplied by a piano. Faro was Soapy Smith's favorite
gambling game. He once slashed a faro layout with his knife at the Arcade gaming clubs in Denver, Colorado.
|
 |
Colorado Historical Society
Home to
the Colorado Historical Society.
Colorado's Historic Newspaper Collection
Colorado newspaper
collection from 1859 to 1923. A joint endeavor of the Colorado State Library, the Colorado Historical Society and the Collaborative
Digitization Program.
Ellen's Place - Colorado Lore, Legend and Fact
A host to many other sites relating to Colorado history.
Photos West - Denver Public Library
“The Western History/Genealogy Department houses a major collection
of photography documenting the development of the American West. The gallery exhibits will introduce you to topics chosen
from the collection.” This is a huge site of many thousands of digitized photographs
from the Denver Public Libraries collection, covering the entire American west but centering around Denver and Colorado history.
Rocky Mountain Profiles
Wonderful site and photographs of Colorado's historical town's, camps and ghost towns, including Creede and
Leadville where Soapy was. In the section on Creede there are photos of the Creede Hotel where it is reported that Soapy stayed.
It seems reasonable as it is very close to the spot where his saloon, the Orleans Club stood. However, the building cannot
be spotted in photographs of the area pre-1893.
|
 |
Alaska
and Klondike History
Alaska's Gold
A
large, very fascinating, and educational site on Alaska's role in the Klondike gold rush, from the Alaska state library.
Arctic Website
Photos and stories on "Soapy" wakes up at Skagway, Alaska.
Government sites (United States & Canada)
The United States Federal Park Service for the Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park and the Canadian
equivalent for their Klondike National Historic Sites of Canada, join forces to cover the history of the Klondike gold
rush. from Seattle, Washington to the Yukon. The sites below cover the starting point in Seattle, Washington, the
ports of Skagway and Dyea, and finally the Klondike towns and gold fields. Very educational with lots of historic
photographs. Be sure to take the Skagway tour.
Seattle Unit: Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park
Skagway, Alaska
Skagway Unit: Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park
The Klondike
The Skagway News and Depot
A fantastic newspaper owned and operated by friend of the Smith family, Jeff Brady. Jeff is very knowledgeable
on the history of Skagway. His depot is filled with books relating to Alaska and Skagway. There are several books on "Soapy"
that you can purchase in the store and on-line. In the Summer Jeff prints up a supplemental edition, calling it The Skaguay
News, which is filled with great history of the town.
|
 |
History, Products & Entertainment
Old US (sanborn) Maps.com
Sanborn
fire insurance maps are detailed city plans, usually at scales of 50 or 100 feet to an inch. They show individual building
"footprints," complete with construction details, such as building material (brick, adobe, frame, etc.), height
(of larger buildings), number of stories, location of doors, windows, chimneys and elevators, use of structure (dwelling,
outhouse, hotel, church, etc.), street address, and occasionally the ethnicity of the occupants. Other features shown include
lot lines, street widths, water pipes, hydrants and cisterns, and fire-fighting facilities.
Newnan - Coweta Historical Society
Dedicated to the preservation
and conservation of the cultural, historical and architectural heritage of Coweta County. This is the birth place of Soapy
Smith.
Old West History.net
A vast cornucopia of historical
information regarding the old west. There is a large amount devoted to the city of Tombstone, Arizona of the 19th century.
A must see.
Dave Bourne's Saloon Piano
Dave Bourne, a musician and reenactor,
plays the best 19th century piano that I have ever heard! I have SALOON PIANO, CD volumes 1, 2 and 3. For old west piano there
is no where else to go,
but to Dave Bourne. You can find these CD's and his others on his website. He also performs live at the annual "Soapy"
Smith wake held each July 8, at the Magic Castle in Hollywood, California.
Texas-Jack Vermillion
Bob Wood developed this site
to honor John Wilson "Texas Jack" Vermillion, a noted gunman who joined the Soapy Smith gang around 1888. At that
time he was known as "Shoot-Your-Eye-Out-Jack" Vermillion.
White Horse Movie Ranch
A fun corporation owned, fledgling
old west town where several cowboy reenactment organizations meet, camp out, shoot, and socialize. There are several annual
events including one of the July 8 Soapy Smith Wakes.
Wild West History Association
The Wild West History Association.
The proud parents are the National Association for Outlaw and Lawmen History (NOLA), formed in 1974, and the Western Outlaw-Lawman
History Association (WOLA), founded in 1990. These two history groups, with a worldwide membership, have joined in the formation
of the Wild West History Association (WWHA). This merger creates the primary Wild West history organization in the world whose
aim is to discover, share, and promote the true stories of outlaws and lawmen in the frontier west.
|
|
Miscellaneous Category History, Products &
Entertainment
Coopertoons
Cartoons, Caricatures, and Other Illustrated Humor. Chip Cooper makes caricatures
of his favorite social and political profiles. In 2008 he chose Soapy Smith as a model.
WOULD YOU LIKE TO KNOW MORE?
read Alias Soapy Smith: The Life and Death of a Scoundrel
No images
or text may be used without prior written consent.
|
|
|
 |