The Branch and the Scaffold: The True Story of the West's Hanging Judge

by Loren D. Estleman

When Judge Isaac Parker first arrived in Fort Smith, Arkansas, the town had thirty saloons and one bank. Inheriting a corrupt court and a lawless territory roughly the size of Great Britain, he immediately put the residents on notice by publicly hanging six convicted felons at one time. For the next two decades, his stern and implacable justice brought law and order to the West . . . and made him plenty of enemies.

As the sole law on the untamed frontier, Parker tried civil and criminal cases throughout the Western District of Arkansas and the Indian Nations. Only God and the president had the power to challenge Parker. His severe judgments scandalized Washington and the Eastern press, and took an onerous toll on his private life, but the “Hanging Judge of the Border” never flinched from his duty. Over the years, he and his marshals, dubbed “Parker’s Men,” ran up against some of the most colorful and dangerous outlaws the West had to offer, including the notorious Dalton Gang; Belle Star, the Bandit Queen; the murderous Cherokee Bill; and Ned Christie, a vengeful Indian who carried on a private war against the U.S. government for seven years.

The Branch and the Scaffold is a fascinating depiction of Judge Parker’s life and times, as told by a five-time winner of the Spur Award.

Genres: Westerns, Fiction, Historical Fiction, American History, Law, Historical, Crime

268 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2009

About the author

Loren D. Estleman is an American writer of detective and Western fiction. He writes with a manual typewriter.

Estleman is most famous for his novels about P.I. Amos Walker. Other series characters include Old West marshal Page Murdock and hitman Peter Macklin. He has also written a series of novels about the history of crime in Detroit (also the setting of his Walker books.) His non-series works include Bloody Season, a fictional recreation of the gunfight at the O.K. Corral, and several novels and stories featuring Sherlock Holmes.

Series:
* Amos Walker Mystery
* Valentino Mystery
* Detroit Crime Mystery
* Peter Macklin Mystery
* Page Murdock Mystery

Reviews

[Mike (the Paladin) · Rating 4 out of 5]

For twenty one years Judge Isaac Parker was the presiding judge for the western district court of Arkansas including the Oklahoma and Indian territories. It was an area a little bigger than Great Britain. Appointed in 1875 he did his best to bring law and order to a land he saw as sorely needing it. And it probably did. The first case he presided over was of a young man accused of murder. He murdered another young man in the Indian territory, for his boots. They were very nice boots. The boots having been identified by the dead man's father the youth was found guilty and duly sentenced to death. That same day others were also sentenced to hang. There were 9 hung at once for the judge's first sentencing day.

Judge Parker's reputation has come down to us as the "hanging judge". Maybe earned, but the man was doing his best to uphold the law in a truly "savage land".

I liked this book. It's about a period of time we need to remember and the people who were there. The bandits, the killers, the marshals, the hangman and of course, the judge. You'll meet Bill Doolin, John Wesley Hardin, Cherokee Bill (there were several), Heck Thomas, Bell Starr and others.

It's a well done book an interesting read and if your into the American west I think you'll enjoy it.



By the way, the title... when challenged about the assumed barbarity of public hanging, the judge answered that public executions on a scaffold were by the law and open so all could see their legality. A secret hanging would be no different than a lynching carried out by a mob with a man hung from a branch.

[Ed · Rating 4 out of 5]

Many years ago I visited the tourist trap at Hanging Judge Parker's courtroom and gallows in Fort Smith, Arkansas. I'm a big fan of Mr. Estleman. This book sometimes reads like a history and not a novel with a narrative arc. The descriptions and history are rich. Fans of Westerns should like the background information on many of the colorful characters coming up in the genre.

[Wendy · Rating 1 out of 5]

If I weren't the goal oriented sort of person who cannot stop reading a book once I've started... However, being who I am, I kept reading. Although this book is fiction, you might not know it. The author claims that the story is exciting enough that it doesn't need much dialogue or character development to be interesting, but that is exactly what this book was lacking. There was no character development save for 2 men, the judge and the executioner, and even so, one was not very interested due to the lack of any emotional relationship to these two characters. I felt the author was constantly describing what was, not what these events meant to the characters living them. Without meaning, what's the point?

[Brian · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's an odd feeling to read a historical novel about one's own ancestor, and a notorious one at that. In the last quarter of the 19th century, Isaac Charles Parker was the Federal Judge for the 8th District of the U.S., which encompassed part of Arkansas and the Indian reservations of eastern Oklahoma. During his tenure, he became known (deservedly so) as "The Hanging Judge"--the gallows outside his office window became known as "Parker's Tears", and he has been portrayed in a number of books and movies, notably both versions of "True Grit".

Loren D. Estelman's historical novel "The Branch and the Scaffold" is an interesting combination of straight fact and minor supposition employed to connect episodes of Parker's court into a good narrative. Parker's time at bar involved him in cases that, if not factual, would put him in the position of being a judiciary Forrest Gump. He presided over trials involving the Youngers, the Daltons, Ned Christie, and was even charmed (but not conquered) by Belle Starr on multiple occasions.

The writing here is more of a documentary sort, reminding me more of the narration on a History Channel episode of the old West, but it works for the story, none of the names are changed to protect the innocent or guilty, and is not at all dry in the telling. I recommend this for fans of westerns and history buffs alike, even if their surname isn't Parker.

[K. G. Whitehurst · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book is a monograph trying to masquerade as a novel. Very little dialogue, no character development, nothing but narrative makes a monograph. Estleman should've kept to the nonfiction, not try and hybridize the forms.

[Pat Jorgenson Waterchilde · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting novel in a historical context but not the easiest read. The author use of verbiage meanders and therefore the reader loses the intent of the sentence. The life and time of Judge Isaac Parker and the Arkansas territory of the late 1800's was interesting.

[Anne Patkau · Rating 2 out of 5]

Front cover says "True Story" while inner flap says "fictional". Much like "The Judge and Lilly" all fictional. Take with grain of salt. Tall tales about Judge.

[Anne Wisniewski Vogt · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this book to become more familiar with Judge Parker. It contained some interesting stories of outlaws but a little hard to follow at times.

[Katheryn Riggs · Rating 3 out of 5]

Is "overwritten" a thing? Great content but far too much use of a thesaurus.

[Mike Pitonyak · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good read for those who like history! I enjoyed it!

[Rodney Tammarack · Rating 2 out of 5]

Really 1.5 stars. The author introduces way too many characters to keep track of. The parts directly impacting the main character were decent reading, but overall it does not work for a non-fiction. There are definitely better westerns out there.

[Craig · Rating 4 out of 5]

Appointed by President Ulysses S. Grant as the presiding judge of the US District Court for the District of Arkansas (headquartered in Fort Smith, Arkansas), Judge Isaac Parker began his term in May, 1875 which terminated 21 years later in 1896. His jurisdiction extended into the Indian Nation as well (mainly Oklahoma territory). A strict adherent of the enforcement of federal law, Judge Parker presided over 13,500 cases (criminal and civil) including some 344 capital cases (potentially involving the death penalty). On several occasions, multiple convicted felons were hung at the same time (up to 6) and Judge Parker became known as the "hanging judge" (though he actually was not in favor of capital punishment). Over 150 persons accused of murder were convicted in his court of which 78 were executed (the others died in jail prior to execution or their sentences were commuted by the President of the United States). Until 1889, the US Supreme Court had no jurisdiction over Judge Parker's decisions and his court was the court of final appeal. It was said that "only God and the President had the power to challenge Judge Parker." During his 21 year term, he brought law and order to the West. He engaged many capable lawmen as federal marshals, called "Parker's Men" (Bass Reeves, Frank Canton, Heck Thomas, Bill Tilghman, Chris Madsen to name a few) to patrol the vast territory and bring the murderers, horse and cattle thieves, robbers, rapists to justice, either "dead or alive." Most notorious of the bad men (and women) he targeted were the Dalton Gang, the murderous Cherokee Bill, and Ned Christie, a vengeful Indian who carried on a war against the United States for seven years. Also in his court was the infamous Belle Star, the Bandit Queen. This book details Parker's life as District Judge in Fort Smith, and those who surrounded him during this time, including his wife and children, his deputies, his principal hangman, and the outlaws and criminals he pursued and were brought to justice. A very interesting read about an important saga in the taming of the American West. I liked a famous quote from Judge Parker: "It's not the severity of punishment but rather the certainty of punishment that deters crime."

[Will Cowen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting and accurate, it has a hard time finding its place between creative nonfiction and straight history, leading to unsatisfying prose, and significant stretches of muddy and confusing narration.

[Lisa (Harmonybites) · Rating 2 out of 5]

Loren Estleman was on a recommendation list I've been reading through for both his hard-boiled detective fiction and his Westerns. I read his mystery The Left-Handed Dollar and by and large was impressed with his snappy dialogue and evocative prose. So when I saw this book, one of his westerns with a blurb boasting the author is a "five-time Spur-Award winner" I expected something impressive. Estleman also picked a fascinating real-life figure to center this novel on--the infamous hanging judge, Isaac Parker.

Unfortunately this book fast sagged and made my eyes glaze over. The book begins with Parker and his wife Mary arriving at Fort Smith in May of 1875. Before a month is out, the newly appointed judge has sentenced six men to death--bursting into tears upon pronouncing sentence. I'm assuming the author got this detail from history--in his afterward he claims all his characters are historical. That detail hints at a complicated man--but the novel only skims the surface and Parker never comes through to me as a person. Short as this book was--about 250 pages--I lost interest before half-way through. Seen through several points of view, from the prosecutor, executioner, jailor and a marshall among others, I got much more detail (than I ever wanted) about how to prepare rope suitable for hanging men than any insight into the human beings in this tale--particularly Judge Parker.

[Gene · Rating 4 out of 5]

A rather 19th century book with more narrative, exposition and description than one finds in most novels, but the character sketches are finely drawn, you almost feel you're in the heads of the characters.

As historical novels go, this has what I think has to be a nearly unique methodology-all the characters are real, historical personages, except for the occasional person in the crowd 'everyman.' The only other exception was the author combining two characters of similar names who performed a similar office. The writing is memorable and quotable-I added a number of quotes from the book to my list, which also upped the number of quotes for Mr Estleman considerably. This was a very interesting book, and had a feel of reality to it. It was certainly bad men blasting lots of unnamed people as westerns are wont to do, but it was also a slice of real life at the time, the sometimes uneasy domestic situation of Judge Parker, the yellowness and just made up crap of what passed for journalism at the time.

Mr Estleman feels the pulse of the era, and I'm looking forward to reading his noir mysteries.

[Ed · Rating 3 out of 5]

#17 in the American West series. A flavorful, fictional account of the
"Hanging Judge" of Fort Smith, AR.

The American West series - This is a fictional account of the true story of The American West series - This is a fictional account of the true story of Judge Isaac Parker, the West's legendary hanging judge. From 1875 to his death in 1896, Judge Parker presided over the District Court for the Western District of Arkansas and the Indian Territories. His band of deputies, "Parker's Men", were as colorful as the outlaws they apprehended

[Ellen · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book takes a look at Fort Smith's hanging judge, Isaac Parker, and the criminals, lawyers and law men who came before his bench. While placed in the fiction section of the library, it's not embellished at all and uses factual accounts. Some of the dialogue is imagined, but quite realistic. Well written, but not completely chronological, it was interesting to learn about the outlaws and the justice they met in the judge's jurisdiction, especially if you enjoyed "True Grit."

[Martin · Rating 1 out of 5]

I could not tell if the author was trying to write historical fiction, or wanted to write a biography, but could not find enough factual information. Western fans will probably be disappointed. Credit must be given for the notes on the author’s research and a nice annotated bibliography at the end of the book.

[Jessica · Rating 2 out of 5]

The biggest thing this book is lacking (besides excitement) is a sense of place. I'm from Arkansas, I learned about Judge Parker in school, I've been to the historic site in Ft. Smith. Yet I felt so disconnected from the events and people and, more importantly, the landscape in this particular book. It could have taken place anywhere and nowhere.

[William · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not very well written. Needs severe editing by one of my mean high school English teachers. Cliche metaphors and dangling modifiers through out.
However, it was a very interesting subject so I kept reading. It is about a hanging judge in the late 19th century Indian territory -- not something that I knew much about.

[Vicki · Rating 3 out of 5]

I started reading this book thinking, if I didn't like it I wouldn't have to finish it,but it kept my interest. The book is based on fact - the characters, all about the wild west days and a judge by the name of Isaac Parker who came to be known as'The hanging Judge'. The judge served just over 20 years in Fort Smith, Arkansas trying to bring law and order under his jurisdiction.

[Violet · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was disappointed in this one because it mainly reads like an essay; when I was in English class we had to do a "research essay" and this reminded me of it. The author has really done his research. But I read for pleasure and would have preferred more of a story. Very well written, just not my cup of tea.

[Maya · Rating 2 out of 5]

Would've been better as a history book. In fact, I'm intrigued about this character and might track down a nonfiction account.

[Martha]

This book is by the same author as "Master Executioner" which I believe is an extraordinary book.

[Lynn Kearney · Rating 3 out of 5]

I usually like his stuff but didn't realize this wasn't a thriller but more a history of the justice system in part of the old west. Interesting, because there was lots I didn't know, but not great.

[Kay · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great Historical Fiction story of Hanging Judge Parker in Fort Smith.

[Theshiney · Rating 1 out of 5]

this wasnt really about parker, was it estleman? beautiful title though...

[Cathleen · Rating 1 out of 5]

For a book in a plot-driven genre and a real-life subject with a compelling story, this was flat, disjointed, and disappointing.

[Miranda Mckinlay · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very interesting

[Jay Hops · Rating 5 out of 5]

A lot of people here seem to not find this book as compelling as I did. It's full of great characters and though its choppy, it's really interesting!