The Last Outlaws by Tom Clavin

The Last Outlaws: The Desperate Final Days of the Dalton Gang is a Western history by New York Times bestselling author Tom Clavin, published by St. Martin's Press in November 2023. This hardcover book spans 288 pages (ISBN 9781250282385).

The dreaded Dalton Gang — consisting of three brothers and a rotating cast of colorful accomplices — fashioned themselves as heirs to the legendary James brothers, quickly becoming legends in their own right. Beginning their criminal career as horse thieves, they graduated to robbing banks and trains across California and the Great Plains. The narrative builds toward their most audacious act: an attempt to simultaneously rob two banks in broad daylight in Coffeyville, Kansas, on October 5, 1892 — a bold and bloody raid that would seal their fate.

Clavin examines the Daltons' story within the sweeping context of late 19th-century frontier life, a world on the verge of disappearing as the American frontier was officially declared closed in 1892. The book features vivid portrayals of related figures including outlaw Bill Doolin, the notorious Cattle Annie, and lawman Bill Tilghman, and closes with the arc of the gang's sole surviving member and his unexpected Hollywood aspirations.