Gunsmoke: Old West Stories

Originally Aired: February 2, 1958 In Gunsmoke #304, "Kitty's Killing," a religious zealot named Jacob Leach arrives in Dodge City consumed with righteous fury. Believing himself to be an instrument of divine justice, Leach demands that Chester lock him in jail to prevent him from killing a man named Ollie Radford, whom he considers a sinner deserving of death. Marshal Matt Dillon agrees to keep L...

Originally Aired: January 19, 1958 In Gunsmoke #302, “Moo Moo Raid,” a missing cow nearly sparks a range war in Dodge City. When trail boss Tush Lee discovers that Oni Hager—and his legendary swimming cow, Ida Belle—have vanished, suspicion falls squarely on rival cattleman Bert Collins. With thousands of dollars riding on which herd crosses the river first, tempers flare f...

Originally Aired: January 12, 1958 In Gunsmoke #301, “Second Son,” an English drifter named Sedgely Carstairs rides into Dodge City determined to win back the horse he lost in a poker game to the ruthless Pete Newson. Polite, soft-spoken, and stubbornly honorable, Carstairs seems out of place in the rough Kansas cowtown. But beneath his refined manners lies a wounded pride—and a...

Originally Aired: January 5, 1958 In Gunsmoke #300, “Puckett’s New Year,” Marshal Matt Dillon and Chester rescue an aging buffalo hunter, Ira Puckett, after his partner abandons him during a brutal prairie blizzard. Left with a shattered foot and his pride deeply wounded, Puckett is brought back to Dodge City to recover—only to learn that his roaming days are over. When the...

Originally Aired: December 29, 1957 In Gunsmoke #299, “Where’d They Go?” a late-night holdup at Wilbur Jonas’s general store sends Marshal Matt Dillon and Chester riding into a brewing winter storm to arrest local homesteader Clint Dodie. Identified by voice and manner alone, Dodie swears he’s innocent—but with no clear alibi and a blizzard closing in, Dillon ta...

Originally Aired: December 28, 1957 In Gunsmoke #298, “Twelfth Night,” an old mountain feud follows two stubborn Ozark men all the way to Dodge City. When Eben Hakes arrives on foot—long rifle in hand—looking for his lifelong enemy Joth Monger, Marshal Matt Dillon braces for bloodshed. The bitter rivalry between the Hakes and Monger families stretches back generations, root...

Originally Aired: December 15, 1957 In Gunsmoke #297, “Ugly,” a horribly disfigured stranger named Bruno Thayer rides into Dodge City, and his appearance alone is enough to spark fear and cruelty among the townsfolk. Scarred years earlier in a buffalo stampede, Bruno keeps mostly to himself, hoping to make a quiet life on an abandoned farm. But in a town quick to judge what it doesn&rs...

Originally Aired: December 8, 1957 In Gunsmoke #296, “Long as I Live,” Dodge City is shaken to its core when Doc Adams is shot down in cold blood. The town’s beloved physician—who has saved countless lives without asking for thanks—lies hovering between life and death, and for once it is Marshal Matt Dillon who must take instructions instead of giving them. With no ot...

Originally Aired: December 1, 1957 In Gunsmoke #295, “Jud’s Woman,” Marshal Matt Dillon rides into a brewing storm and encounters more than bad weather. A frightened young woman named Jenny Barton refuses him shelter one night—only for her jealous and violent partner, Jud Borden, to later accuse Dillon of coming after her. It soon becomes clear that Jenny’s life is on...

Originally Aired: November 24, 1957 In Gunsmoke #294, “Odd Man Out,” Marshal Matt Dillon investigates the mysterious disappearance of Bertha Huggins, a farm wife who has been married thirty-seven years to her aging husband, Cyrus. When Cyrus reports that Bertha has suddenly run off, the story doesn’t quite ring true—but neither does the idea that the devoted couple could si...

Originally Aired: November 17, 1957 In Gunsmoke #293, “The Queue,” Dodge City’s uneasy tolerance is tested when a quiet Chinese immigrant named Chen Lan Wong arrives looking for honest work. Though Marshal Matt Dillon offers protection, prejudice simmers just beneath the surface—especially among two local bullies who resent the newcomer’s presence and spread rumors ab...

Originally Aired: November 10, 1957 In Gunsmoke #292, “Gun Shy,” a timid young Easterner named Tom Wilson comes west chasing dime-novel dreams of frontier glory—only to discover that the prairie demands more than courage in stories. After failing as a ranch hand and accidentally shooting himself in the leg, Tom’s confidence sinks even lower. Convinced he doesn’t belon...

Originally Aired: November 3, 1957 In Gunsmoke #291, “Bull,” Marshal Matt Dillon faces one of the most troubling cases in Dodge City when a drunken buffalo hunter named Bull Hogan kills a young man in what appears to be a fair fistfight. The town swears it was an honest brawl—but the victim lies dead, and Bull flees before dawn. As Dillon tracks the powerful frontiersman to a lon...

Originally Aired: January 26, 1958 In Gunsmoke #303, "One for Lee," Marshal Matt Dillon, Chester, and Doc Adams gather at the train depot to welcome Senator Barclay Hooper to Dodge City. The politician's arrival takes a violent turn when a gunman fires at the senator on the crowded platform, grazing his arm before fleeing through town. The only witness is Willie Angel, an ornery old sheepherder wh...

Originally Aired: October 27, 1957 In Gunsmoke #290, “Man and Boy,” a headstrong young deputy from California rides into Dodge determined to prove himself. Cryley Tobin is barely two months into the job, but he’s already hunting a seasoned killer—Jess Ricker—on charges of robbery and murder. Proud, defensive, and eager to show he doesn’t need help, Tobin refuses...

Originally Aired: October 20, 1957 In Gunsmoke #289, “Professor Lute Bone,” Dodge City falls under the spell of a wandering medicine showman whose silver tongue is matched only by the potency of his “Wonder Medicine.” Professor Lute Bone arrives with grand claims, fiery lectures against liquor, and bottles of cure-all tonic that promise to heal everything from rheumatism to...

Originally Aired: October 13, 1957 In Gunsmoke #288, “The Margin,” Marshal Matt Dillon faces mounting pressure when young ranch hand Grody Beck is accused of rustling cattle from Flag Miller’s spread. Cleared by Judge Bent for lack of evidence, Grody walks free—but Dodge City isn’t satisfied. With Flag’s temper flaring and whispers of vigilante justice in the ai...

Originally Aired: October 6, 1957 In Gunsmoke #287, “The Rooks,” Marshal Matt Dillon returns from a grueling trial in Wichita only to find Dodge City under siege by two cocky cowhand brothers, Clay and Jess Rook. With Dillon laid up by illness, the Rooks bully their way through saloons, smashing bottles and pushing townsfolk to their limits. When the violence escalates to murder, Dillo...

Originally Aired: September 29, 1957 In Gunsmoke #286, “Another Man’s Poison,” Marshal Matt Dillon is drawn into a volatile triangle when Sally Bogan’s past resurfaces in Dodge City. Long believing her first husband drowned at sea, Sally is now confronted by Jeff Lightly—very much alive—and his sudden return puts her current marriage to Ben Bogan in jeopardy. As...

Originally Aired: September 22, 1957 In Gunsmoke #285, “Custer,” Marshal Matt Dillon arrests a suspicious drifter, Joe Trimble, for the brutal murder of a reclusive old rancher. But just as Dillon prepares to take him to trial, a U.S. Army major arrives with shocking news—Trimble is actually a deserter from the 7th Cavalry under an alias. Though Matt is convinced of Trimble's gui...

Originally Aired: September 15, 1957 In Gunsmoke #284, “Child Labor,” two orphaned Texas boys arrive in Dodge hoping to find their uncle—but instead fall under the influence of shady rancher Oren Seibert, who hires them to break wild horses. Seibert promises a fair deal, but delivers exploitation and danger, driving the younger brother to his death and the elder to thoughts of re...

Originally Aired: September 8, 1957 In Gunsmoke #283, “Looney McCluny,” a quirky old prospector named Pop McCluny returns to Dodge City with another sack of what everyone assumes is worthless fool’s gold. But when he’s found murdered in his shack, the town is shocked—and Marshal Dillon realizes someone believed Pop’s tales of striking it rich. As suspicion falls...

Originally Aired: September 1, 1957 In Gunsmoke #282, “Jobe’s Son,” a broken old rancher named Jobe Harley finally sees his prayers answered when his estranged son Tad returns after four years. But the reunion is not what Jobe had hoped. Tad is bitter, brash, and proud of a life of violence and crime. As Marshal Dillon watches the young man stir up trouble around Dodge, Jobe grap...

Originally Aired: August 25, 1957 In Gunsmoke #281, “Grass,” Matt Dillon encounters Harry Pope, a skittish Easterner trying to start a quiet life on the prairie. But Pope’s isolation and fear of Indians are not all in his head—he’s the target of cruel harassment by local cowhands Joe Carter and Earl Brant. When Pope defends himself one night with deadly results, Marsh...

Originally Aired: August 18, 1957 In Gunsmoke #280 , “The Peace Officer,” U.S. Marshal Matt Dillon rides to Tascosa to help replace a corrupt sheriff, only to find himself the target of a deadly ambush. Along the way, he encounters Stella Harkney, a saloon girl desperate to escape the clutches of Clegg Rollins—the very man Dillon’s been sent to confront. As the two flee acr...