Miller, Donna Marie. Texas Secessionists Standoff: The 1997 Republic of Texas "War". College Station: Texas A&M University Press, 2022. 336 pages.

On April 27, 1997, Richard Lance McLaren and his followers in the so-called "Republic of Texas (ROT)" militia held hostages inside their home at the Davis Mountain Resort, near Fort Davis, Texas, and demanded the release of jailed ROT members. McLaren's demand initiated a seven-day standoff with local law enforcement and the Texas Rangers that came to be called the "Republic of Texas War."

Oglesbee, Betty. Texas Ranger Leo Bishop: His Legendary Life and Times . . . A Personal Glimpse. Nortex Press, 2022. 154 pages.

Leo Henderson Bishop (1903-1973) was among the first of the "new" Texas Rangers appointed by James V. Allred upon his inauguration as Governor of Texas in 1935. Two boxes of Bishop family memorabilia at the estate sale of Bishop Family Historian Bettye Bishop Robbins in 2016 provided the basis for this personal glimpse into her father's life, along with supportive articles from the San Augustine Tribune. 

Pappalardo, Joe. Red Sky Morning: The Epic True Story of Texas Ranger Company F. Macmillan Publishers, 2022. 352 pages.

The explosive and bloody true history of Texas Rangers Company F, made up of hard men who risked their lives to bring justice to a lawless frontier.

Cochran, Mike. John B. Denton: The Bigger-Than-Life Story of the Fighting Parson and Texas Ranger. Denton: University of North Texas Press, 2021. 256 pages.

Denton County and the City of Denton, Texas are named for pioneer preacher, lawyer, and Texas Ranger John B. Denton. John was an orphan in frontier Arkansas who became a circuit-riding Methodist preacher and an early settler to North Texas. He answered a call from William B. Travis to bring Methodists to the new Republic of Texas. Denton then became a Texas Ranger on the frontier, ultimately being killed in the Tarrant Expedition near modern day Fort Worth and Arlington on May 24, 1841.

McCaslin, Richard B. Texas Ranger Captain William L. Wright. Denton: University of North Texas Press, 2021. 416 pages.

William L. Wright (1868–1942) was born to be a Texas Ranger, and hard work made him a great one. When demands for Ranger reform peaked, he was appointed as a captain and served for most of the next twenty years, retiring in 1939 after commanding dozens of Rangers. Wright emerged unscathed from the Canales investigation, enforced Prohibition in South Texas, and policed oil towns in West Texas, as well as tackling many other legal problems. When he retired, he was the only Ranger in service who had worked under seven governors. Wright has also been honored as an inductee into the Texas Ranger Hall of Fame at Waco.

Goresnstein, Nathan. The Guns of John Moses Browning. New York, NY: Scribner, 2021. 323 pages.

Firearms designer John Browning made his first firearm at age 13 in his father's gun shop and was awarded the first of his 128 firearm patents on October 7, 1879, at the age of 24. He is regarded as one of the most successful firearms designers of the 19th and 20th centuries. He pioneered the development of modern repeating, semi-automatic and automatic firearms used by Texas Rangers such as the Winchester Model 1886 rifle and Model 1897 shotgun, Colt Model 1911 pistol, and Browning Automatic Rifle or BAR.

Ivey, Darren L. The Ranger Ideal Volume 3: Texas Rangers in the Hall of Fame, 1898‐1987. Denton, TX: University of North Texas Press, 2021. 864 pages.

The last volume of Ivey’s monumental 2,300 page study of  Hall of Fame Rangers includes twelve inductees who served Texas in the twentieth century.  They are: William L. Wright, Frank A. Hamer, Thomas R. Hickman, Charles E. Miller, Manuel T. Gonzaullas, Marvin Burton, Robert A. Crowder, John J. Klevenhagen, Clinton T. Peoples, James E. Riddles, Bobby Paul Doherty and Stanley Keith Guffey.

McDonald, Thomas O. Texas Rangers, Ranchers, and Realtors ‐ James Hughes Callahan and the Day Family in the Guadalupe River Basin. Norman, OK: University of Oklahoma Press, 2021. 619 pages.

Native Georgian, James Hughes Callahan (1812–1856) migrated to Texas to serve in the Texas Revolution in exchange for land. In Seguin, Texas, where he settled, he met and married a divorcée, Sarah Medissa Day (1822–1856). Follow the lives of these two Texas pioneers: Callahan was a soldier, a Texas Ranger, a rancher, and a land developer, at every turn making his mark on the evolving Guadalupe River Basin. Sarah’s family’s journey reflected the experience of many immigrants to Texas after its war of independence.

Alexander, Bob and Richard K. Alford. Tall Walls and High Fences: Officers and Offenders, the Texas Prison Story. Denton, TX: University of North Texas Press, 2020.

Tall Walls and High Fences is the first comprehensive history of Texas prisons, written by a former law enforcement officer and an officer of the Texas prisons. Bob Alexander and Richard K. Alford chronicle the significant events and transformation of the Texas prison system from its earliest times to the present day, paying special attention to the human side of the story.

Famous people and episodes in Texas prison history receive their due, from Texas Rangers apprehending and placing outlaws in prison to the 1974 prison siege at Huntsville. Alexander and Alford pay special tribute to the more than 75 correctional officers, lawmen, and civilians who lost their lives in the line of duty.

Dukes, Doug. Firearms of the Texas Rangers: From the Frontier Era to the Modern Age. Denton, TX: University of North Texas Press, 2020.

Firearms of the Texas Rangers, with more than 180 photographs, tells the history of the Texas Rangers primarily through the use of their firearms. Author Doug Dukes narrates famous episodes in Ranger history, including Jack Hays and the Paterson, the Walker Colt, the McCulloch Colt Revolver (smuggled through the Union blockade during the Civil War), and the Frontier Battalion and their use of the Colt Peacemaker and Winchester and Sharps carbines. Readers will delight in learning of Frank Hamer’s marksmanship with his Colt Single Action Army and his Remington, along with Captain J.W. McCormick and his two .45 Colt pistols, complete with photos.

Parsons, Chuck. Texas Ranger Lee Hall: From the Red River to the Rio Grande. Denton, TX: University of North Texas Press, 2020.

Jesse Lee Hall (1849–1911) came to Texas in 1870. Initially working as a school teacher, he became a deputy sheriff, later joining the Texas Rangers and commanding Capt. Leander McNelly’s Special State Troops on the border. He rounded up the King Fisher gang, ended the Sutton-Taylor Feud and participated in the Sam Bass gun fight in Round Rock. Chuck Parsons has authored eight books about Texas Rangers, feuds and Reconstruction.

Ginn, Jody Edward. East Texas Troubles: The Allred Rangers’ Cleanup of San Augustine. Norman, OK: University of Oklahoma Press, 2019.

Between 1931 and 1934 San Augustine County had seen at least three murders in broad daylight, the latest developments in the decade‐long rule of the criminal McClanahan‐Burleson gang. The gang racketeered and bootlegged its way into power. In 1935, Governor James V. Allred sent a team of qualified Texas Rangers to San Augustine County. The author tells of their year‐and‐a‐half‐long cleanup of the county.

Sadler, Charles H. III and Louis R. Harris. Texas Ranger in Transition: From Gunfighters to Criminal Investigators, 1920-1935.  Norman, OK: University of Oklahoma Press, 2019.

In a Texas awash in booze and oil in the Prohibition years, the Rangers found themselves riding herd on gamblers and bootleggers, but also tasked with everything from catching murderers to preventing circus performances on Sundays.

Ivey, Darren L. The Ranger Ideal: Texas Rangers in the Hall of Fame, 1874-1930, Vol. II. Denton, TX: University of North Texas Press, 2018.

The second volume of Ivey’s set of biographies of the Hall of Fame Texas Rangers includes: John B. Jones, Leander H. McNelly, John B. Armstrong, James B. Gillett, Jesse L. Hall, George W. Baylor, Bryan Marsh, Ira Aten, James A. Brooks, William J. McDonald, John R. Hughes and John H. Rogers.

Alexander, Bob and Donaly E. Brice. Texas Rangers: Lives, Legend, and Legacy. Denton, TX: University of North Texas Press, 2017.

A very readable, well-researched comprehensive one volume history on the Texas Rangers. One of the few books that covers the modern Rangers of the late 20^th and early 21^st century

Cox, Mike. Texas Ranger Tales: Stories That Need Telling. Plano, TX: Republic of Texas Press, 1997.

A collection of interesting and often amusing stories about the Rangers not usually found in books on Ranger history.  Mike Cox is currently the Chief Public Information Officer for the Texas Department of Public Safety.

Ford, John Salmon. Rip Ford’s Texas. Austin: University of Texas Press, 1963.

Edited by Stephen B. Oates.  Ford’s account of his life in Texas and important events in the state’s history.  He served as a Ranger in the 1840s and 1850s, continued in military service through the Civil War, and also held political office, in addition to being a doctor, lawyer, and surveyor.

Hardin, Stephen. The Texas Rangers. London: Osprey Publishing Ltd., 1991.

This volume is part of Osprey’s Military Elite Series written for juveniles. It presents a concise history of the Rangers up to the 1990s. It is heavily illustrated with both photographs and drawings. This is a good beginning book for both children and adults.

Harris, Charles H., III and Louis R. Sadler. The Texas Rangers and the Mexican Revolution: The bloodiest Decade, 1910 – 1920. Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press, 2004.

A well-researched and unbiased examination of the instability along the Texas-Mexico border during the period of the Mexican Revolution. It is one of the first studies to extensively use archives from the Mexican Government and declassified FBI and other Federal records on the Mexican Revolution and the Plan of San Diego. Although lacking in in-depth analyses and interpretation, the book does a good job of attempting to verify or debunk the many legends regarding the role of the Texas Rangers  along the border in the years 1910 – 1920.  I so doing it both corrects and adds to what is known of the era.

Ivey, Darren L. The Ranger Ideal: Texas Rangers in the Hall of Fame, 1823-1861, Vol. I. Denton, TX: University of North Texas Press, 2017.

The first volume in a projected three-volume set giving biographies of the 31 Texas Rangers who have been inducted into the Texas Ranger Hall of Fame.  Volume 1 includes: Stephen F. Austin, John Coffee Hays, Ben McCulloch, William A.A. “Bigfoot” Wallace, Samuel H. Walker, John S. “Rip” Ford and Lawrence Sullivan “Sul” Ross.

Knowles, Thomas W. They Rode for the Lone Star: The Saga of the Texas Rangers. Dallas: Taylor Publishing Company, 1999.

Fully illustrated history of the Texas Rangers from the birth of Texas to the Civil War. Many of the illustrations and photographs used in this book have never been published before.

Moore, Stephen L. Savage Frontier Plano, TX: Republic of Texas Press, 2002 - 2010.

A four volume is a comprehensive treatment of the Rangers from 1835 to 1845. In addition to being a good history of these years, Moore also includes numerous rosters that could be of interest to family historians looking for that elusive Ranger relative.

Proctor, Ben. Just one riot: episodes of Texas Rangers in the 20^th century. Austin: Eakin Press, 1991.

This work covers some of the more famous incidents of Ranger history in the 20^th century that illustrate the adage of “one riot, one Ranger.” Starting with Bill McDonald’s handling of the Brownsville riot in 1906, the book conclude with the “Huntsville Siege” of 1974.

Smith, David Paul. Frontier Defense in the Civil War: Texas Rangers and Rebels. College Station, TX: Texas A&M University Press, 1992.

This book analyzes the defense of the Texas Frontier against Indian raiders and army deserters by the varied groups established during the turbulent years of the Civil War. The author makes a good job of distinguishing between those men on the frontier in the hired by the State to do ranging duty and those who were stationed there as soldiers of the Confederate States Army.

Utley, Robert M. Lone Star Justice. New York: Oxford University Press, 2002.

Utley, Robert M. Lone Star Lawmen. New York: Oxford University Press, 2007.

A two volume comprehensive history of the Rangers up to the end of the 1990s. Well written and well-researched, this is a more academic treatment of the subject matter than the books by Alexander and Brice and Wilkins. When published, it was looked upon as the new standard history of the Rangers, replacing Walter Prescott Webb’s tome.

Webb, Walter Prescott. The Texas Rangers: A Century of Frontier Defense. Austin: University of Texas Press, 1985.

First published in 1935, this well-known history of the Rangers covers the first years of the force up to 1935 when the Rangers became a part of the Texas Department of Public Safety.  Webb spent many years writing this book and even rode with the Rangers, experiences which he includes in the book. This work is not as readable as some of Webb’s other histories and tends to look at Ranger history through rose-colored glasses.

Wilkins, Frederick. Defending the borders: the Texas Rangers 1848-1861. Austin: State House Press, 2001.

This book by Wilkins covers the years from the end of the Mexican War to the beginning of the American Civil War. With this work, Wilkins helps to clarify an often confusing period in Ranger history. With the publication of this work, Wilkins finished a four volume set that give an in-depth treatment of the nineteenth Ranger.

Wilkins, Frederick. The Highly Irregular Irregulars: Texas Rangers on the Mexican War. Austin: Eakin Press, 1990.

This book covers the history of the Rangers during the Mexican War, a time when the Rangers were effective and respected fighters, although often undisciplined and “highly irregular.”

Wilkins, Frederick. The Law Comes to Texas: The Texas Rangers 1870-1901. Austin: State House Press, 1999.

This book covers the Frontier Battalion era and the important transition of the Rangers from fighting Indians to chasing outlaws. The book includes accounts of famous outlaws Sam Bass and John Wesley Hardin and their captures by the Rangers.

Wilkins, Frederick. The Legend Begins: The Texas Rangers, 1823-1845. Austin: State House Press, 1996.

This work covers in details the formative years of the Texas Rangers. In addition to details on battles, Wilkins also gives good information on the weapons and accoutrements of the early Rangers. A very reader friendly history book.

Selection Biographies of Notable Rangers

Alexander, Bob. Old Riot, New Ranger: Captain Jack Dean, Texas Ranger and U.S. Marshal. Denton, TX: University of North Texas Press, 2018.

Alexander, Bob. Rawhide Ranger, Ira Aten: enforcing law on the Texas frontier. Denton, TX: University of North Texas Press, 2011.

Biography of a Aten highlighting not only his service as a Texas Ranger, but also as sheriff of two Texas counties.

Alexander, Bob. Six-shooters and shifting sands: the wild west life of Texas Ranger Captain Frank Jones. Denton, TX: University of North Texas Press, 2015.

Readable and well-researched biography of a Ranger captain who paid the ultimate price for his law enforcement service, dying in the line of duty.

Alexander, Bob. Whiskey River Ranger: the old west life of Baz Outlaw. Denton, TX: University of North Texas Press, 2016.

Outlaw, sometimes described as fearless, served as a Texas Ranger and a Deputy U. S. Marshal. This biography looks as his career and fall from grace as he battled alcoholism.

Boessenecker, John. Texas Ranger: the epic life of Frank Hamer, the man who killed Bonnie and Clyde. New York: St. Martin’s Press, 2016.

Long overdue in-depth look at the life of Texas Ranger Captain Frank Hamer.

Gillett, James B. Six Years with the Texas Rangers, 1875 to 1881. Lincoln, NE: University of Nebraska Press, 1987.

Edited by M. M. Quaife,  Gillett’s account of his years of service with the Rangers during the early years of the Frontier Battalion.  He served in Company D under Capt. Dan W. Roberts and participated in a number of famous incidents, including being an eyewitness to the killing of outlaw Sam Bass.

Greer, James Kimmins. Colonel Jack Hays: Texas Frontier Leader and California Builder. New York: E. P. Dutton & Company, Inc., 1952.

John Coffee Hays, one of the most famous of the early Rangers, served during the 1830s and 1840s.  He was a distinguished leader during the Mexican War in which he led the Ranger companies.  After the war, he headed to California where he helped to found the city Oakland and served as Surveyor General for the state.

Jenkins, John H. and H. Gordon Frost. “I’m Frank Hamer” The Life of a Texas Peace Officer. Austin: State House Press, 1993.

The story of the famous Ranger, Frank Hamer, who tracked down Bonnie and Clyde.  Hamer, known as a gunfighter, served on and off as a Ranger throughout the early 1900s, in addition to other law enforcement duties.  The book includes a detailed account of the lives and deaths of the Bonnie and Clyde.

Malsch, Brownson. “Lone Wolf” Gonzaullas, Texas Ranger. Norman, OK: University of Oklahoma Press, 1998.

Biography of Captain M. T. “Lone Wolf” Gonzaullas, the famed Ranger who joined the force in 1920.  Gonzaullas played a pivotal role in the modernization of Texas law enforcement by setting up the state’s first crime lab and was a model example of a modern Ranger captain.

Miller, Rick. Texas Ranger John B. Jones. Denton: TX: University of North Texas Press, 2011.

Biography of the man who led the Frontier Battalion in its formative years.

Paine, Albert Bigelow. Captain Bill McDonald, Texas Ranger. Austin: State House Press, 1986.

Biography of Capt. William J. McDonald who served as captain of Company B during the 1890s and early 1900s.  He also served in other areas of law enforcement including sheriff and U.S. Marshal.

Parsons, Chuck. Captain John R. Hughes: Lone Star Ranger. Denton, TX: University of North Texas Press, 2011.

Parsons, Chuck and Marianne E. Hall Little. Captain L. H. McNelly – Texas Ranger – The Life and Times of a Fighting Man. Austin: State House Press, 2001.

A good biography of this often controversial figure of Texas Ranger history.

Roberts, Capt. Dan W. Rangers and Sovereignty. Austin: State House Press, 1987.

Capt. Roberts’ account of Ranger life in the 1870s and 1880s.  He served as captain of Company D.  The book also includes a book written by Roberts’ wife who recounts her life in the Ranger camp.

Spellman, Paul N. Captain John H. Rogers, Texas Ranger. Denton, TX: University of North Texas Press, 2003.

A well-written and readable biography of one of the “four great” Ranger captains, Rogers began serving in the Rangers in the late nineteenth century and made the transition into the Rangers of the twentieth century.

Sterling, William Warren. Trails and Trials of a Texas Ranger. Norman, OK: University of Oklahoma Press, 1968.

Sterling was a Ranger in the early 1900s and rose through the ranks to become the adjutant general of Texas in the 1930s.  This book chronicles his life and experiences as a Ranger as well as presenting short biographical sketches of some of the Rangers Sterling admired.

Weiss, Harold J., Jr. Yours to command: the life and legend of Ranger Captain Bill McDonald. Denton, TX: University of North Texas Press, 2009.

A well-researched biography of Capt. McDonald who is known as one of the “four great” Ranger captains.

Elliott, Glenn and Robert Nieman. Glenn Elliott: A Ranger's Ranger. Self Published, 1999.

Elliott, Glenn and Robert Nieman. Glenn Elliott: Still A Ranger's Ranger. Self Published, 2003.

In the 1980s and 1990s several biographies and autobiographies of “modern” Rangers have been published. Some of the men covered in these books include:

1. G. “Butch” Albers, served 1961-1974
2. J. “Jay” Banks, served 1947-1960
3. Glenn Elliott, served 1961-1987 (2 volumes)
4. Edgar Gooding, served 1948-1983
5. Joaquin Jackson, served 1957-1993
6. Jim Peters, served 1968-1987
7. Lewis Rigler, served 1947-1977
8. John M. Wood, served 1949-1978

*Updated July 21, 2020