Archive For Oklahoma Outlaw Al Jennings

Jennings, Al

Publication: Privately photographed and printed, 1902 - 1961, N P

File folder of material, including one typed and three handwritten notes, two pieces of ephemera, seven photographs (two 3" x 4," five 8" x 10") and a real photograph postcard. Rare primary source material on Al Jennings (1863 - 1961), who throughout his colorful life was a cowboy, lawyer, train robber, jailbird, politician, author and movie star. Alphonso J. "Al" Jennings was born in Virginia in 1863. He settled in El Reno, Oklahoma Territory, and served as Canadian County prosecuting attorney from 1892 until 1894. In 1895 he joined his brothers, Ed and John, in a law practice at Woodward. In October of that year Ed was killed, and John wounded, in a shootout with rival attorney Temple Houston. Al left Woodward following Houston's acquittal in 1896 and wandered extensively before gaining employment as a ranch hand in the Creek Nation. During the summer and fall of 1897 his "Jennings gang" of outlaws robbed trains, general stores, and a post office, though amounting to little monetary success. In 1899 he was sentenced to life in prison, but due to the legal efforts of his brother John, his sentence was reduced to five years. He was released in 1902 and received a presidential pardon in 1907. Jennings moved to Oklahoma City in 1911 and soon became active in politics. In 1912 he won the Democratic nomination for Oklahoma County attorney but lost the general election. In 1914 he made an unsuccessful run for the office of governor of Oklahoma; he had just starred in the film adaptation of his 1913 biography, Beating Back, and campaigned openly about his past, winning votes with his honesty. He finished third out of six democratic candidates in the primary. Retiring from law and politics, Jennings moved to California and worked in the motion picture industry making Westerns. On December 26, 1961, he died at his home in Tarzana, California, at the age of 98. This archive features a small business card for "Al Jennings / Lecturer / Crime Does Not Pay" as well as his filled out 1902 United States Penitentiary release card from Leavenworth, Kansas. A handwritten note on the card's verso reads, "Life sentence commuted by President McKinley to five years." There are seven great photographs and a real photograph postcard, accompanied by a photographer's statement confirming that one was the last photograph taken of Jennings alive, in May 1961. One photograph was signed and inscribed "To Bob and Midge from your outlaw pals Al Jennings and Tom Murray / 1958" and one reveals the pallbearers at Jennings' funeral, including one man in Native headdress. The postcard shows Jennings and Westerns actor Sam Garrett on horseback, and three great shots show the aging outlaw, one dated 1961, beaming, with two guns and wearing a porkpie hat. The collection also includes a typed letter with Al's facsimile signature, dated August 20, 1948, from Tarzana, California. "Dear Perry: In reply to your letter of recent date, am pleased to hear from you. Of course, I remember you as well as I do Jesse James, as I do remember Bill Rogers … I have autographed the book, and I take as much pleasure in autographing it to you, as I did for Theadore [sic] Roosevelt, and many thousands of others …" There is also a handwritten note on Hilton Hotels, El Paso stationery addressed to "My Dear Old Pal" and a signed note, somewhat difficult to read, but he seems to say: "My brother was murdered, and they tried to kill me / When I got there / robbed the store [?.] and became a bandit." We were unable to find evidence of any archival materials created by or pertaining to Jennings in OCLC or online; OCLC shows only holdings of his published works, as well as a bibliography and one folder of articles at Oklahoma's Northeastern State University. The entire archive is in very good condition.