Johnson County War lyrics

Song information

Artist: Chris Ledoux
Album: Powder River

Lyrics

Headed for wyoming, in 1882..a woman, a team, and a wagon
Gonna make our dreams come true
Settled in the foothills of the big horn mountain slope
Life is sweet we lived on the meat, of the deer and the antelope
We cut house logs on the moutain, with the team we hauled 'em down
Peeled 'em and we stacked 'em up, for a house and bought some ground
Traded for some cattle, and turned 'em out on the range
The skies were blue and we never knew...how things were gonna change
Ole powder river, you're muddy and wide, how many men have died...upon
Your shores
When you brand a man a rustler, he's gotta take a side
There's no middle ground in this johnson country war
Well, the neighbors stopped by yesterday, while I was outside choppin'
Some wood
And they filled me in on the local news, ain't none of it sounded good
Said, they'd been some cattle stealin', by some no count outlaw bands
We'd all been branded rustler's by the big ranchers of this land
Well it was us against the cattlemen, and the years just made it worse
First the drought, then the tough winter, johnson county had been dealt
A curse
Then their came the story about the two dry gulch attacks
Ranger jones and john tisdale both been shot in the back..
Oh, powder river, you're muddy and you're wide
How many men have died upon your shores
When you brand a man a rustler, he's gotta take a side
There's no middle ground in this johnson county war
Then last night at supper time, riders stopped by chance
They said cattleman and hired guns, just burned the kaycee ranch
Two men had died this mornin', shot down in the snow
Now the vigilante army was marchin' for buffalo
Well the county was in an uproar, an every man saddled up to ride
Caught the cattlemen at the ta ranch, and surrounded all four sides
We hailed the house with bullets and swore we'd make 'em pay
But the calvery came across the plains, and once again saved the day
Well, they marched 'em off to cheyenne, and no one went to jail
The cattlemen we're all turned loose, and the hired guns hit the trail
And I guess the only justice, wasn't much to say the least
Last winter me and mine ate mighty fine on the cattle baron's beef
Oh powder river, you're muddy and you're wide
How many men have died upon your shores
When you brand a man a rustler, he's gotta take a side
There's no middle ground in this johnson county war
There's no middle ground in this johnson county war