It starts with the inspiration....



Belle Starr. The Bandit Queen.

In the late 1800s, Belle Starr was known as a notorious female outlaw in America’s “Old West”, specifically our area of Fort Smith as it was known at that time as "Hell on the Border".  As a resident of Indian Territory, now Oklahoma, she came under the jurisdiction of Judge  Isaac C. Parker. Her close friends included the legendary American outlaws Cole Younger and Frank and Jesse James. Her reputation as an outlaw, the novelty of being a woman, and her violent, mysterious death led to her being called “The Bandit Queen.”

With Fort Smith having the nearest court of law, she came to the attention of Judge Parker, who was known as the “Hanging Judge” for his severe sentences.  On November 9, 1882, she and then husband Sam Starr were charged in the U.S. Commissioner’s Court at Fort Smith with the larceny of two horses. On March 8, 1883, a jury returned a guilty verdict, and Judge Parker sentenced the Starrs to a year in prison. It was a surprisingly lenient sentence; Judge Parker was said to have taken into consideration the fact that it was the first conviction for both, and he expressed hope that they would “decide to become decent citizens.” After arranging the care of her children with friends and relatives, they were transported from Fort Smith to Detroit on a railroad prison car, where Belle was the only woman among nineteen other convicts. The good behavior of the Starrs in prison led to their release within nine months.

After the 1886 death of Sam Starr in a gunfight, Belle and one of his relatives, Jim July Starr (also known as Bill July), began living together and announced their common-law marriage under Cherokee custom. Some sources say Belle decided to do this to maintain ownership of her property on Cherokee land.

At first, she was suspected whenever neighbors’ horses and cattle turned up missing or when it was believed she was harboring criminals, but she was not convicted. She settled into a relatively quiet life, announcing that fugitives were no longer welcome at her home, and was known to help her neighbors when they were ill. She often visited Fort Smith, posed for one of her several photographs there, and told the Fort Smith Elevator, “I regard myself as a woman who has seen much of life.”

Starr’s life of crime ended when she was shot in the back as she returned from a general store to her ranch. She died on February 3, 1889. Though suspects included an outlaw with whom she was feuding, a former lover, her husband, and her own son, the killer of Belle Starr was never identified.

Source: http://www.encyclopediaofarkansas.net/encyclopedia/entry-detail.aspx?entryID=2406

And here's the lady behind it...

I thought it only fitting to fashion my shop towards the famous Bandit Queen herself, Belle Starr .. I love the romance of her story.. a pants wearin', horse thievin', thorn in Judge Parker's side! What a fun character for Fort Smith's history!  I love the stories of Fort Smith during its "Hell on the Border" days.. we have such an interesting past. I want to work that in to the present and celebrate it through Belle Starr Antiques..

Here's a little bit about me. I am a product of heritage tourism.. my mother and I, or the "2 Dumb Dames" as we are more popularly known, have traveled on '2 Dumb Dames weekends' since I was a kid of 16. Though now they are few and far between, those were and still  are my favorite pastime. We travel  all over the south to different  historic towns and pilgrimages, everywhere from my personal favorite of  Natchez, Mississippi  to Natchitoches, Louisiana  to Franklin, Tennessee. Each mentioned town is a treasure in itself, full of beautiful antebellum homes, rich history, good restaurants, and fun antique shops.  Upon moving to Fort Smith in 2007, I  feel in love with  the Trolley Museum, the Museum of History,the beautiful Clayton House, the  grounds of the National  Historic Site, and our peaceful National Cemetery, just to mention a few..  but there should and could be more small businesses to bring in the folks who travel around the United States seeking an 'experience' of history and days gone by.

SO! In my tiny way, I want to add a little more attention to Fort Smith's rich history and fuse it with my favorite pastime of antiquing...  I look forward to this new life and all the fun and friends it will bring. 
My goal is to make  Belle Starr Antique Mall a great place to shop and a great place for our dealers too. I've worked very hard to get a very diverse group of dealers who offer quality antiques, covering a wide range of interests.  Come see us and say howdy at Belle Starr Antique Mall!