The Wild West is one of the most iconic time periods in pop culture, making it ironic that it's also one of the most misunderstood. Hollywood paints it as a time of gunslingers, adventure, and cowboy heroes, but as often is the case, the reality is a bit more lackluster. While it was a rather violent place with high murder rates, this can be misleading as even one murder in a small population size can produce seemingly astronomical murder rates, essentially enhancing outliers in data. The truth is, the "Wild West" was a rather calm and boring time where people were much more focused on getting to the next day than robbing trains or saving damsels in distress. But while the dangers painted by Hollywood and dime novels are often over exaggerated and glamorized, that doesn't mean the region and time period was void of danger! So join me back in time to learn about the real history and dangers of the American Wild West!