Van der Linde Gang

The Van der Linde Gang, also known as Dutch’s Boys, was a fictional criminal gang that operated in the Wild West era, from roughly the 1860’s or 1870’s, up to 1899. They were the most infamous gang in the Southwestern United States. Although unseen, they are mentioned heavily in The Outlaw’s Saga in all entries.
== Description ==
== Biography ==
== Members ==
=== Leaders ===
* Dutch Van der Linde (1870’s - 1899; died in 1911) - Dutch is the eponymous leader of the gang. He was the one who ordered his members what to do. He initially had a philosophy to rob from the rich and give to the poor, and kill the evil. However, by 1899, due to government agents closing in, he went mad and lost his sanity. Dutch remained on the loose for twelve years after the gang fell, but in early 1911, when cornered by John Marston, he tossed himself off of the Cochinay cliff in Tall Trees, West Elizabeth. He was presumably buried by his new gang in Tall Trees.
* Hosea Matthews (1870’s - died in 1899) - Hosea was one of the founding members, alongside Dutch and is his right-hand man. A senior to the gang, he often served as the voice of reason and peace, despite his criminal status. He guided Dutch through the worst of times. By July of 1899, during a soon-to-be failed bank robbery in Saint Denis, Lemoyne, Hosea was captured by Pinkerton Agent Andrew Milton and shot in the chest in front of the gang, dying in a matter of moments on the street. He was buried in Bluewater Marsh, alongside Lenny Summers.
* Arthur Morgan (1879 - died in 1899) - Another senior member of the gang, despite only being 36 by 1899. He was one of Dutch’s most trusted advisors and gunmen as well as the most skilled, strongest, and ruthless. Arthur was fiercely loyal and did most of what Dutch did. However, by 1899, Arthur’s perspective changed, especially after Dutch went mad following Hosea’s death and the move into Beaver Hollow. In the end, Arthur achieved redemption and sought to escape and give John Marston and his family a new life. However, for Arthur, it was impossible as he contracted tuberculosis in the midst of a debt collection. In the end, Arthur revealed who the gang’s rat was and after securing John’s escape, died of tuberculosis, exhaustion, and injuries on a cliff ridge in Grizzlies East, Ambarino. He was found and buried by Charles Smith on a mountain in Grizzlies East.
* John Marston (1880’s - 1899; died in 1911) - John, like Arthur, was found as an orphan and saved from a lynching. John became one of Dutch’s top gunmen as well. John also had a son, Jack, with the gang’s prostitute, Abigail Roberts. Over time, John became more concerned about his own family than about the gang and after being wounded in a train robbery and left for dead, John abandoned the gang thanks to Arthur’s valiant efforts. John left the gang, but in 1911, was called into action by the government to track down and kill Bill Willamson, Javier Escuella, and Dutch himself. John did so, but was betrayed. In the end, John was gunned down by multiple soldiers at his ranch in Beecher’s Hope, West Elizabeth. He was buried by Abigail and Jack.
* Jack Marston (1884 - 1899) - Son of John and Abigail Marston. Jack, being a toddler, was not an official wanted member of the gang, but grew into it since he was born. With John and Abigail, Jack escaped the gang life as well. Unlike everyone else, Jack was spared from law enforcement and ultimately outlasted almost every gang member, surviving all the way up to 1911.
* Abigail Marston (1880’s/1890’s - 1899; died in 1911) - Gang prostitute turned mother with Jack’s birth. She stopped being a prostitute after Jack was born and tried to get John to act like a father. Abigail mainly did camp chores from then on. After John decided to leave the gang with his family, Abigail along with her husband and son escaped the gang life. By 1911, Abigail was a farmer with John, but was widowed after John’s sudden demise. In 1914, Abigail died of unknown causes, possibly an illness or a broken heart. She was buried alongside John in Beecher’s Hope by her only surviving son, Jack.
* Uncle (unknown - 1899; died in 1911) - Uncle was found and recruited by Dutch. Although he hardly worked, he contributed little and was mostly for morale boosting. Uncle, along with Mary-Beth Gaskill, Tilly Jackson, Simon Pearson, and Karen Jones all abandoned the gang by August of 1899 out of fear for their lives. Uncle remained a drifter until 1907, when he reunited with John Marston and lived on his ranch as a hand until 1911. In the end, Uncle laid down his life in protecting the Marston’s from the U.S. Army when he was shot in the chest. He was buried by Abigail and Jack alongside Uncle, with Abigail being buried alongside Uncle as well.
* Bill Williamson
* Javier Escuella
* Charles Smith
* Sean Macguire
* Micah Bell III
* Simon Pearson
* Orville Swanson
* Leopold Strauss
* Sadie Adler
* Susan Grimshaw
* Josiah Trelawny
* Kieran Duffy
* Annabelle
* Bessie Matthews
* Mary-Beth Gaskill
* Karen Jones
* Davey Callander
* Mac Callander
* Jenny Kirk
* Molly O’Shea
* Unnamed betrayer
== Deaths ==
* Unnamed traitor - Killed in retribution for betraying the gang.
* Bessie Matthews - Died of an unknown illness.
* Annabelle - Murdered by Colm O’Driscoll.
* Jenny Kirk - Succumbed to gunshot wounds sustained in Blackwater Massacre.
* Davey Callander - Succumbed to gunshot wounds sustained in Blackwater Massacre in Colter, AM.
* Mac Callander - Wounded, later tortured and executed by the Pinkertons after the Blackwater Massacre.
* Sean Macguire - Shot in the head by a Gray sniper in Rhodes, LE.
* Kieran Duffy - Tortured, later eyes gouged out and head decapitated by the O’Driscoll’s.
* Hosea Matthews - Shot in the chest with a revolver by Andrew Milton in Saint Denis, LE.
* Lenny Summers - Shot in the chest with a shotgun by a Pinkerton agent in Saint Denis, LE.
* Molly O’Shea - Shot in the chest with a shotgun by Susan Grimshaw for being believed to be a traitor in Beaver Hollow, New Hanover.
* Susan Grimshaw - Shot in the stomach with a revolver by Micah Bell III.
* Arthur Morgan - Succumbed to tuberculosis, severe injuries, and exhaustion caused by Thomas Downes and Micah Bell III respectively on a cliffside in Grizzlies East, AM.
* Karen Jones (possibly) - Possibly succumbed to alcohol poisoning.
* Leopold Strauss - Tortured to death by the authorities.
* Micah Bell III - Shot multiple times by Dutch Van der Linde and John Marston atop Mount Hagen, AM.
* Javier Escuella - Hanged by the authorities.
* Bill Williamson - Shot in the head by John Marston near Escalera, NP, Mexico.
* Dutch Van der Linde - Committed suicide via falling off of cliff in Cochinay, WE.
* Uncle - Shot in the chest by the U.S. Army, later bled out at Beecher’s Hope, WE.
* John Marston - Shot multiple times in a firing squad by the U.S. Army at Beecher’s Hope, WE.
* Abigail Marston - Succumbed to illness or broken heart at Beecher’s Hope, WE.
* All other members - Died of various causes throughout the years as of present day.
== Killed Victims ==
== Relationships ==
== Gallery ==
== Trivia ==