The Topeka Terror

Directed by Howard Bretherton, The Topeka Terror is a 1945 western set during the land-rush opening of the Cherokee Strip, which brings a wave of outlaws and claim jumpers. Crooked promoter Trent Parker and his henchmen plan a huge swindle by compiling falsified reports that put honest settlers' claims in the names of various henchmen. Clay Stevens, a government agent posing as a drifting cowhand, advises the settlers to organize their resistance, while gang leader Ben Jode runs for sheriff to gain full control of the town.