Best movies like Thunder Over the Prairie

Indian Agent sent to try new approach to peace with Apaches based on respect for automomy rather than submission to Army. Wins over reservation chiefs and the Indian widow (Bancroft) given to him as housekeeper. Through use of diplomacy and demonstrations of faith in Apache leaders, reservation is put on the road to automomy. Conflicts arise between Apache widow and Eastern wife but latter has a lot to learn.

Cowboy Rocky Lane thwarts an attack on a courier delivering a precious Indian tribal belt and becomes embroiled in a conspiracy in the process. When the courier dies, Rocky delivers the belt to the Agent. But he quickly finds himself arrested for murder and learns not only is the belt missing, but the murdered Agent is not the man he gave the belt to.

A band of renegade Apaches attempts to steal a shipment of rifles being transported to Fort Collins.

Finding Indians stealing from his ranch, Gene learns they are suffering from malnutrition. Store owner Martin is cheating them and now he is after the Chief's valuable necklace. When the dying chief is found, having been attacked and robbed, Martin blames Lakhona who would become the new chief. When Gene helps Lakhona they soon find themselves fleeing from the law.

When an evil land baron's limo falls into a sinkhole outside Possum Lodge, lodge leader Red Green is ordered to pay the baron $10,000 or lose his beloved lodge forever. Red considers various money-making schemes concocted by his buddies, but it's his nerdy nephew Harold who hits on an idea that just might save their wood-smoked bacon: a duct-tape sculpture contest in Minneapolis that offers a $10,000 third-place prize.

In 1775, Daniel Boone settles Kentucky, despite menacing Indians and renegade whites.

A circuit judge in the old west attempts to bring a suspected killer to justice. The judge runs afoul of the killer's rich cattle baron father in the process.

An Apache of mixed blood tries to make peace between Indians and whites.

A rancher tries to convince an Indian tribe to relocate so their land can be used to provide water for Kansas City.

Columbia's King of the Wild Horses is a remake of the silent Hal Roach western feature of the same name -- and with the same "star," Rex the Wonder Horse, in the lead. Most of the story involves the romantic triangle between rogue stallion Rex, the gorgeous mare Lady, and villainous black steed Marquis.

Duell McCall is an outlaw on the run for a crime he didn't commit. Captured by the law and coerced into helping rescue the daughter of the evil local land baron, he finds himself drawn into an ever-deepening web of lies that threatens to cost him his life.

Anchor is building a railroad and to get cheap labor he gets Black Hawk's Indians to attack and burn the incoming wagon train. This forces the settlers to work for Anchor and he pays them in devalued scrip. When Rex figures out Anchor's swindle, Anchor gets Black Hawk to capture him. When Anchor turns on Black Hawk and shoots him, Black Hawk gets a chance to repay a debt to Rex.

Driving a herd of cattle to market, Jimmy finds the trail has been fenced off by an old friend of his. While the two sides try to settle the matter peaceably, a man from each outfit get together to try and start a range war between them figuring they will end up with the cattle. When cattle are rustled, Jimmy finds the clue, horses with shoes that make tracks that look like cattle.

A doctor comes to the aid of local ranchers who are fighting to protect their water rights.

A deputy sheriff defies local ranchers to investigate a Mexican's murder.

An Apache brave vows revenge when he feels betrayed by the U.S. Army.

Honest government agent Dave Taylor sets out to find the men responsible for stealing food supplies from an Indian reservation.

When his tribesmen begin killing off white settlers, Young Eagle is opposed to the carnage. In order to assure a lasting peace, however, the chief must deal with renegade Apache Black Wolf.

By stripping all the timber from the land, a lumber baron threatens everyone with flooding. Gene won't let that happen.

A feisty woman struggles to keep her ranch from being stolen by a greedy and unscrupulous land-baron named Malick. A trio of young men comes to her aid Dusty Fog, the "Kid," and Miguel. They are later joined by a fourth man named Mark, who switches allegiance away from Malick, and then by the local Sheriff who's finally forced to stand up to the local tyrant.

If a young lady gives up her inheritance the local ranchers will lose their free grazing land.

Montana ranch owner Cyrus Bigbee sends his foreman, Gene Autry, and Rawhide Buttram to his Canadian timber land to stop the marriage of his daughter Sandy to Todd Markey, whom he dislikes. Sandy wants to turn the property into a dude ranch, with Carolina Cotton and the Cass County Boys (Fred S. Martin, Jerry Scoggins and Bert Dodson) among the entertainers, and runs up against local timbermen who want it for cutting timber. When a Mountie is murdered, with suspicion pointing to Todd, Gene finds the real culprit and brings peace to the area.

One-time cavalry officer Rex Allen, between jobs as a star rodeo rider, is asked by his former commanding officer, Colonel Bigelow, to help settle a dispute between the army and local ranchers. The cavalry has commandeered a large parcel of land needed to test their newly-designed tank and prominent rancher Jenson has encited the locals to rebel at this intrusion. It is up to Rex and his sidekick, Slim, to thwart Jenson and convince the residents that these army tests are essential.

Markham and his men have found gold on the Indian reservation and are trying to get rid of them by starting an Indian war. Dressed as Indians they are attacking the soldiers. Steve Holden is the Indian agent sent to prevent a war. After finding proof that white men posing as Indians were responsible, he is able to locate the gang's hideout but quickly becomes a prisoner slated to be killed. - Written by Maurice VanAuken

Kate Diamond owns the Roaring Falls Trading Post from where she directs her gang's gun-smuggling to the Indians. After she short-changes smuggler Stacey, his men attempt to steal the hidden guns, and attack her foreman Nebraska, but he is saved by Jimmy and "Cannonball" on their way to file a homestead claim at Canyon City. Jimmy renews a long acquaintance with Sheriff Harris and his daughter Jessica. The sheriff is wounded by half-breed Danny when he finds a rifle hidden in the latter's wagon, but Jimmy captures the outlaw, a go-between for Kate and the Indians.Wounded and in bed, Sheriff Harris ask Jimmy not to tell Jessica that she is only adopted and that Nebraska is really her father, although he believes her to be dead.

Charles Starrett returns as the Durango Kid in Columbia's Rough, Tough, West. For most of the film, however, Starrett is known as "Steve Holden," a former Texas Ranger who comes to a wide-open mining town to visit an old friend (Jack -- later Jock -- Mahoney). Alas, said friend has turned bad, and is busy arranging a major land grab when Steve arrives on the scene. With deep regret, our hero dons his Durango disguise to thwart his ex-friend's criminal activities.

Back from the Indian wars, a cowboy wages a single-handed war against a land baron and his henchmen. After his shooting hand is disabled, he masters the bow and arrow to take on the gang one arrow at a time!

An evil deputy is using Indian half-breeds to rustle cattle. This causes trouble between the cattlemen and Indians. Hoppy, Windy and Lucky see that justice is served. Songs abound.

When Aaron Baring signs on as wagon master for a group of settlers headed to Montana's Powder River Valley, his dictatorial style soon creates problems. When the settlers reach their destination, Baring unwisely declares war on the local Indians. When savvy frontier scout Jim Henry tries to promote cooperation between the natives and the newly arrived settlers, Baring responds by having Williams whipped.

Columbia's final release for 1950 was the Gene Autry western Indian Territory. Set during the Reconstruction Era, the story finds Autry working as an undercover agent for the U.S. cavalry. His mission: to neutralize a former Austrian army officer named Curt Raidler (Phil Van Zandt), who is leading a group of renegade Indians on a series of destructive raids.

With Silver City Raiders, perennial western sidekick Russell Hayden launched his own starring series. Hayden plays "Lucky", the same character he'd previously essayed in the Hopalong Cassidy films. This time around, Lucky tries to prove that crooked land baron Dawson (Paul Sutton) doesn't have prior claim on the entire territory. When legal methods prove only moderately effective, Lucky and his chums use more direct methods to drive Dawson and his ilk out of town.

After deceitful Indian agent Grat Bandas has his men shoot Brother Van, gunfighter Linc Prescott saves the peaceful circuit rider and agrees to help him put a stop to Bandas's plans to start an Indian war and grab their land for himself. Meanwhile, Prescott takes a shine to the daughter of a local rancher.

Singing cowboy Eddie Dean and his sidekick Soapy (Roscoe Ates) enter into the thick of things when they thwart a stagecoach holdup. Our heroes take it upon themselves to champion the cause of stage-line owner Margie Rodgers (Helen Mowery), who's being victimized by an unknown villain. Dean suspects that there's more to the case than mere robbery, and he's right: someone wants to gain control of Margie's business, and that someone is?

Inasmuch as western star Charles Starrett gained screen fame as the Robin Hood-like "Durango Kid", it stands to reason that Starrett would head the cast of Robin Hood of the Range. The star plays Steve Marlowe, the foster son of railroad manager Henry Marlowe (Kenneth McDonald). When it becomes apparent that the railroad is using underhanded methods to drive local homesteaders off their land, Steve adopts the guise of "The Vulcan", a legendary champion of justice.

Johnny Mack Brown goes up against a female boss villain in this unusual Western from Monogram. Hired to look into dirty dealings in the town of Medicine Flats, Johnny learns that Kansas City Kate (Christine McIntyre), the owner of the Golden Spur Saloon, has been waging a war against local prospectors, one of whom is found murdered. Not appreciating Johnny's interference, Kate has her henchman Cameo (Tristram Coffin) take a shot at him and when that fails, hires a notorious gunslinger, the Cherokee Kid (I. Stanford Jolley).