Dismounting, he approached the bear and fired a shot into its head, but the bullet ricocheted off its skull, infuriating it. Deadwood was overrun with miners, gunmen, and gamblers when Hickok became a peace officer there in July 1876, relying as much on his reputation as on his diminishing gun skills, which were compromised by failing eyesight. Picks on rebels, especially Texans, to kill." Many people knew that Jane had a "crush" on Hickok but few, if any, knew that they were married. [23][b], After the Civil War broke out in April 1861, Hickok became a teamster for the Union Army in Sedalia, Missouri. That derisive nickname may have been given to him by David McCanles, who had sold the buildings that became the Pony Expresss Rock Creek station, on credit, to Russell, Majors and Waddell. Was he shooting back? Only station employees were allowed to testify at the trial (testimony by McCanless son was barred), and the verdict was that the men had acted in self-defense. Paramount Pictures' Western silent film Wild Bill Hickok (released on November 18, 1923) was directed by Clifford Smith and stars William S. Hart as Hickok. Shes all Ive got to live fer; shes my only comfort [sic]. Fox described Jessie as neatly dressed but shy and embarrassed. Yet she had a bright face, and her manners were very good for one whose opportunities had been so few.. At the coroner's inquest into Strawhun's death, despite "very contradictory" evidence from witnesses, the jury found the shooting justifiable. Behind the mission, arent those the Santa Catalina Mountains? At the time of the so-called McCanles Massacre, Hickok was known as Duck Bill because of his sweeping nose and protruding upper lip (covered with a mustache later in life). Did Nick McGlashan have a family? Born in Homer (later called Troy Grove), Illinois, James Butler Hickok . McCanles also acted as the stations manager before the company replaced him with Horace Wellman, and McCanles had reputedly ridiculed Hickok during his convalescence from his injuries. Hickok lost his re-election bid to his deputy. Not having the courage to do it himself, he one day filled about 200 cowboys with whiskey intending to get them into trouble with Wild Bill, hoping that they would get to shooting and in the melee shoot the marshal. At the [second] trial it was suggested that [McCall] was hired to do his work by gamblers who feared the time when better citizens should appoint Bill the champion of law and order a post which he formerly sustained in Kansas border life, with credit to his manhood and his courage. Less than a month after Hickok's death, the trial was found to have no legal status because Deadwood was located in Indian Territory - McCall's acquittal was deemed invalid. The story quickly became newspaper and magazine fodder. Hickok was arrested for murder, tried, and acquitted. At the end of the trial, Judge Sempronius H. Boyd told the jury they could not find Hickok acted in self-defense if he could have reasonably avoided the fight. "[55], On March 5, 1876, Hickok married Agnes Thatcher Lake, a 50-year-old circus proprietor in Cheyenne, Wyoming Territory. Alonzo and Polly Hickok moved to Illinois in 1833, finally settling in Troy Grove (known as Homer at the time), LaSalle County, along the banks of the Little Vermillion Creek. Hickok is known to have fatally shot six men and is suspected of having killed a seventh (McCanles). All Rights Reserved. Hickok, just a stable-hand at the time, killed the three men, despite being severely injured. Corrections? Calamity Jane is reputed to have led a mob that threatened McCall with lynching, but at the time of Hickok's death, Jane was actually being held by military authorities. A legend during his life and considered one of the American west's premier gunfighters James Butler (Wild Bill) Hickok was born May 27, 1837, in Troy . Calamity Jane (1852-1903) was a well-known American frontierswoman and entertainment who was well-known for her marksmanship and acquaintance with Wild Bill Hickok. After the war Hickok continued his adventurous ways, at times just skirting the right side of the law. authorities, and after trial has been sentenced to death for willful murder. He was the fourth son of William Alonzo and Polly Butler Hickok. He was assigned Buffalo Bill Cody, a sergeant, and five privates. The story continued that McCanles invaded the Wellmans cabin and prepared to shoot Hickok, who acted faster and shot McCanles in the chest. As vile a character as I ever met for some cause Wild Bill incurred Coe's hatred and he vowed to secure the death of the marshal. Most modern retailers of Old West period clothing seem to sell only banded collared shirts, yet old photographs show cowboys did wear shirts with collars. McCall was executed for the murder . During the next several years he appeared in Buffalo Bill Codys Wild West Show, living off his fame as the consummate gunfighter. In 1941, Jean Hickok McCormick appeared in Billings, Montana. Calamity Jane never married Wild Bill Hickok. [c] However, if they felt the threat of danger was real and imminent, he instructed they could apply the unwritten law of the "fair fight" and acquit. He reported returning with five prisoners after killing 10. Later historians, however, have presented a radically different portrayal of the events at Rock Creek. Hickok said he had "tried to restore order". In June, Hickok mustered out and went to Springfield, where he gambled. Martha (her name wasnt even Jane) had several husbands and a daughter, Jessie, who died in Los Angeles in 1960. In July, 1865, in Springfield, Missouri's town square, Hickok killed Davis Tutt, an old friend who after personal grudges escalated became an enemy. The enclosure was cut open by souvenir hunters in the 1950s, and the statue was removed.[71]. https . They arrived in Topeka on April 2. To be entitled to acquittal on the ground of self-defense, he must have been anxious to avoid a conflict, and must have used all reasonable means to avoid it. [39] Three sheriffs had quit during the previous 18 months. By Jan MacKell Collins. [67], After bragging about killing Hickok, McCall was rearrested. Wild Bill Hickok was an American frontiersman, army scout and lawman who helped bring order to the frontier West. When Kyle's weapon misfired, Hickok shot Lonergan, wounding him in the knee, and shot Kyle twice, killing him. [81], Hickok's birthplace is now the Wild Bill Hickok Memorial and is a listed historic site under the supervision of the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency. Biography and associated logos are trademarks of A+E Networksprotected in the US and other countries around the globe. The incident began when David McCanles, his brother William and several farmhands came to the station demanding payment for a property that had been bought from him. Wild Bill Hickok begins to establish his reputation as a gunfighter after he shoots three men during a shootout in Nebraska. Around this time, young James Hickok began using his father's name of William - the 'Wild' part came later - and he also met Buffalo Bill Cody, then just a messenger boy on a wagon train. Good bye, Colorado Charlie, C. H. Utter. Did Wild Bill Hickok have children? [9][41], The second killed by Hickok was Samuel Strawhun, a cowboy, who was causing a disturbance in a saloon at 1:00 am on September 27, when Hickok and Lanihan went to the scene. Neither claim was true. [59], The next day, Hickok was playing poker again. He was the son of William Alonzo and Polly Butler Hickok (Fishwick). 10 Black Pioneers in Aviation Who Broke Barriers, Your Privacy Choices: Opt Out of Sale/Targeted Ads, Name: Wild Bill Hickok, Birth Year: 1837, Birth date: May 27, 1837, Birth State: Illinois, Birth City: Troy Grove, Birth Country: United States. Zimmerman said that despite their closeness in age, he and Jessie didnt say much to each other. In December, the Rawlins Republican reported that Jane visited town with a little girl she had stolen. The child was no doubt Jessie, who was next seen with her mother in Ekalaka, Montana in 1894 by at least two people. He usually sat with his back to a wall so he could see the entrance, but the only seat available when he joined the game was a chair facing away from the door. During the Civil War he found employment as a teamster and spy for the Union Army. [21][22] Hickok, Wellman, and another employee, J.W. In quick succession, Hickok was said to have then killed five members of McCanless gang and knocked out another before three more gang members threw him down on a bed, only to be bested in hand-to-hand combat by the knife-wielding Hickok. James Butler Hickok arrived in Springfield, Missouri . This incident added to his fame as a gunslinger, which skyrocketed when journalist and later explorer Sir Henry Morton Stanley reported as fact in the New York Herald in 1867 Hickoks exaggerated claim that he had killed 100 men. A highly fictional film account of Hickok's later years and death, titled Wild Bill (1995), stars Jeff Bridges as Hickok and David Arquette as Jack McCall, and was written and directed by Walter Hill. Six months later Jane visited friends in Deadwood, stating Jessie had married and was living in North Dakota with two children. Articles from Britannica Encyclopedias for elementary and high school students. [43], On April 15, 1871, Hickok became marshal of Abilene, Kansas. August 18, 1876, image 3", "Jack McCall Cowardly Killer of Wild Bill Hickok", "American Wonder Wild Bill Hickok Shot and Killed from Behind on This Day in History", Bozeman Avant Courier, December 22, 1876, image 1, testimony of George M. Shingle, "Riverboat captain 'carried' bullet that killed Hickok", "Jack McCall and the Murder of Wild Bill Hickok", "Wild Bill Hickok: Pistoleer, Peace Officer and Folk Hero", Photograph of Wild Bill Hickok's Colt Model 1851 Navys, "Wild Bill Hickok's Smith & Wesson No. On July 21, 1865, the two men faced off in Springfield's town square, standing sideways before drawing and firing their weapons. That belief came from the fertile imaginations of othersespecially Jean McCormick, who claimed to be the daughter of the legendary pair. Quay House, The Ambury, Their quick-draw duel was recorded as the first of its kind. [46]:4558[48] A newspaper reported, "A man was killed in his bed at a hotel in Abilene, Monday night, by a desperado called 'Arkansas'. What happened to Wild Bill Hickok's pistols? The glorification of Wild Bill Hickok began in Springfield, Mo., on July 21, 1865, when he killed gunman Dave Tutt. The couple had five children besides James Butler, three boys and two girls. Best Known For: Wild Bill Hickok was an American frontiersman, army scout and lawman who helped bring order to the frontier West. During the Civil War, he served as a wagon master, scout, detective, courier, and spy. The 10th Regiment arrived at Fort Lyon in Colorado in October and remained there for the rest of 1868. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions. After his August 1876 murder, she further claimed that they had been married and that he was the father of her child. In 1869 Hickok became sheriff of Hays City, Kansas, where he killed several men in shootouts. [i][68], Jack McCall was hanged on March 1, 1877, and buried in a Roman Catholic cemetery. [40]:192, On July 17, 1870, Hickok was attacked by two troopers from the 7th U.S. Cavalry, Jeremiah Lonergan and John Kyle (sometimes spelled Kile),[42] in a saloon. The cemetery was moved in 1881, and when McCall's body was exhumed, the noose was found still around his neck.[69]. There the familys small farm served as a stop on the Underground Railroad. On July 21, 1865, in a shootout in Springfield, Missouri, he killed David Tutt, a skillful gunfighter who had been flaunting the watch he won from Hickok in a poker game. He seemed to have respect for Hickok's abilities and replied, "If Bill needs killing, why don't you kill him yourself? B. Hickock [sic] (Wild Bill) formerly of Cheyenne, Wyoming. "Gunfighters of the Real West: Wild Bill Hickok. Visit our corporate site. Macintosh of irregularities and misconduct during the election. Nick McGlashan loved his family, friends and fans. Hickok moved west in 1855 to farm and joined General James Lane's Free State. [77][78] A print of the film is maintained in the Museum of Modern Art film archive.[79]. The couple had a daughter, who also became an accomplished performer and horseback rider. [21] Hickok subsequently visited McCanles' widow, apologized for the killing, and offered her $35 in restitution, all the money he had with him at the time. Between her birth in the 1850s and her death in 1903, Jane left a dizzying trail as she blazed around the west. They even did a stint abroad, performing for one season in Germany in 1862. Perhaps most famously, Harper's New Monthly Magazine printed an account of the story in 1867, claiming Hickok had killed 10 men. "[56], Martha Jane Cannary, known popularly as Calamity Jane, claimed in her autobiography that she was married to Hickok and had divorced him so he could be free to marry Agnes Lake, but no records that support her account have been found. 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