"Hi-ho,
Silver!"
It's the call of the Lone Ranger, a masked hero who, atop
his trusty steed, Silver, and with the help of his trusted sidekick, Tonto,
defeats murderers, rustlers, and other nefarious outlaws in order to make the Wild
West "a decent place to live." (To hear the original Lone Ranger radio show, click here.)
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| Silhouette of a cowboy against a setting sun (web) |
In real life, the West was just as dangerous but far less
romantic. Covering hundreds of miles while following outlaws' trails for months
at a time (usually with a cook, a deputy, and a wagon), the US Marshals working
the Indian Territories (what is now Oklahoma) dealt with the roughest outlaws a
lawless land could produce. And when a bad guy was captured, the job was far
from over:
"It sounds like
it would be a soft job to guard some prisoners who were chained to the wagon but
it was really as dangerous as to capture them. Sometimes the prisoners had been
surprised and caught without a fight but a marshal never knew exactly what
would happen when he started after some men. After he got them in the wagon,
the guards had to be careful or two or three of the friends of the prisoners
would come up and throw guns on the [...] and release the prisoners."
from an interview with I.F. Williams, former deputy, c. 1937
One of the most well-known, well-respected, and most
successful of the Wild West marshals was Bass Reeves. A former runaway slave from Texas, Reeves was the first African
American US Marshal to be appointed West of the Mississippi River. Over the
course of a 32-year career as a law officer, Reeves made over 3,000 arrests. Of
those 3,000, only 14 resulted in a fatal shoot out with the deputy:
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| Bass Reeves (USMarshalsMuseum) |
"One time ...
Bass Reeves had the choice of some routine work or of capturing a black man who
had killed a fellow for a bale of cotton. 'Let Sherman and Adams go to Muskogee
and serve the papers,' he said as he did not want to get mixed up with white
folks. 'I will go and get this man or bring his boots.' When he returned he had
his man in the wagon. What happened [I asked.] 'He got in a log cabin and
started firing at me, so I had to kill him, said the colored officer."
from the interview with I.F. Williams, former deputy, c.
1937
What distinguished Reeves from so many others was just how
good he was at his job: He was smart, and although he could not read, he had an
impeccable memory which allowed him to memorize the details of multiple
warrants at one time. Generally, he would have someone read aloud a warrant to
him so he could memorize it:
"He had an
extraordinary ability to memorize long lists of criminals and their crimes and
always brought back the right man – or woman, as the case may be."
US Marshals Museum
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| Belle Starr turned herself in instead of being tracked by friend, Reeves |
Reeves was 6'2" tall and weighed about 180 pounds. He
was a fast and accurate shot, both with pistols and rifles, and he was
ambidextrous. Sometimes Reeves would take a deputy with him, but not always:
"He would
sometimes make the arrests alone and bring the prisoners to the wagon in which
they would be chained. I saw him one time when he had three prisoners who brought
him a reward of $1,000.00."
from the interview with I.F. Williams, former deputy, c.
1937
In all of his long history, Bass Reeves was never wounded –
although he was often vulnerable. The following story demonstrates his single-handed
capture of two brothers notorious enough to bring a $5,000 reward. This is the
story as told by Reeves' contemporary, Adam Grayson, in a 1937 interview:
"It is said that
he pitched his camp about 28 miles from where he thought the notorious outlaws
might be found. He established the camp at this distance so that he could take
his time in making a plan of procedure for a capture without creating any
suspicions and look over the lay of the surrounding land. ... He disguised
himself as a tramp. From his outward appearance, he was a tramp but inwardly he
was the fearless marshal with his duty ... With him, he had every aid that a US
Marshal could need, handcuff [sic], six shooter and all with the steel breastplate
while over this he wore very ragged clothes. He removed the heels off of an old
pair of shoes, carried a cane and he wore a very floppy hat in which he had
shot three bullet holes."
Reeves walked 28 miles before reaching the home the train
robbers shared with their mother. He pretended to be a hungry tramp with the
law on his trail. As proof, he showed the mother his hat with the three bullet
holes in it. She believed his story, invited him in, and fed him. After dinner,
Reeves was hoping her sons might still show up so he pretended to be tired and
then...
"After night had
fallen, Reeves thought he could hear a sharp whistle from the creek. The old
woman went out and gave an answer. Then riders rode up where the mother talked
to them for a long while but they all finally came into the house. All finally
agreed to join forces and work together. While preparing to go to bed ... [Reeves]
suggested that they all sleep in one room by saying that something might happen
and if we are separated we couldn't be much protection to one another. ... As
soon as these boys were asleep, Reeves left his bed and managed to handcuff the
pair without waking [them] ... He waited until early morning before he woke
them ... and said, 'Come on, boys, let's be going from here.' They realized
that they were in the hands of the law. ... [He walked with the boys to his]
camp 28 miles away, the mother followed him for three, cussing him and calling
him all sorts of names."
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Reeves' long history also included having to bring in one of
his five sons for murder. Benjamin Reeves had found his wife cheating on him,
repeatedly. The first time, he and his wife reconciled. The next time, he nearly
whipped her lover to death and he did end up killing his wife. Benjamin Reeves
ran off into Indian territory. None of Reeves' colleagues wanted to take the
warrant so Reeves did it: He tracked his son into Indian territory and, several
weeks later, brought Benjamin back to stand trial.
Another time, Reeves, himself, was accused of murdering his
cook, William Leach, over an alleged dispute involving Reeves' dog and some hot
grease (www.theoutlaws.com). Reeves' defense was that he was cleaning his gun,
and when he tried to dislodge a bullet that was stuck in the chamber, the gun
went off, accidentally wounding Leach in the neck. Leach died of the wound
before a doctor could arrive. Reeves was arrested but was able to post $3,000 in
bail. Although he was found innocent of murder, the expense of the trial is
said to have taken the bulk of his life's savings.
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| "Hanging Judge" Isaac Parker |
Bass Reeves was born in 1838. After escaping into free
territory, he farmed for awhile and also worked as a scout with an extensive
knowledge of several Indian languages including Seminole, Creek, and the
languages of the other Five Civilized Tribes. According to one source, he held
the rank of a Union Sergeant by the end of the Civil War (www.theoutlaws.com).
He was recruited as a US Marshal by Judge Isaac Parker of
the Fort Smith Federal Court. Parker held court six days a week, tried over
13,000 cases and ordered the hanging of 160 felons. He was the original "Hanging
Judge," and Reeves was his long-time colleague, responsible for some
75,000 square miles of the most dangerous territory in the country. Reeves was
the only US Marshal to start when Parker took office and to work – to survive – until the territory of Oklahoma became the state of Oklahoma.
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| Bass Reeves' actual badge |
Reeves died on January 12, 1910 in Muskogee, Oklahoma of
Bright's Disease, or liver complications. In 2010, he was posthumously inducted
into the Oklahoma Law Enforcement Hall of Fame.
Let it fly!
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| The Oklahoma state flag |
sources used:
The Museum of Broadcast Communications
coax.net (The Legacy
of Bass Reeves)
bradyenterpriseassociation.com
legendsofamerica.com
okstate.edu
outlaws.com
radiohalloffame.org
usmarshals.gov
usmarshalsmuseum.com
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