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| Wild Bill was killed 140 years ago. |
James Butler "Wild Bill" Hickok
(May 27, 1837 – August 2, 1876) was a folk character of the American Old West
known for his skills as a scout, lawman, gunfighter and gambler. He told many
outlandish tales about his life and was regarded as a liar by many of his
contemporaries. Some contemporary reports of his exploits are known to be
fictitious but along with his own stories are the basis for much of his fame
and reputation.
Hickok was born and raised on a farm in
rural Illinois. He went west at age 18 as a fugitive from justice, working as a
stagecoach driver and later as a lawman in the frontier territories of Kansas
and Nebraska. He fought (and spied) for the Union Army during the American
Civil War and gained publicity after the war as a scout, marksman, actor and
professional gambler. He was involved in several notable shootouts.
On August 1, 1876, Hickok was playing
poker at Nuttal & Mann's Saloon in Deadwood, Dakota Territory. When a seat
opened up at the table, a drunk man named Jack McCall sat down to play. McCall
lost heavily. Hickok encouraged McCall to quit the game until he could cover
his losses and offered to give him money for breakfast. Though McCall accepted
the money, he was apparently insulted. The next day, Hickok was playing poker
again. 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
door. He asked another man at the table, Charles Rich, to change seats with him
twice, but Rich refused.
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| "Dead man's hand" |
McCall entered the saloon, walked up
behind Hickok, drew his 18-inch Sharps Improved revolver and shouted,
"Damn you! Take that!" He shot Hickok in the back of the head at
point-blank range. Hickok died instantly. The bullet emerged through Hickok's
right cheek and struck another player, Captain Massie, in the left wrist.
Hickok may have told his friend Charlie Utter and others who were traveling
with them that he thought he would be killed while in Deadwood.
The hand of cards which he supposedly held
at the time of his death (black aces and eights) has become known as the dead
man's hand.
