Hays City 1869: Wild Bill's Deadly Justice

At the razor's edge where civilization meets chaos stood a man whose name struck both fear and awe - Wild Bill Hickok. The sweltering summer of 1869 found Hays City, Kansas transformed into a powder keg of violence where 37 licensed liquor sellers hosted a volatile mix of railroad workers, soldiers, buffalo hunters, and fortune-seekers.

When traditional law enforcement faltered against this tide of lawlessness, the town turned to James Butler Hickok, hoping his fearsome reputation might restore order where others had failed. Within just five weeks as acting sheriff, Hickok would face two deadly confrontations that defined his controversial approach to frontier justice.

The first clash came when Bill Mulvey, "a notorious murderer from Missouri," terrorized the streets in a drunken rampage, firing indiscriminately through businesses. Using a clever tactical deception, Hickok called to imaginary men behind Mulvey, creating just enough distraction to draw and fire a single fatal shot. Just weeks later, when Samuel Strauhun and eighteen companions destroyed John Bitter's beer saloon, Hickok's warning was chillingly direct: "Do, and they will carry you out." When Strauhun challenged this ultimatum, another deadly shot rang out.

Though coroner's inquests ruled both killings justified, Hays City began questioning whether Hickok's methods were too extreme - a sentiment that would soon cost him his position. Through these blood-soaked confrontations emerges a complex portrait of frontier justice, where the line between necessary force and excessive violence blurred in the prairie dust.

Experience the raw, unfiltered story of Wild Bill's Hays City and decide for yourself: was he the solution to lawlessness or something more troubling? Subscribe now to explore more fascinating chapters from the American frontier, and check out "The Making of Wild Bill Hickok" by Michael King, available now on Amazon. We invite you to dive into the exciting world of the "This Week in the West" podcast!

Transcript

Speaker 1 0:15

Hayes City. End of the track edge of the law. In the sweltering summer of 1869, hayes City, kansas, emerged as a gritty scar in the sprawling prairie landscape, epitomizing the relentless march of American westward expansion. Founded just two years prior, in 1867, the town's fortunes were intricately woven with the iron arteries of the Union Pacific's Railway Eastern Division and the nearby military stronghold of Fort Hayes. Nestled on the banks of Big Creek, hayes City materialized around the relocated site of the fort, swiftly enveloping the ephemeral settlement of Rome, which had flickered to life, only to fade away almost as quickly. Only to fade away almost as quickly, hayes City's reputation echoed across the plains, blossoming into that of a teeming supply depot for the railroad and a crucial waypoint for military caravans traversing the Fort Hayes-Fort Dodge Trail toward installations like Fort Dodge and Fort Larned. To the south, the town ambled with a transient and often tempestuous population, where railroad workers, soldiers, teamsters, buffalo hunters, gamblers and fortune-seekers collided in its dusty streets and spirited saloons. In its formative years, hayes City boasted a staggering 37 licensed liquor cellars each corner of the town, saturated with an atmosphere thick with tension and the ever-looming specter of violence. Elizabeth Custer, the wife of the renowned Lieutenant Colonel George Armstrong Custer, whose illustrious 7th Cavalry occasionally roamed the area, encapsulated the town's essence with chilling precision in 1869. She labeled it a typical western place, one imbued with enough desperate history in that little town, in one summer, to make a whole library of dime novels. Prostitution, too, wove itself into the very backbone of the fledgling economy, undergirding the myriad saloons and gambling dens that dotted the landscape. The combination of a transient population and an economy tethered to military spending and railway activity fostered an environment rife with instability and violence.

Speaker 1 2:39

In the blink of an eye, hayes City established itself as one of the most notorious and lawless towns on the Kansas frontier, a reverberant yet perilous jewel amidst the chaos of the Old West. During this dark period, over a dozen homicides could be traced back to the vigilantism that gripped Hayes City. Those who took the law into their own hands were implicated in multiple instances of bloodshed. The town's economy, heavily reliant on the spending power of the military, added complexity to the situation. Teamsters working for the Fort Hayes Quartermaster were notoriously rowdy, further aggravating the chaos faced by beleaguered lawmen. Chaos faced by beleaguered lawmen. This alarming cycle of violence and the apparent collapse of established authority created an environment where forceful, often extra-legal action seemed an inevitable response, paving the way for imposing figures like Wild Bill Hickok.

Wild Bill vs. Bill Mulvey

Speaker 1 3:40

The year 1869 marked a particularly bloody chapter in Hickok's brief tenure as a peacekeeper. Accounts suggest that formal law enforcement struggled to maintain order and was often overshadowed by the resurgence of vigilant justice, especially during the agitated months from mid-1868 to late 1869. Thrust into the role of acting sheriff, hickok's primary mandate was clear restore order to a town spiraling into violence. His methods were direct and lethal, leveraging his established reputation as a gunfighter and his willingness to use deadly force. During this restless era, one of the most pressing challenges was the capricious menace posed by Bill Mulvey. Unlike the legendary Wild Bill Hickok, the narrative of Mulvey's life remained shrouded in mystery, yet whispers of his infamous deeds echo throughout the region. Known by various monikers a notorious murderer from Missouri, a ruffian, a drunken cowboy and a tough nut, each title underscores his notorious reputation and his readiness to draw his weapon at a moment's notice.

Speaker 1 5:12

On August 22, 1869, merely a day after assuming his new role, wild Bill Hickok crossed paths with Mulvey during a time when the latter was steeped in alcohol, which muddled his judgment and fueled his reckless bravado. This encounter marked the beginning of Mulvey's reckless rampage through the heart of Hayes City. Fueled by a heady mix of liquor and an insatiable thirst for disorder, mulvey unleashed his fury upon the unsuspecting town. He fired his gun indiscriminately, the loud cracks of gunfire echoing like thunder across the streets, sending bullets ricocheting through the air In his wake. Local businesses suffered the brunt of his destructive spree Mirrors shattered like glass rain and liquor bottles exploded behind saloon bars, cascading shards onto the floor in a den of destruction. His audacious defiance of local ordinances prohibiting firearm discharge only heightened the discernible tension in a community already fraught with anxiety. Witnesses recalled Mulvey prowling the streets with an unmistakable aura of menace, actively looking for trouble as fear rippled through the townsfolk, amplifying the sense of dread that hung heavy in the air. Each moment of his chaotic antics further stirred the anxiety that gripped Hayes City, leaving behind a trail of havoc and a community on edge.

Speaker 1 6:42

Havoc and a community on edge. Armed and dangerous. Mulvey presented an immediate threat. His rifle aimed menacingly at Hickok. Or perhaps he wielded two pistols ready for bloodshed? One account suggests Mulvey had got the drop on the famed lawman capturing the tension of the confrontation.

Speaker 1 7:07

In this pivotal moment, however, the various narratives converge on a striking, dramatic tactic. Hickok employs a decisive maneuver in the face of imminent danger. Upon realizing that Mulvey had his sights trained on him, hickok, with a clever glimmer in his eye, allegedly looked beyond his adversary and shouted a warning to an imaginary presence lurking behind Mulvey. The exact phrasing of his shout varies slightly in recountings Don't shoot him in the back, he's drunk. Or perhaps don't shoot him in the back, boys, he's drunk. This unexpected ruse effectively disoriented Mulvey, causing him to glance over. Seizing this fleeting opportunity, hickok drew his weapons with incredible speed described in some accounts as a single six-shooter and in others as two gleaming pistols and fired the thunderous crack of his gun, shattered the tension, the bullet found its mark, striking Mulvey squarely in the head and ensuring a swift end to the chaotic encounter, marking the moment as fatal.

Speaker 1 8:18

Miguel Otero, who would later become governor of New Mexico, claimed to have witnessed this pivotal moment and provided a vivid account that has shaped the narrative for generations. Otero's testimony, along with other versions of the story, depicts Hickok standing on the sun-baked streets when Mulvey, potentially mounted on a horse presenting an imposing and threatening figure, made his ominous approach after causing chaos in a nearby saloon. Otero's account was immortalized in the 1936 edition of my Life on the Frontier, 1864-1882, by Joseph Rosa, ensuring that this tale of courage and cunning would endure over time. I was an eyewitness to Wild Bill's encounter with Bill Mulvey and shall relate the details as they linger in my mind. I was standing near Wild Bill on Main Street when someone began shooting up the town at the eastern end of the street. It was Bill Mulvey, a notorious murderer from Missouri known as a handyman with a gun. He had just enough red liquor in him to be mean, and he seemed to derive great amusement from shooting holes into the mirrors as well as the bottles of liquor behind the bars of the saloons in that section of the street. As was usually the case with such fellows, he was looking for trouble, and when someone told him that Wild Bill was the town marshal and therefore it behooved him to behave himself, mulvey swore that he would find Wild Bill and shoot him on sight. He further avowed that the marshal was the very man he was looking for and that he had come to the damn town for the express purpose of killing him. The tenor of these remarks was somehow made known to Wild Bill, but hardly had the news reached him than Mulvey appeared on the scene. Wild Bill, but hardly had the news reached him than Mulvey appeared on the scene tearing tortoise on his iron gray horse rifle in hand, full cocked. When Wild Bill saw Mulvey, he walked out to meet him, apparently waving his hand to some fellows behind Mulvey and calling to them don't shoot him in the back, boys, he's drunk. Mulvey stopped his horse and, wheeling the animal about, drew a bead on his rifle in the direction of the imaginary man he thought Wild Bill was addressing. But before he realized the ruse that had been played upon him, wild Bill had aimed his six-shooter and fired just once Mulvey dropped from his horse dead, the bullet having penetrated his temple and then passed through his head.

Speaker 1 11:14

The Kansas night air draped itself heavily over Hayes City, thick and still carrying with it the faint, acrid scent of coal smoke wafting from the nearby Kansas Pacific Railway terminus. Dust swirled in the lingering warmth, stirred by the countless transient boots that trampled through the rough streets. It was just past midnight on September 27, 1869, and the darkness was punctuated by pools of lamplight spilling from the numerous saloons that lined the thoroughfare. Pools of lamplight spilling from the numerous saloons that lined the thoroughfare. These flickering islands of murky yellow gave brief haunting glimpses of hard faces, weathered soldiers from the nearby Fort Hayes Garrison, buffalo hunters clad in the stench of prairie and gunpowder, sweat-slick railroad crews and gritty cowboys attempting to shake the trail dust from their throats.

Speaker 1 11:56

In John Bitter's beer saloon, the tension that usually simmered beneath the surface had erupted into full-blown chaos. The familiar low roar that typically filled this frontier refuge had transformed into a cacophony of shouts and crashes. At the heart of this maelstrom stood Samuel Strahun, a young man perhaps barely 24, whose reputation overshadowed any claims to his work as a cowboy or teamster. Known more for his belligerence than any positive community contributions, strahun had earned a notorious nickname the local ruffian. Whispers of his involvement in the recent killing of a deputy US Marshal and the chilling warnings issued by the Vigilance Committee were now part of his infamous lore. But tonight he had returned with a determined swagger, flanked by a rowdy entourage of 18 companions all hell-bent on making their presence felt and raising chaos in the shadowy streets of Hayes City.

Speaker 1 13:01

Inside Bitters, the scene was one of escalating destruction. Strawhoon and his drunken cohort were tearing up the place, tables were overturned, chairs splintered against walls and the air was filled with dr and shouts and curses. Glasses emptied of beer were hurled through the open doorways to shatter on the dusty streets outside. The noise, as one account later described it, was fearful, dominated by demands for more beer and punctuated by obscenities Amidst the din. More beer, and punctuated by obscenities Amidst the din. Strahoon was heard to boast his words, thick with liquor and bravado I'm gonna kill someone tonight, just for luck. This wasn't merely drunken revelry. It felt like a deliberate performance of defiance, a calculated challenge thrown down in the most public of arenas, the Frontier Saloon, the very heart of Hayes City's volatile social life. By choosing this stage, strawhoon ensured his challenge to the town's fragile order would not go unnoticed.

Speaker 1 14:08

Word of the escalating trouble reached the newly appointed interim sheriff of Ellis County, james Butler Hickok, better known as Wild Bill. The citizens of Hays, weary of the nightly brawls and destructiveness, had turned to Hickok, hoping his formidable reputation could impose peace where others had failed. His appointment itself signaled the town's desperation, a tacit admission that ordinary law enforcement was insufficient. Against the tide of frontier lawlessness, hickok arrived accompanied by his deputy, peter Lanahan, the very man who would later defeat him in the upcoming election, perhaps an early sign of the growing unease some felt about Hickok's methods.

Speaker 1 14:54

Hickok's entrance altered the saloon's atmosphere instantly. He was an arresting figure, standing over six feet tall, lithe, yet solidly built, his presence commanding attention. Long, light brown or auburn hair fell to his shoulders, framing a face dominated by a prominent nose, a flowing mustache and piercing gray-blue eyes that seemed to take in everything at once. He might have worn the fashionable Prince Albert coat he favored in his later years, or perhaps simpler attire suited to a working lawman, but undoubtedly visible were the twin butts of his Colt Navy revolvers, carried reversed in a sash or belt for a cross-draw. His demeanor was typically quiet, almost deliberate, yet carried an unmistakable undercurrent of danger. A man entirely free from all bluster or bravado, as General Custer once described him, but one who, as another observer noted, could look just like a mad old bull. His carefully cultivated image, the distinctive look, the quiet confidence, the known deadliness with his pistols, was his primary instrument of control. It projected an aura that often quelled trouble before it began, but it also meant that any direct challenge could not be ignored without undermining the very authority he represented.

Speaker 1 16:22

Hickok's response was immediate and unequivocal, a clear statement of the lethal consequences of further defiance. Do, he warned Strawhoon, his voice, likely low but carrying deadly weight, and they will carry you out the choice and the responsibility for what happened next was placed squarely on Strahoon. The calculated escalation was typical of Hickok's approach Offer a chance for compliance, then state the fatal alternative. Offer a chance for compliance, then state the fatal alternative. What happened next occurred in a blur of motion recounted differently by witnesses, likely addled by alcohol and adrenaline. Some said Strahoon turned to attack Hickok directly. Others claimed he made a sudden move, perhaps reaching for a gun he carried. Yet another version suggested he threatened the sheriff with a piece of broken glass. One contemporary newspaper report, based on eyewitness testimony, insisted Strauhund had merely raised a beer glass, not a weapon against the lawman.

Speaker 1 17:29

Regardless of the precise nature of Strauhund's final aggressive act, hickok's reaction was instantaneous. Trained reflexes honed by years on the frontier in gunfights and Civil War skirmishes took over. One or both of his Navy Colts appeared in his hands. A single shot cracked through the saloon, the sound sharp and definitive. Samuel Strauhund crumpled to the floor. Shot through the saloon, the sound sharp and definitive. Samuel Strahoon crumbled to the floor. Shot through the head or neck, blood suddenly staining the rough wooden planks. He died instantly. The effect was immediate and absolute.

Speaker 1 18:08

The riot ceased, as if cut by a knife, strahoon's numerous companions moments before bold in their drunken rampage froze staring at the body of their compatriot and the unwavering figure of the sheriff. Though severely outnumbered, hickok faced no further challenge. The raw power of his reputation, cemented by the swift and brutal violence they had just witnessed, held them captive. It was a stark demonstration of the consequences of defying Wild Bill Hickok in Hayes City. A heavy silence descended upon Bitter's saloon, broken only perhaps by the ragged breathing of the onlookers and the low groan of the wind outside. Hickok likely stood for a moment impassive, his eyes scanning the room before calmly holstering his weapon. Order had been restored, his authority brutally reasserted. Later, a coroner's inquest would convene hearing testimony, likely muddled by the night's events.

Legacy of Wild Bill's Justice

Speaker 1 19:18

Hickok's defense was terse. He had tried to restore order. The jury returned a verdict of justifiable homicide, a ruling common on the frontier, where lawmen confronting perceived threats were given considerable latitude. One local newspaper lauded Hickok's actions, stating Too much credit cannot be given to Wild Bill for his endeavor to rid this town of such dangerous characters. Yet the killing of Samuel Strawn, the second man Hickok had shot dead in his first five weeks as sheriff, resonated uneasily through Hayes City. While his brutal efficiency brought a semblance of peace, many citizens began to question if the cure wasn't worse than the disease. The incident became a focal point for those arguing that Hickok's method were indeed too wild, contributing significantly to the sentiment that would see him voted out of office just weeks later in the November election, replaced by his own deputy, lanahan. The gun smoke that cleared in John Bitter's beer saloon left behind not just a body but a complex legacy Another violent chapter in Hayes City's history and a defining moment in the controversial career of Wild Bill Hickok, the lawman whose methods were as deadly as the frontier he sought to tame.

Episode Closing and Resources

Speaker 1 21:00

Imagine a story that has captivated audience throughout the ages, filled with daring exploits and larger-than-life characters. In the making of Wild Bill Hickok, michael King takes us on a thrilling journey through the life of a truly remarkable figure. With a masterful blend of vivid storytelling and dramatic flair, king crafts a narrative that pulls us into the whirlwind of Wild Bill's extraordinary adventures, sparking an endless appetite for even more outrageous tales. The Making of Wild Bill Hickok is now available on Amazoncom. To order you a copy, go to the description page of this podcast page of this podcast.

Speaker 1 21:47

As we wrap up today's program, we invite you to dive into the exciting world of this Week in the West podcast. This dynamic series serves as your gateway to the West's captivating stories and vibrant history, designed to engage and inspire listeners everywhere, join us on this incredible journey where the legendary spirit of the West comes alive, ensuring these tales resonate for generations to come. Don't miss out on this adventure. Click the link in the description page of this podcast to learn more about this Week in the West. Let's celebrate our rich Western heritage together. Celebrate our rich Western heritage together. That's it for now, but don't miss out on our electrifying episodes available on all your favorite platforms Apple Podcasts, spotify, amazon Music, pandora and wildwestpodcastbuzzsproutcom. Be sure to connect with us on Facebook at facebookcom slash wildwestpodcast, and don't forget to check out our YouTube channel for even more thrilling content. Tune in next time as we take you to Hays City, kansas, with another episode of Wild Bill Hickok. We'll see you next time.