Wild Bill's card game

On August 2 1876 US Marshal James Butler Hickok was murdered by the coward Jack McCall while playing poker in a Deadwood saloon. He had two aces and two eights in his hand at the time (the origin of the now-famous "dead man's hand").
In addition to his gambling Wild Bill was a deadly gunfighter who once shot a man through the heart at 50ft: an impressive feat as the crude cap-and-ball revolvers were heavy, inaccurate weapons. According to a book i read during my childhood Wild Bill gained his skills through years of practise. Legend has it he used his own playing cards as targets


Edited by Nick1986 - 24-May-2011 at 11:42

Wild Bill was a genuine celebrity and historical figure in his own time. In the Civil War he was a union spy and was credited for a lot of kills and heroic deeds. It's hard to separate legend from fact because of all the press and popular writing that touted his deeds. After the war he served as a scout for Custer, and Custer wrote about him:   

General Custer Recalls Wild Bill Hickok

Whether on foot or on horseback he [Hickok] was one of the most perfect types of physical manhood I ever saw. Of his courage there could be no question: it has been brought to the test on too many occasions to doubt. His skill in the use of the rifle and pistol was unerring; while his deportment was exactly the opposite of what we expected for a man of his surroundings. It was entirely free of bluster and bravado. He seldom spoke of himself unless requested to do so. His conversation, strange to say, never bordered either on the vulgar or blasphemous. His influence among the frontiersmen was unbounded, his word was law, and many are the personal quarrels and disturbances which he has checked among his comrades by the simple announcement that "This has gone far enough," if need be followed by the ominous warning that when persisted in or renewed the quarreler "must settle it with me."

Wild Bill is anything but a quarrelsome man; yet no one but himself can enumerate the many conflicts in which he has been engaged, and which have almost invariably resulted in the death of his adversary. I have personal knowledge of at least half a dozen men whom he has at various times killed, one of these being a member of my command. [One of a group of cavalrymen who tried to gang up on Hickok in Hays City in the summer of 1870.]

Others have been severely wounded, yet he always escaped unhurt. On the plains every man openly carried his belt with its invariable appendages, knife and revolver, often two of the latter. Wild Bill always carried two handsome ivoryhandled revolvers of the large size; he was never seen without them. [Probably the handguns given to Hickok by Senator Wilson.]

Custer's wife also wrote:

Wild Bill as Mrs. Custer Remembered Him

Physically he was a delight to look upon. Tall, lithe and free in every motion, he made and walked as if every muscle was perfection, and the careless swing of his body as he moved seemed perfectly in keeping with the man, the country, the time in which he lived. I do not recall anything finer in the way of physical perfection than Wild Bill when he swung himself lightly from his saddle, and with graceful, swaying steps, squarely set shoulders and well pointed head, approached our tent for orders. He was rather fantastically clad but that seemed perfectly in keeping with the time and place. He did not make an armoury of his waist, but carried two pistols. He wore top-boots, riding breeches, and dark blue flannel shirt, with scarlet set in front. A loose neck handkerchief left his fine firm throat free. I do not at all remember his features but the frankly, manly expression of his fearless eyes and his courteous manner gave one a feeling of confidence in his word and in his undaunted courage."

Because of the fame built around him, he often was targeted by gunmen wanting a reputation, but the few who actually attempted an assault where shot or pistol whipped. Most never got up the courage.

Like several other of the toughest gunmen, he was assassinated from behind, most likely prompted by underworld figures in Deadwood who feared he was going to put on the badge. To me he is one of the most interesting men of the wild west period, short as it was.

There is a lot of anecdotal material from contemporary sources about his extraordinary marksmanship.

This is the gun Bill used to kill Davis Tutt. The Colt Dragoon fired .44 caliber balls and was almost 40cm long

Hickok carried his guns in a sash for a fast draw. His weapons included a pair of silver engraved Colt Navy revolvers with ivory butts

Interestingly, today was the anniversary of his death

Absolutely. There are many feats attributed to Wild Bill: he once killed a bear with a Bowie knife, singlehandedly fought off a bunch of Indians, and outdrew several notorious gunfighters including Phil Coe and Davis Tutt

I was surprised to learn the small-caliber bullets used by the modern army were more lethal than their larger-caliber predecessors. Apparently they are designed to tumble inside the enemy's body to cause more internal damage

An age old story. Dealing with the aficionados of knock down-keep em down and accuracy... (also based on rifling in the same) versus lightweight... for the sake of logistics-cost and which also requires a greater basic load in the later and potentially more rounds then expended.

Edited by Centrix Vigilis - 04-Oct-2011 at 12:09

When the Civil War broke out in April 1861, James Butler Hickok was living in Kansas, where he was about to terminate his employment as a stage driver with Jones & Cartwright freighting company. In July, he was involved in the famous fight at Rock Creek, Nebraska Territory, where he became involved in the “McCanles Massacre” during which he was alleged by pulp writers to have killed ten men in hand-to-hand combat. In actuality, only three men died and there is doubt and argument over how many Hickok actually killed. In the fall of 1861, James Hickok signed on as a teamster for the Union Army at Sedalia, Missouri, , and by the end of the year he was a wagonmaster.

Hickok remained in that position until September 1862, then disappears for almost a year before he turns up at Springfield as a member of the 'detective police', employed by the Provost Marshal of Southwest Missouri. The missing period is still under investigation by historians looking for evidence to provide details of his alleged missions into Confederate territory as a spy.
It was at the end of the Civil War that Hickok was generally called “Wild Bill.” Those who served with him or knew him well, claimed that this was because of his actions against Confederate guerrillas and for his exploits as a scout and spy, according to Hickok historian James Rosa.

As a detective, Hickok had his share of hazardous moments, but at other times his duties included visits to saloons within the city of Springfield to note the number of troops in uniform who were drinking on duty, or to check on the owners to see if they had liquor licenses. Other tasks involved long treks to places as far away as Little Rock, Arkansas, to arrest or obtain sums of money from individuals in debt to the Union. On one occasion he and some other policemen were not paid. Hickok then resigned or, perhaps, was ordered by General Sanborn, in command of the District, to report to him, who then hired him as a scout. Paid five dollars a day, Hickok was provided with a horse and equipment. In later years, the general wrote that he was the best man he had.

In June 1865, Hickok was mustered out, and he spent some time in the city gambling. It was during this time that he and Davis K. Tutt, a former Confederate soldier, became friends and were noted gamblers.

According to Rosa, "On July 20, 1865, the pair fell out over a game of cards, which left Hickok in debt to Tutt who took his prized Waltham watch as security for payment. Tutt claimed that Hickok owed him $35 but Wild Bill said it was only $25 since he had paid him the other $10 some days before. Tutt, according to the stories circulated later, said that he would sport Hickok’s watch on Public Square the next afternoon, and Hickok told him that if he did it would become a shooting matter.

At 6 p.m. on the 21st, Tutt appeared with the watch and Hickok advised him not to cross the square. Dave’s response was to draw his pistol and open fire on him. Wild Bill drew and shot Tutt through the heart. Arrested and charged with manslaughter, Hickok was put on trial and was found not guilty on his plea of self-defense. From then on it was up to the legend builders, and a number of local and distant liars, but Hickok’s reputation as both a pistol shot and gunfighter was firmly established."

Indeed, considered one of the few instances of real life Hollywood gunfights, it has become legend.

There, the matter might has rested, and this is the story I have always read, until a remarkable discovery in the early 1990’s of the original Coroner’s Inquest Report into the death of Davis K. Tutt at the hands of James B. Hickok. Delbert Bishop, the newly appointed Archivist of the Illinois' Greene County Archive was determined to search the large number of boxes stored in parts of the building. He was assisted by Robert Neumann, and between them they discovered many documents relative to Hickok, but the most important find was the Coroner’s Inquest record.

Not only did it set the record straight, but the report divulged that witnesses claimed that neither Hickok nor Tutt wanted the fight, and it is still unknown why Tutt actually pulled his pistol on Hickok.

Witnesses stated that friends of both men had spent some hours during the morning and afternoon of July 21 trying to persuade Dave to accept Hickok’s version of events, and one stated that Hickok said that he would rather have a fight with any man on earth rather than Tutt, saying “He has accommodated me more than any man in town for I have borrowed money from him time and again, and we have never had any dispute before in our settlement.”

Tutt agreed and said that he did not want any trouble either, but after a drink he left and later appeared outside the Court House prepared to cross the square. Hickok then told him not to enter the square, but Dave set off, pulled his pistol and fired. Hickok also drew and fired, both shots sounding like one according to several of the witnesses. Dave missed, but Hickok’s ball went through his heart. This differs from the traditional stories of Hickok waiting for Tutt's shot and then firing.

 A doctor examined the body and declared that the ball from Hickok’s pistol had entered at his fifth rib on the right side and exited through the fifth rib on the left, passing through his heart. This meant that Tutt was standing sideways, duelling fashion. By actual measurement, based upon old city maps, they were 75 yards apart when they opened fire, which show's that Hickoks reputation as a marksman were not unfounded.

http://cdm.sos.mo.gov/cdm4/document.php?CISOROOT=/mack&CISOPTR=1530&REC=2