Bat Masterson

W. B. "Bat" Masterson (November 24, 1853 or 1856 – October 25, 1921) was a legendary figure of the American West. He lived an adventurous life which included stints as a buffalo hunter, U.S. Army scout, gambler, frontier lawman, U.S. Marshal, and, finally, sports editor and columnist for a New York newspaper.

Gunfighter and lawman

His first gunfight took place in Sweetwater (later Mobeetie), Texas in 1876 when he was attacked by a man in a fight over a girl. The other man died of his wounds. Masterson was shot in the pelvis. This injury resulted in his carrying a cane for the rest of his life.

Related Topics:
Sweetwater (later Mobeetie), Texas - 1876 - Pelvis

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In 1877, he joined his brothers in Dodge City, Kansas. Jim was a partner in a saloon there and Ed was a deputy sheriff. Soon after his arrival, Masterson came into conflict with the local marshal over the treatment of a man being arrested. He was jailed and fined, although his fine was later returned by the City Council. He served, alongside Wyatt Earp, as a sheriff's deputy and within a few months he was elected County Sheriff of Ford County, Kansas. Fighting in Colorado on the Santa Fe side of its war against the Rio Grande railroad, Masterson continued as Ford County sheriff until he was voted out of office in 1879. During this same period his brother Ed was Marshal of Dodge City and was killed in the line of duty.

Related Topics:
1877 - Dodge City, Kansas - Wyatt Earp - Kansas - Colorado - Santa Fe - Rio Grande railroad - 1879

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For the next several years, he made a living as a gambler moving through several of the legendary towns of the Old West. He visited Wyatt Earp in Tombstone, Arizona, leaving shortly before the famous "Gunfight at the O.K. Corral." He spent a year as Marshal of Trinidad, Colorado.

Related Topics:
Wyatt Earp - Tombstone - Arizona - Gunfight at the O.K. Corral - Trinidad - Colorado

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By 1891, he was living in Denver, Colorado, where he bought the Palace Variety Theater. He married an actress, Emma Walters, on November 21, 1891. He continued to travel in the boomtowns of the West, gambling and promoting prize fights. He began writing a weekly sports column for George's Weekly, a Denver newspaper, and opened the Olympic Athletic Club to promote the sport of boxing.

Related Topics:
1891 - Denver - Colorado - November 21 - Prize fight

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Bat Masterson lived in the American West during a violent and frequently lawless period. He was well-known as a gunman. Reports on the number of people he killed range from one or two, to as many as 26.

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