Hickok left Troy Grove at 18 to begin life in the West. Despite his involvement with the Kansas ‘Free Staters’ in the late 1850s, his gunplay at Rock Creek in 1861 and his Civil War activity, Hickok’s life was not the stuff of immortality until he killed Dave Tutt. Then everything changed.

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In the spring of 1866, Hickok helped guide General William T. Sherman during the general’s tour of the West. And during 1867-68, Hickok scouted for both General Winfield Scott Hancock and Lt. Col. George Armstrong Custer. Custer was impressed by Hickok and later wrote of him: ‘Whether on foot or on horseback he was one of the most perfect types of physical manhood I ever saw. Of his courage there could be no question. His skill in the use of the rifle and the pistol was unerring. His deportment was entirely free from all bluster and bravado. He never spoke of himself unless requested to do so. His conversation never bordered 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 had checked among his comrades by the single announcement that ‘this has gone far enough,’ if need be, followed by the ominous warning that, if persisted in, the quarreler ‘must settle with me….’ Wild Bill always carried two handsome ivory-handled revolvers of large size. He was never seen without them. I have a personal knowledge of at least half a dozen men whom he has at various times killed, others have been seriously wounded-yet he always escaped unhurt in every encounter.’

Custer’s account, which appeared in his 1874 book My Life on the Plains, fueled the Wild Bill legend, of course, but it may have also reflected Hickok’s growing maturity, suggesting that he was learning to be quiet about himself. Furthermore, the ability to settle quarrels led to the next phase of his life, law enforcement. Hickok worked on and off as a deputy U.S. marshal during 1867-70, but it was in Hays City, Kan., that he truly proved his worth as an enforcer. On August 23, 1869, Hickok won a special election to complete the unexpired term of the Ellis County sheriff, and decided to make his headquarters in Hays.

Shortly after the election, Hickok shot Bill Mulvey (or Melvin), a hellraiser from St. Joseph, Mo. After getting drunk at Drum’s saloon, Mulvey began terrorizing Hays, shooting out lamps and windows. When Hickok challenged him to give up his gun, Mulvey holstered the weapon and then tried to draw. He never cleared leather and died with a bullet in his chest. Just over a month later, as Hickok settled a disturbance in a saloon, Samuel Strawhun (variously spelled) drew on him. Same result. Hickok pulled the twin Colts and put two shots into Strawhun before he could pull the trigger. Hickok also saved an Army teamster from lynching in Hays, and the commander at Fort Hays expressed his gratitude. But the people of Ellsworth County didn’t seem to appreciate Hickok’s style of law enforcement, and he lost the regular November election to his deputy, Peter Lanihan.

Hickok left his last mark on Hays during the summer of 1870. On the night of July 17, two drunken 7th Cavalry troopers, Jerry Lonergan and John Kile, apparently attacked him in a saloon. According to one account, Kile tried to get off a shot but the cap failed to explode. Before Lonergan could fire, or Kile pull the trigger again, Hickok got off two shots. One shattered Lonergan’s knee, and the other wounded Kile, who died the next day.

When Hickok was appointed marshal of Abilene less than a year later, he offered troublemakers a choice: ‘Leave town on the eastbound train, the westbound train, or go North in the morning.’ North meant boot hill and, except in rare instances, the Texas cowboys, the most violent element in town, decided to heed the warning. Actually, Abilene’s numerous gamblers and prostitutes gave Hickok and his deputies more trouble than did the cowboys.

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