John Wesley Hardin was born in Bonham, Texas in May of 1853 to Methodist preacher James G. Hardin and his gentle and cultured wife Elizabeth.
John showed a vicious temper early in life and was involved in a knife fight with a classmate when he was between the ages of 12-14. The other boy survived the attack after being stabbed several times and John was cleared of any charges on the grounds of self defense.
Hardin Makes His First Kill
At the tender age of fifteen years old John became involved in rough-housing with a former slave named Mage. Hardin bloodied the mans face and the game turned into a brawl. The fight was broken up, but Mage was vengeful and sought to escalate the brawl into a more deadly encounter.
The following day Mage jumped John from concealment with a large club, intent upon bashing young Hardin's skull, but John quickly removed his revolver from its holster and shot Mage multiple times in the chest. Mage died three days later from his wounds and even though it was a good case for self defense, Hardin fled before a hearing could be conducted .
American Gunfighter And Texas Outlaw
Texas Rangers vehemently pursued Hardin for fleeing from justice. John would not surrender and became a wanted fugitive. Hardin gunned it out with anyone who sought to apprehend him. Although records of the period were poorly kept, it’s alleged he killed several Texas Rangers in an ambush and also Union Soldiers, whom he considered the scum of the earth.
Hardin was a man constantly on the run and by the age of seventeen was already a notorious gunfighter and gambler who would kill at the drop of a hat. He was arrested in 1871 and accused of killing Waco City Marshall L.J. Hoffman (a crime he denied).
John escaped from custody before he could be brought to trial, killing one of his handlers in the process and joining a cattle drive down the Chisholm Trail to Abilene, Kansas. He furthered his reputation and body count by killing several Mexican Vaqueros during a cattle dispute.
Wild Bill Hickok
Hardin met Hickok in Abilene where he was town Marshall. At first they got off to a rocky start but eventually became friends. Wild Bill took on a mentoring role with young Hardin. They parted friends and later when John returned to Abilene he got into some trouble with some of his Texas pals and Hickok was forced to intervene.
His friendship with Hickok came to a sudden and violent end one night when an enraged John Wesley Hardin fired several bullets into his neighbors room at the American House Hotel when disturbed by his loud snoring.
Hardin was forced to flee from Abilene before Hickok could arrest him for the callous murder he had committed. This one shooting incident would be the most infamous crime that Hardin would be forever remembered for.
Hardin Involves Himself in Sutton-Taylor Feud
Fleeing back to Texas in 1873, Hardin got involved in a range war type feud with two warring families and added several more dead cowboys to his already impressive list of fatalities, including Dewitt County Sheriff Jack Helm who made the mortal error of pulling out a knife and menacing Jim Taylor.
In 1874 during Johns 21st birthday bash a Texas Deputy Sheriff named Charles Webb drew down on Hardin when he recognized him as a wanted man. Hardin a seasoned pistol fighter and remorseless killer, dropped Webb to the floor full of holes.
Although John escaped that night his brother Joe and several cousins were arrested and later lynched for the crime John was accused of committing.
The Law Catches up with Hardin
After four more years on the run and more gunfights, the law caught up with John who was living in Florida under the assumed name of Swain. He was sentenced to 25 years in Huntsville Prison for the killing of Webb.
Hardin furthered his education while in prison and upon his release from Huntsville in 1894 by being pardoned by the Governor of Texas opened a law office in El Paso. He lived the semblance of a normal life throughout the first year of his release, but shortly thereafter began gambling and quarreling again.
In August of 1895 Hardin got into an altercation with a lawman named John Selman. In his characteristic way he threatened to kill Selman. Selman's father knowing Hardin’s reputation for murder, especially when it came to men wearing the badge decided to take the law into his own hands.
Selman Sr. approached John Wesley Hardin from behind and shot him in the head while he was shooting dice with a fellow gambler. The most deadly gunfighter in American history was shot down at the age of 42 without a chance to defend himself. Selman was brought to trial but acquitted of any wrongdoing.
Learn more about Wild Bill Hickok in my related article James Butler (Wild Bill Hickok)
Resource: The Old West: The Gunfighters
Trachtman,Paul Time/Life Books 1974
Jim Osborn - http://bigcasinosplace.blogspot.com I'm a Freelance Writer from Reno, Nevada. I have degree's in Business Administration and ...
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