Wild West Hero: From Slave To The Toughest Marshall In Texas!
Howdy folks and greetings from the Great Plains of North Texas!
I've been reading about one of the most amazing characters I've ever heard of. He was one of the crucial Lawmen that helped tame the Wild West.
Being a lawman in a lawless frontier was a fearsome job and required a toughness, skill and courage that few men possessed.
Bass Reeves was such a man.
Born a slave in the 1830's his family was moved from Arkansas to Texas where he was worked like a dog by his owner, who wasn't exactly a kind man. One night while playing a game of poker the two got into it.
From a young age Bass had no tolerance for stealin
Apparently the owner was cheating and young Bass found that unacceptable so he slugged the man and knocked him out.
Well, in those days that was a death sentence...to lay a hand on your master. So Bass high-tailed it out of there and made his way to the Indian Territory in Oklahoma.
The Indians were very welcoming of escaped slaves and would adopt them into their tribe, hence we have many black Indians.
He stayed with the Creek, Seminole, and other tribes, learning their ways, their languages( he could speak 5 native languages) and also learned to track, hunt, and became an expert with the pistol and rifle.
How in the world do you go from slave to Unites States Marshall??
Bass stayed in Indian territory while the Civil War raged so afterwards he was a free man. He married and raised a family.
In 1875 President Ulysses S. Grant ordered a federal judge to bring the lawlessness of the Indian Territory under control because it was a mess.
Well, Bass had already worked as a guide for lawmen who had to venture into Indian Territory so he was a natural for the job. They offered and he accepted. He was the first black U.S. Marshall West of the Mississippi.
An outlaw's worst nightmare
He was also the most feared, most respected, and most prolific lawman in the history of the Wild West. He was the worst news for any criminal in Oklahoma and Texas and killed many bad men. He himself was the baddest of the bad!
If you were a criminal Bass would find you. His story is so remarkable that I'm going to do a series on him. A history professor(who is black) had been captivated by Bass's story for decades and decided to research the man.
He ended up writing a history book about Bass which is exhaustively researched so I'm getting that sometime soon. Let me know if you'd like to see me do a series on Bass.
Thanks for reading folks, God bless you all!
-jonboy
Texas
Sounds like it will be a very interesting story.
Howdy sk43! Thanks so much for giving me your opinion, I'm heavily leaning toward doing a series on Bass. Thanks so much!
It would be great to know more about him. It sounds like a good story for a movie, too.
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Howdy again sir leeart! yes, I'm shocked they haven't made a major movie about him! Thanks for giving your opinion about this, I'll order his biography when I get the chance.
What a great story and a great piece of history!
Howdy sir wwwiebe! Yes I agree, when I was looking at his numbers I think he's probably the best marshall we ever had. Next time I place a book order I'll get his biography so I can do a series.
Reminds me a little of that movie Django🙃
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Howdy sir enginewitty! oh man, that was a good movie, with so many good actors and the musical score was wild. lol. Yes, that's a good point though, I hadn't thought of that!
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That’s a good idea!
Howdy sir kaminchan! I thought you might like that idea. I think I'll get that history book about him, thanks for your input!
Hey, @janton.
Do it. Just do it. Your series highlighting different folks that few of us have ever heard of and your storytelling style are about as under appreciated as it gets around here. I've not seen anyone who does it like you, either, so you're also very unique. So, let's get the Bass Reeves party started. :)
And maybe, just maybe, we'll get a movie starring Will Smith, because unless the image is inaccurate, Reeves and Smith are the spitting image of one another. :)
lol! Howdy sir Glen! Thanks so much, you are too kind. But wow you are so correct about Will Smith! I didn't think of him.
Yes, it's amazing that a major movie hasn't been made of Bass Reeves, the guy was totally remarkable and after looking at his numbers, which were probably way more than what they have recorded because when it came to black lawmen they didn't bother keeping records much! ...I think he was the best lawman in our history.
When I place my next order for books I'll include Bass Reeve's biography. Thanks again Glen! How's it going this week, or did you post about it? I'll head over there now.
Sounds like he had a fascinating life. He's lucky he managed to escape slavery and ride it out until emancipation like that. Great timing, even if it wasn't intentional.
Howdy again sir fotosdenada! yes, he was lucky to be able to escape and to have someplace to escape to that was fairly close. Some people seem to walk in luck. He served for 32 years and in a time when the injury and death rate of marshalls was very high because it was so wild, he never got a scratch!
Hi janton, I would love to hear more about this most interesting man thank you. The cruel owner was lucky that he was just 'slugged'!!
lol! yeah the cruel owner was lucky and Bass was lucky that he was able to escape and have a place to escape TO! I think I'll order the biography book about him on my next book order, thanks for your opinion!
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