Sandy King
Encyclopedia
Sandy King, was an outlaw
of the Old West, and a member of the loosely knit outlaw Cowboys
in Cochise County
, Arizona Territory
during the period when theu clashed with Deputy U.S. Marshal Virgil Earp
in Tombstone, Arizona
and resulting Gunfight at the O.K. Corral
.
or Arkansas
. He became associated with the Clanton's in the Arizona Territory
, as well as other outlaws of the day around 1877, and took part in armed robbery and cattle rustling
. Around 1879 King became close friends with "Russian Bill" Tattenbaum another local Cowboy
.
In early 1881, around the time when tensions between the Earp's and the Clanton's were reaching its boiling point, King left Tombstone. Tattenbaum followed him, and the two stole cattle around the area of Shakespeare, New Mexico
. The town formed a "vigilance committee
" to combat rustlers and other outlaws, and in early November, 1881, King was arrested after shooting and wounding a storekeeper after a dispute. He was arrested by well-known lawman "Dangerous Dan" Tucker
for stealing cattle.
On November 9, 1881, Tucker also captured "Russian Bill" Tattenbaum and charged him with cattle rustling as well. The vigilance committee held a mock trial in the Grant Hotel and found both outlaws guilty of the rustling charge, as well as for being a "general nuisance", and sentenced them both to hang that same day. "Russian Bill" begged for his life to be spared, and King argued that there were many who had committed the same crimes who did not hang for it. However, the vigilance committee was less than sympathetic and the two were lynched
together, and their bodies left hanging for days as a warning to other outlaws that lawlessness would not be tolerated. Just prior to the hanging, King asked for a glass of water, stating "My throat is sore after talking so much to save my life".
Outlaw
In historical legal systems, an outlaw is declared as outside the protection of the law. In pre-modern societies, this takes the burden of active prosecution of a criminal from the authorities. Instead, the criminal is withdrawn all legal protection, so that anyone is legally empowered to persecute...
of the Old West, and a member of the loosely knit outlaw Cowboys
The Cowboys (Cochise County)
The Cowboys were a loosely associated group of outlaw cowboys in Pima and Cochise County, Arizona Territory in the late 19th century. They were cattle rustlers and robbers who rode across the border into Mexico and rounded up cattle that they then sold in the United States...
in Cochise County
Cochise County in the Old West
Cochise County in the Old West was a formative period from about 1870 to 1900 in the American Southwest. The period was characterized by rapidly-growing boomtowns due to silver mining, ongoing Apache Indian raids, smuggling and cattle rustling across the Mexican-United States border, growing...
, Arizona Territory
Arizona Territory
The Territory of Arizona was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from February 24, 1863 until February 14, 1912, when it was admitted to the Union as the 48th state....
during the period when theu clashed with Deputy U.S. Marshal Virgil Earp
Virgil Earp
Virgil Walter Earp fought in the Civil War. He was U.S. Deputy Marshal for south-eastern Arizona and Tombstone City Marshal at the time of the Gunfight at the O.K. Corral in the Arizona Territory. Two months after the shootout in Tombstone, outlaw Cowboys ambushed Virgil on the streets of...
in Tombstone, Arizona
Tombstone, Arizona
Tombstone is a city in Cochise County, Arizona, United States, founded in 1879 by Ed Schieffelin in what was then Pima County, Arizona Territory. It was one of the last wide-open frontier boomtowns in the American Old West. From about 1877 to 1890, the town's mines produced USD $40 to $85 million...
and resulting Gunfight at the O.K. Corral
Gunfight at the O.K. Corral
The Gunfight at the O.K. Corral was a roughly 30-second gunfight that took place at about 3:00 p.m. on Wednesday, October 26, 1881, in Tombstone, Cochise County, Arizona Territory, of the United States. Outlaw Cowboys Ike Clanton and Billy Claiborne ran from the fight, unharmed, but Ike's brother...
.
Outlaw life
King is believed to have been born in either TexasTexas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
or Arkansas
Arkansas
Arkansas is a state located in the southern region of the United States. Its name is an Algonquian name of the Quapaw Indians. Arkansas shares borders with six states , and its eastern border is largely defined by the Mississippi River...
. He became associated with the Clanton's in the Arizona Territory
Arizona Territory
The Territory of Arizona was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from February 24, 1863 until February 14, 1912, when it was admitted to the Union as the 48th state....
, as well as other outlaws of the day around 1877, and took part in armed robbery and cattle rustling
Cattle raiding
Cattle raiding is the act of stealing cattle.In Australia, such stealing is often referred to as duffing, and the person as a duffer...
. Around 1879 King became close friends with "Russian Bill" Tattenbaum another local Cowboy
The Cowboys (Cochise County)
The Cowboys were a loosely associated group of outlaw cowboys in Pima and Cochise County, Arizona Territory in the late 19th century. They were cattle rustlers and robbers who rode across the border into Mexico and rounded up cattle that they then sold in the United States...
.
In early 1881, around the time when tensions between the Earp's and the Clanton's were reaching its boiling point, King left Tombstone. Tattenbaum followed him, and the two stole cattle around the area of Shakespeare, New Mexico
Shakespeare, New Mexico
Shakespeare, formerly known variously as Mexican Springs, Grant, and Ralston City, is a ghost town in Hidalgo County, New Mexico, United States. It is currently part of a privately-owned ranch, sometimes open to tourists...
. The town formed a "vigilance committee
Vigilance committee
A vigilance committee was a group formed of private citizens to administer law and order where they considered governmental structures to be inadequate. The term is commonly associated with the frontier areas of the American West in the mid-19th century, where groups attacked cattle rustlers and...
" to combat rustlers and other outlaws, and in early November, 1881, King was arrested after shooting and wounding a storekeeper after a dispute. He was arrested by well-known lawman "Dangerous Dan" Tucker
Dan Tucker (lawman)
Dan Tucker, better known as "Dangerous Dan" Tucker, , is a little known lawman and gunfighter of the Old West. Author Bob Alexander, who wrote the biography Dangerous Dan" Tucker, New Mexico's Deadly Lawman, proclaimed Tucker was more dangerous and more effective than better known lawmen, including...
for stealing cattle.
On November 9, 1881, Tucker also captured "Russian Bill" Tattenbaum and charged him with cattle rustling as well. The vigilance committee held a mock trial in the Grant Hotel and found both outlaws guilty of the rustling charge, as well as for being a "general nuisance", and sentenced them both to hang that same day. "Russian Bill" begged for his life to be spared, and King argued that there were many who had committed the same crimes who did not hang for it. However, the vigilance committee was less than sympathetic and the two were lynched
Lynching
Lynching is an extrajudicial execution carried out by a mob, often by hanging, but also by burning at the stake or shooting, in order to punish an alleged transgressor, or to intimidate, control, or otherwise manipulate a population of people. It is related to other means of social control that...
together, and their bodies left hanging for days as a warning to other outlaws that lawlessness would not be tolerated. Just prior to the hanging, King asked for a glass of water, stating "My throat is sore after talking so much to save my life".