Bass Reeves was a former slave hired to be a deputy U.S. marshal in Indian Territory (what was to become the state of Oklahoma). He was one of the first Black deputy marshals west of the Mississippi. Reeves was fearless, honest, and serious about upholding the law. This was not easy in what was truly the “wild west.”
Reeves very much looked the part of a marshal. He stood 6’2”, wore a black cowboy hat, and always rode a good-sized horse, generally a sorel. He carried two Colt .45s in his belt holsters and had a smaller revolver tucked into the back of his waist band. His weapon of choice, however, was his Winchester rifle. The rifle was generally the most useful to him, given the wide territory the marshals covered, all by horseback.
The federal court for Indian Territory was not centrally located. The site chosen for the court was Fort Smith, located on the western-most border of Arkansas. Indian Territory stretched west, so it was not unusual for marshals to travel some 400 miles in pursuit of an outlaw. The most frequent crimes included horse theft, selling liquor to the Indians [stet], and some cases of murder.
The Muskogee Phoenix described Bass Reeves as “one of the bravest men the country has ever known.” He was said to be responsible for over 3000 arrests during his 32 years.
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The Challenges of the Job
Indian Territory was considered the most dangerous area of the country. Native Americans were forced to move there by the U.S. military. Though they faced innumerable challenges, they kept their own counsel.
Outlaws from elsewhere in the country soon realized they could take cover in an area where they were surrounded by “savages.” There were no good maps of the area, and it was easy to hide. These were the law breakers to be tracked and arrested by the marshals. (The U.S. justice department did not have jurisdiction over tribe members.)
Muskogee, about 70 miles northwest of Fort Smith was the hub of a great deal of criminal activity. A spokesperson for the Muskogee Museum said that more deputy marshals were killed in a 100-mile radius of Muskogee than anywhere in U.S. history. (Tulsa World, March 6, 2022)
In addition to the vast distances and difficult communication, photography was not widely used in that era. Occasionally, there were images of the fellow who was to be tracked but the pictures were often out-of-date. This left the marshals looking for people based only on verbal descriptions.
Capturing All He Could
In one case, Bass Reeves was assigned to travel to a part of the Territory that he didn’t know in search of a pair of horse thieves. He encountered two fellows who were from the area, so he hired them as guides. Reeves always kept a careful eye on people he didn’t know. By the time they stopped to camp for the night, Reeves realized these two men were actually the horse thieves he was pursuing. They were soon in custody.
Marshals also didn’t take prisoners back on an arrest-by-arrest basis. Some prisoners had additional reward money attached to their capture, but it still didn’t pay to take them in until there was a group ready to go. Reeves tended to round up 12-14 people, link them together, and keep them with him until it made sense to return to Fort Smith.
In an 1891 edition of The Indian Journal (Eufaula, Oklahoma), a reporter documents that Bass Reeves came through town with prisoners on their way to Fort Smith: “He had two wagons of prisoners going to Fort Smith—12 prisoners in all. Eight for whisky vending, three for larceny and one for murder.”
Bass Reeves’s Background
Bass Reeves (1838-1910) was born into slavery in Crawford, Arkansas. His family was owned by William Steele Reeves, an Arkansas state legislator. In about 1846, owner Reeves packed up his family and his slaves and moved to Grayson County, Texas, north of Dallas and on the border of Indian Territory.
When Bass Reeves became an adolescent, he was given to William Reeves’s son, George. When the Civil War began, the son signed up for the Confederacy. Most southern gentlemen took a slave with them to war, so Bass Reeves went along with George Reeves.
Bass Reeves was present for several battles of the Confederacy before running away. Some writers report that a fight with his owner over a card game may have led to Bass Reeves’s decision to escape, but in all likelihood, he likely saw an opportunity and took it.
As he ran, Reeves found himself in Indian Territory populated by the Cherokee, Creeks and Seminoles. He was well aware that he needed to stay out of sight of white men, and he made good use of his time among the tribes. He learned the languages, and they also showed him secrets about traveling the territory. This would prove crucial to his future.
After the Civil War
When the Civil War ended, Bass Reeves was relieved to learn that he was a free man. He returned to the Arkansas county where he was born and soon married. He bought farmland near Van Buren (near the border of Indian Territory), and the couple started a family. Bass Reeves continued farming until 1875 when change came to the territory.
Constant reports about the lawlessness of Indian Territory filtered back to the federal government. President Ulysses S. Grant installed Isaac Parker as the judge for the Federal Western District court system. The court was stationed at Fort Smith on the border of western Arkansas and Indian Territory. As a new system, there wasn’t much legal structure put in place. Parker’s court decisions were final. There was no right to an appeal.
Parker Takes Charge
On his arrival, Judge Parker came with the mandate to improve public safety. He noted in an interview with The St. Louis Globe-Democrat (7-6-1875) that he was not concerned about Arkansas. He knew the problems were in Indian Territory. Federal courts did not have jurisdiction over tribal issues, but he knew there was plenty of work to do in reigning in the gangsters hiding in the Territory. (Parker eventually became known as the “hanging judge.”)
Isaac Parker appointed James F. Fagan as U.S. marshal for the court. He ordered Fagan to hire 200 deputy marshals to begin cleaning up the area. Both men had heard of Bass Reeves. They knew him as a tough fellow who meant business when crossed. He also spoke several of the languages used by Native tribes, and he had excellent knowledge of the territory.
Reeves was one of the first hires, and he accepted the job. He knew his family would be safer on the farm in Arkansas. He left them there, visiting as often as he could.
Hunting Down Crime
In Black Gun Silver Star: The Life and Legend of Frontier Marshal Bass Reeves, historian and author Art Burton provides an exhaustive study of Bass Reeves and his career as a deputy marshal.
Burton works his way through the court records and tells each story of the culprits Reeves brought in. (While today Bass Reeves is the subject of movies and a new television series, Art Burton was among the first to start research, working long before many had paid any notice to Reeves.)
For those who are curious about the many cases that Burton documented, please check out his book. In the meantime, this article provides you with anecdotes about Reeves’s work habits and some of his more astonishing cases.
How He Worked
A deputy marshal generally traveled with one posseman and a cook who brought along a cook wagon. As a marshal gathered prisoners, there could be many mouths to feed. (The size of the posse was increased if a marshal’s warrant called for chasing down a gang.)
Bass Reeves was very smart—people saw that—but he worked with a major disadvantage. He couldn’t read or write. When he was a slave, he expressed interest in learning to read the Bible. His owner—by then George Reeves—told him slaves was not allowed to learn.
When warrants for arrests were handed out by the court, they were formal documents in writing. Reeves consulted someone before leaving the courthouse so he would know which warrant was for what crime. Occasionally he had a photograph of the culprit, but often, he worked from a verbal description of the person he was hunting down.
Use of Disguises
Bass Reeves used many disguises, based on the person he was tracking. One of the first lessons he picked up from the tribes he lived with for a time was how to appear smaller. In life, he was a big man on a big horse—unusual in those parts of the country. Native Americans shared with him their techniques for slumping down in the saddle (or on the backs of their horses) so from a distance he appeared to be a smaller man.
On one occasion he disguised himself as a tramp in pursuit of two scoundrels from the same family. He knew the men were on their way home, so he picked up an old hat and a torn, worn out jacket under which he could hide his guns and handcuffs. He appeared at the back door of the men’s house and asked the wife for something to eat. His behavior did not alarm her, so she invited him into the house for a decent meal. Afterward, she allowed as how he could bed down in one of the back rooms before heading on his way.
While Reeves was there (and supposedly asleep), the two men came home, had their own supper and went to bed. The U.S. marshal was up bright and early to arrest the two thieves.
Fast at the Draw
Reeves was known for speed. He found that the fastest way to draw a gun was with the gun handles forward. He executed a cross-arm motion to grab both guns. It always gave him the jump on the other guy. (Outlaw Belle Starr 1884-1889) didn’t pack two pistols but she did follow the handle-forward system of wearing her gun.)
If a man who pulled a gun on Reeves was distracted even for a moment, Reeves could draw his gun and fire if necessary.
Tracking Bob Dozier
One of his proudest moments was the capture of Bob Dozier, a man who was known to slip by all authorities. According to Art Burton’s book, Dozier was a skilled thief and undertook everything from cattle rustling to bank robbery.
As Reeves observed Dozier’s movements, he noted that he traveled alone. For that reason, Reeves separated from his posseman and cook and spent a couple of months following Dozier.
Dozier realized Reeves was hunting him and sent a message back to Reeves: “Quit following me or I’ll kill you.”
Reeves sent back his own message: “If you want to kill me, you’ll have to quit running first.”
It didn’t take too much longer for Reeves to bring him in.
Awaiting the Thieves
In another case, a horse thief stole horses from Indian Territory and took them south of the border. The owners of the horses demanded action. Reeves knew chasing a gang was going to be a losing proposition. He reasoned that at some point the thief would come back on another raid. He counseled patience, and convinced the owners and his posseman to lie in wait near the river crossing.
After three or four nights, the culprit returned. Reeves arrested him, and the owners were able to locate and retrieve their horses.
Man with Integrity
In the promotional trailer for Taylor Sheridan’s 2023 television series: “Lawmen: Bass Reeves,” Reeves is described as both a lawman and an outlaw. That’s a nice promotional twist for a program, but it is a poor description of the man. Bass Reeves believed firmly in the righteousness of the law and did what he could to uphold it.
The most revealing story concerns the fact that he arrested and saw jailed his own son. The story goes that Benjamin Reeves was a happily married man but he traveled a lot. One night he came in and found his wife with another man. He was livid. She asked for forgiveness, and he accepted her tearful apology. But a few months later, he came home to find that she again had cheated on him. This time, he was so angry he shot her.
When word got out that Bass Reeve’s son had murdered his wife, the other marshals held off on picking up the warrant. Bass Reeves soon heard that his son was wanted for murder. He told the other marshals: “I’ll take care of it.”
He found Benjamin at home and made it clear that one way or another, he was turning in his son for the murder of his wife. (Benjamin was convicted and served 12 years at Leavenworth, eventually being pardoned for being a model citizen.)
Bass Reeves“Without law and order, violence will continue.”
Reeves Kills Cook
There is one agonizing story about Bass Reeves that needs to be told. It was likely an accidental shooting, but Bass Reeves had to be arrested for murder.
Reeves was returning to Fort Smith with prisoners and cleaning his rifle while the cook was preparing dinner. One of Reeves’s bullets was lodged in the rifle, and he was working it loose.
The cook, a man who had traveled with Bass Reeves many times, was annoyed because a dog (perhaps Reeves’s dog or perhaps a stray that had joined the group) was begging for food by the fire. He shooed the dog away a few times, but the dog kept returning. Angered, the cook lifted a pan with hot grease in it, pouring it on the dog.
Reeves had a soft spot for animals. Whether the dog was his or not, he would have been upset by the cook’s action. Reeves was startled by the commotion nearby and rose up. The rifle went off.
At first, Reeves thought he had just grazed the cook, and his full attention went to the dying dog. But within moments, he realized he shot the cook in the neck. He immediately sent for medical help.
Reeves understood the seriousness of being tried for murder, so he sold much of his property to pay for top-flight defense attorneys. The case took three years to wind its way through the court system. It was then heard by Judge Isaac Parker who knew Bass Reeves’s excellent reputation for bringing in outlaws. Though the jury made the ultimate decision, it is possible that Reeves entered the courtroom with the judge’s good will.
When the evidence was reviewed, a jury found Reeves not guilty.
No One Messes with Reeves
Even during the last years of Bass Reeves’s life, he was more than capable of protecting his own. In 1906, Reeves and his wife lived in Muskogee where Reeves served on the police force. He had pneumonia and was home sick in bed while a marital feud was playing out on the streets around Bass Reeves’s house. A husband with a long knife was chasing his wife and threatening to kill her. As the woman ran past Bass Reeves’s home, she ducked inside, hoping for protection.
According to the Tahlequah Arrow (as quoted in the Coffeyville Weekly), the husband, Frank Brown, had no idea whose home he entered. He went in brandishing his knife and continuing his threats.
Even when sick, Reeves slept with a revolver under his pillow. As Frank Brown entered the small home, Reeves, holding the revolver, began talking. He eventually persuaded Brown to put down the knife.
Bass Reeves sent his own wife to the police station to get help. She soon returned with a policeman who took Brown to federal jail. Mrs. Brown was greatly relieved.
The Death of Bass Reeves
Bass Reeves lived a long and successful life. After his first wife died, he remarried, eventually having 11 children.
He died in Muskogee of Bright’s Disease (a kidney ailment) at the age of 72.
Many newspapers printed obituaries of the lawman. He was known to have killed 14 in the line of duty and to have arrested some 3000 law breakers.
Some articles say he was never hit by a bullet though his hat was shot off a few times and once the button on his vest was hit. Other articles report that he took a bullet in the leg. During his later years, he had a limp but it never kept him from working.
After his death, he has received many honors. In 2011, the US-62 Bridge, spanning the Arkansas River between Muskogee and Fort Gibson (OK) was renamed the Bass Reeves Memorial Bridge.
A bronze statue created by sculptor Harold Holden was erected in Pendergast Park in Fort Smith, Arkansas in 2012, and in 2013, he was inducted into the Texas Trail of Fame.
Games and toys were also based on his life. Reeves expert Art Burton thinks that the radio and television character, “The Lone Ranger” was modeled after Bass Reeves. But the Lone Ranger was a former Texas Ranger. The myths of this quasi-military group are different from the stories that are told about the marshals of Indian Territory. Bass Reeves story can stand on its own.
And in 2023, the extraordinarily successful television creator (Yellowstone) has just released his series, “Lawmen: Bass Reeves.” In today’s world, that’s about as good as it gets.
Bass Reeves deserves every moment of glory.
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There were many amazing Black cowboys. Read about Range Boss Addison Jones, Bulldogger Bill Pickett, or a ranch manager who is known for his archaeological find: George McJunkin.
Great article about Marshal Reeves, Ms. Kelly. Thank you. I love reading your stories.
Thank you so much! I love researching and writing them, and so I’m glad to hear from people like you, Thank you.
Interesting. I wonder how he could travel so far to the jail with a bunch of suspects and not having them escape.
Good question…I expect there were some tense moments but the criminals were chained or roped together…and he would have had more possemen with him if he were gathering a big group.