Joe Lefors
Encyclopedia
Joe Lefors was a lawman
in the closing years of the Old West. He is best known for the arrest of gunman Tom Horn
in 1903 for the alleged murder of 14 year old sheepherder Willie Nickell, which has since come into question, and it has long been believed that Lefors falsified evidence helping to convict the wrong man for the murder.
, and first arrived in Wyoming
in 1885 after working on a cattle
drive that ended there. LeFors played a minor role in the 1887 recovery of a large herd of cattle rustled by the "Hole in the Wall Gang
". He later worked as a Contract Livestock Inspector for Wyoming, where his job was to recover stolen livestock and apprehend cattle thieves. Lefors married his first wife, 16 year old Bessie M. Hannum, in Newcastle, Wyoming
on August 5, 1896.
In 1899, LeFors took part in a posse
to capture those responsible for what would become known as the "Wilcox Train Robbery", committed by the "Hole in the Wall Gang
" led by outlaw Butch Cassidy
. The robbers eventually escaped into the Big Horn Mountains
. Famed lawman and Pinkerton Agent Charlie Siringo
worked heavily on that case, and would years later come into contact with LeFors in the process of working other cases, and would later indicate that Lefors was incompetent, at best, as a lawman. However, US Marshal Frank Hadsell appointed Lefors to a Deputy US Marshal's position in October, 1899. Lefors always claimed that Hadsell approached him to take that job based on his hard work on the Wilcox Robbery case. However, Lefors contributed to that case very little, if anything, and is not mentioned as a contributor at all in the official records of that investigation. It is more likely that Lefors asked Hadsell to give him the appointment, and eventually he asked often enough to get it.
Train robbers again robbed another Union Pacific train on August 29, 1900, near Tipton, Wyoming about fifty miles west of Rawlins
, and this time Lefors led the posse. However, they again had no success, and the robbers escaped. That same year, former lawman, scout
, tracker and longtime killer for hire
Tom Horn began his investigation on the Wilcox robbery case, working on contract with the Pinkerton
Detective Agency to solve the case, and with whom he had been employed many years before. He generated productive information which was later passed to Charlie Siringo via the agency, obtained from explosives expert Bill Speck. Through that information the investigators were able to identify who had killed Sheriff Josiah Hazen, who had been killed during a chase of the train robbery suspects. Horn and Siringo identified Hazen's killers as being Wild Bunch
gang members George Curry
and Kid Curry. Horn also killed rustlers Matt Rash and Islam (Isom) Dart that same month, in his other job as a killer for hire to fight cattle rustling for large cattle companies.
In a January 1, 1902, letter to W.D. Smith in Helena, Montana
, of the "Iron Mountain Ranch Company", Lefors spoke with Smith about working in a position to infiltrate a gang, but not as a law enforcement officer but rather as an employee of the cattle company. Smith asked Lefors to recommend someone for the job, which paid a salary of $125 per month. Lefors quickly recommended himself, stating that it didn't matter how tough the gang members were, he could handle them. He states also in the letter that the gang couldn't be any worse than the "Brown's Hole Gang", and that he (Lefors) had stopped their cattle stealing in only one summer. That was, in fact, a lie. Lefors had nothing to do with stopping the "Brown's Hole Gang", although he did spend weeks looking for them.
There has since been some speculation that Lefors needed to close the Nickell murder case as soon as possible, so that he would not miss the opportunity at the high paying job offered in Helena. Already under pressure to do so, this only added to his incentive. However, that is mostly speculation, and cannot be verified as only Lefors knows what he was thinking. Following the hanging of Horn, Lefors did take the job offered in Helena, where he worked for many months. He not only did not infiltrate the gang in question, he had no effect whatsoever. Eventually, the cattle company fired him in 1904, and little is known about his whereabouts after that.
Joe LeFors died on October 1, 1940. He is buried in the Willow Grove Cemetery in Buffalo, Wyoming
.
Lawman
Lawman is a term usually used in reference to an American law-enforcement officer, primarily sheriff or marshal.Lawman may also refer to:-Television and film titles:*Lawman , American western produced in 1958–62 by Warner Bros...
in the closing years of the Old West. He is best known for the arrest of gunman Tom Horn
Tom Horn
Thomas "Tom" Horn, Jr. was an American Old West lawman, scout, soldier, hired gunman, detective, outlaw and assassin. On the day before his 43rd birthday, he was hanged in Cheyenne, Wyoming, for the murder of Willie Nickell.-Early life:Born to Thomas S. Horn, Sr...
in 1903 for the alleged murder of 14 year old sheepherder Willie Nickell, which has since come into question, and it has long been believed that Lefors falsified evidence helping to convict the wrong man for the murder.
Early life
LeFors was born in Paris, TexasParis, Texas
Paris, Texas is a city located northeast of the Dallas–Fort Worth Metroplex in Lamar County, Texas, in the United States. It is situated in Northeast Texas at the western edge of the Piney Woods. Physiographically, these regions are part of the West Gulf Coastal Plain. In 1900, 9,358 people lived...
, and first arrived in Wyoming
Wyoming
Wyoming is a state in the mountain region of the Western United States. The western two thirds of the state is covered mostly with the mountain ranges and rangelands in the foothills of the Eastern Rocky Mountains, while the eastern third of the state is high elevation prairie known as the High...
in 1885 after working on a cattle
Cattle
Cattle are the most common type of large domesticated ungulates. They are a prominent modern member of the subfamily Bovinae, are the most widespread species of the genus Bos, and are most commonly classified collectively as Bos primigenius...
drive that ended there. LeFors played a minor role in the 1887 recovery of a large herd of cattle rustled by the "Hole in the Wall Gang
Hole in the Wall Gang
The Hole-in-the-Wall Gang was a gang in the American Wild West, which took its name from the Hole-in-the-Wall Pass in Johnson County, Wyoming, where several outlaw gangs had their hideouts. The Gang was not simply one large organized gang of outlaws, but rather was made up of several separate...
". He later worked as a Contract Livestock Inspector for Wyoming, where his job was to recover stolen livestock and apprehend cattle thieves. Lefors married his first wife, 16 year old Bessie M. Hannum, in Newcastle, Wyoming
Newcastle, Wyoming
Newcastle is a city in and the county seat of Weston County, Wyoming, United States. The population was 3,065 at the 2000 census.- Geography :Newcastle is located at...
on August 5, 1896.
In 1899, LeFors took part in a posse
Posse comitatus (common law)
Posse comitatus or sheriff's posse is the common-law or statute law authority of a county sheriff or other law officer to conscript any able-bodied males to assist him in keeping the peace or to pursue and arrest a felon, similar to the concept of the "hue and cry"...
to capture those responsible for what would become known as the "Wilcox Train Robbery", committed by the "Hole in the Wall Gang
Hole in the Wall Gang
The Hole-in-the-Wall Gang was a gang in the American Wild West, which took its name from the Hole-in-the-Wall Pass in Johnson County, Wyoming, where several outlaw gangs had their hideouts. The Gang was not simply one large organized gang of outlaws, but rather was made up of several separate...
" led by outlaw Butch Cassidy
Butch Cassidy
Robert LeRoy Parker , better known as Butch Cassidy, was a notorious American train robber, bank robber, and leader of the Wild Bunch Gang in the American Old West...
. The robbers eventually escaped into the Big Horn Mountains
Big Horn Mountains
The Big Horn Mountains are a mountain range in northern Wyoming and southern Montana in the United States, forming a northwest-trending spur from the Rocky Mountains extending approximately 200 miles northward on the Great Plains...
. Famed lawman and Pinkerton Agent Charlie Siringo
Charlie Siringo
Charles Angelo Siringo , was an American lawman, detective, and agent for the Pinkerton National Detective Agency during the late 19th century and early 20th century.-Early life:...
worked heavily on that case, and would years later come into contact with LeFors in the process of working other cases, and would later indicate that Lefors was incompetent, at best, as a lawman. However, US Marshal Frank Hadsell appointed Lefors to a Deputy US Marshal's position in October, 1899. Lefors always claimed that Hadsell approached him to take that job based on his hard work on the Wilcox Robbery case. However, Lefors contributed to that case very little, if anything, and is not mentioned as a contributor at all in the official records of that investigation. It is more likely that Lefors asked Hadsell to give him the appointment, and eventually he asked often enough to get it.
Train robbers again robbed another Union Pacific train on August 29, 1900, near Tipton, Wyoming about fifty miles west of Rawlins
Rawlins, Wyoming
Rawlins is a city in Carbon County, Wyoming, United States. The population was 8,538 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Carbon County...
, and this time Lefors led the posse. However, they again had no success, and the robbers escaped. That same year, former lawman, scout
Reconnaissance
Reconnaissance is the military term for exploring beyond the area occupied by friendly forces to gain information about enemy forces or features of the environment....
, tracker and longtime killer for hire
Hitman
A hitman is a person hired to kill another person.- Hitmen in organized crime :Hitmen are largely linked to the world of organized crime. Hitmen are hired people who kill people for money. Notable examples include Murder, Inc., Mafia hitmen and Richard Kuklinski.- Other cases involving hitmen...
Tom Horn began his investigation on the Wilcox robbery case, working on contract with the Pinkerton
Pinkerton National Detective Agency
The Pinkerton National Detective Agency, usually shortened to the Pinkertons, is a private U.S. security guard and detective agency established by Allan Pinkerton in 1850. Pinkerton became famous when he claimed to have foiled a plot to assassinate president-elect Abraham Lincoln, who later hired...
Detective Agency to solve the case, and with whom he had been employed many years before. He generated productive information which was later passed to Charlie Siringo via the agency, obtained from explosives expert Bill Speck. Through that information the investigators were able to identify who had killed Sheriff Josiah Hazen, who had been killed during a chase of the train robbery suspects. Horn and Siringo identified Hazen's killers as being Wild Bunch
Wild Bunch
The Wild Bunch, also known as the Doolin–Dalton Gang or the Oklahombres, was a gang of outlaws based in the Indian Territory that terrorized Kansas, Missouri, Arkansas, and Oklahoma Territory during the 1890s—robbing banks and stores, holding up trains, and killing lawmen. They were...
gang members George Curry
George Curry (Wild Bunch)
George Sutherland Curry , also known as Flat-nose Curry, was an American robber of the American Old West. Curry was a mentor to Harvey Logan, who would adopt the surname Curry, and the two robbed banks together before both became members of Butch Cassidy's Wild Bunch...
and Kid Curry. Horn also killed rustlers Matt Rash and Islam (Isom) Dart that same month, in his other job as a killer for hire to fight cattle rustling for large cattle companies.
Later life
Little is known about Lefors' life after Horn's hanging. He had, throughout his career, a habit of bragging about his exploits, and his prowess as a lawman. However, short of his arrest of Horn, who did not resist whatsoever, Lefors was not what could be referred to as an effective law enforcement official. If anything, he was ineffective. He often led posses in pursuit of outlaws, robbers or thieves. However, more times than not, they would return home empty handed, capturing no one.In a January 1, 1902, letter to W.D. Smith in Helena, Montana
Helena, Montana
Helena is the capital city of the U.S. state of Montana and the county seat of Lewis and Clark County. The 2010 census put the population at 28,180. The local daily newspaper is the Independent Record. The Helena Brewers minor league baseball and Helena Bighorns minor league hockey team call the...
, of the "Iron Mountain Ranch Company", Lefors spoke with Smith about working in a position to infiltrate a gang, but not as a law enforcement officer but rather as an employee of the cattle company. Smith asked Lefors to recommend someone for the job, which paid a salary of $125 per month. Lefors quickly recommended himself, stating that it didn't matter how tough the gang members were, he could handle them. He states also in the letter that the gang couldn't be any worse than the "Brown's Hole Gang", and that he (Lefors) had stopped their cattle stealing in only one summer. That was, in fact, a lie. Lefors had nothing to do with stopping the "Brown's Hole Gang", although he did spend weeks looking for them.
There has since been some speculation that Lefors needed to close the Nickell murder case as soon as possible, so that he would not miss the opportunity at the high paying job offered in Helena. Already under pressure to do so, this only added to his incentive. However, that is mostly speculation, and cannot be verified as only Lefors knows what he was thinking. Following the hanging of Horn, Lefors did take the job offered in Helena, where he worked for many months. He not only did not infiltrate the gang in question, he had no effect whatsoever. Eventually, the cattle company fired him in 1904, and little is known about his whereabouts after that.
Joe LeFors died on October 1, 1940. He is buried in the Willow Grove Cemetery in Buffalo, Wyoming
Buffalo, Wyoming
Buffalo is a city in Johnson County, Wyoming, United States. The population was 3,900 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Johnson County...
.
Further reading
- Tom Horn's Story - A Confession? at www.tom-horn.com (communication by Lefors)
- Tom Horn's Story - A Confession? at www.tom-horn.com (alleged confession by Horn)