Tom Threepersons
Encyclopedia
Tom Threepersons was a Cherokee
lawman
, who is considered to have been one of the last of what were considered to be gunfighters. Although often described as being a "gunfighter," he better fit into the category of a lawman and soldier
. Although at times said to be a gunfighter of the Old West, his career did not begin until the early 20th century. He invented the "Tom Threepersons holster."
The lawman named Tom Threepersons is frequently confused with the Kainai rodeo star, Tom Threepersons, who was born in Canada.
on July 22, 1889 to John and Bell Threepersons. His family and the family of his friend Bill White both moved to the Montana
-Alberta
border. He attended Carlisle Indian Industrial School
in Carlisle, Pennsylvania
. After returning from school, Threepersons rode the rodeo
circuit throughout Oregon, Washington, and Wyoming
In 1907, his father and White's father were killed during a fight with cattle rustlers. The suspects were arrested, but released on bond. Threepersons tracked them to a saloon, where he confronted both suspects, and killed them during a shootout. He was arrested for murder
, but acquitted.
; however, no records show a Threepersons in the mounted police. Shortly thereafter the two were assigned to capture a gang of outlaws who had murdered an entire family. Threepersons and White tracked the murder suspects for five days through heavy snow, toward the Yukon River
in Alaska
, having to abandon their horses and continue on foot, carrying their weapons and backpacks. On the fifth day, they encountered the gang of three men, and engaged them in a shootout, during which Bill White was killed. One of the outlaws were killed, with the other two fleeing. Threepersons buried White, then continued after the remaining outlaws. Several days later, at a small settlement named End of the Trail, Threepersons located them. Rather than confronting them in the town, he located the cabin
where they were staying outside town, and waited for them there. When they arrived, a shootout ensued during which both outlaws were killed.
In his short career with the NWMP, which lasted from 1910 to 1912, Threepersons was involved in numerous shootouts, once killing three suspects during a failed bank robbery
attempt in Calgary, and later foiling a train
robbery near Medicine Hat. In 1912 he left the force, returning to ranching, and also began rodeo
riding. That same year he was proclaimed "World Champion Cowboy" in Alberta, winning the Calgary Stampede
. He was financially successful in the cattle business, and spent eleven months visiting other countries and places for vacation, to include Argentina
, Africa
, China
, Japan
, Philippines
, and Hawaii
.
He moved to Douglas, Arizona
around 1914, where he worked as a cowboy
. In 1916, he joined the U.S. Army, and served under General
Jack Pershing in pursuit of Pancho Villa
in Mexico
. He was later assigned to Fort Bliss
, and although he requested service in France
during World War I
, it was never granted. In the 1920 census for El Paso
, his profession is listed as blacksmith. His wife, Susie, is also listed. While at Fort Bliss, he was injured when kicked in the head by a horse, which would cause him severe headaches for the rest of his life. He was discharged from the army in 1920.
He worked for two years for the El Paso Police
. He was partnered with officer Juan Escontrias, and the two were involved in two shootouts during that time with smugglers, resulting in four suspects being killed, and Threepersons being shot and wounded in the chest during one incident in 1921. On June 10, 1922, Threepersons was appointed as Federal Probation Agent for El Paso, but he kept the job only a few months, resigning to manage the "Cudahy Ranch" in Durango, Mexico
. During his brief employment for the ranch he killed two rustlers during a shootout. He was arrested by Mexican authorities for the shooting, but escaped and returned to the United States.
In July, 1923, Threepersons accepted a position as a Mounted Inspector for U.S. Customs. That same year he was run over by a bootleggers
vehicle during an arrest, which resulted in injuries, but none serious. From 1925 he worked for both the El Paso County Sheriffs Office and the El Paso Police Department. Locally, Threepersons was well known for his exploits, and starting in 1925, the S.D. Myres Saddle Co., of El Paso, began advertising the "Tom Threepersons-style holsters". That style holster, which included a cutaway top exposing the pistol hammer and trigger guard became popular, and was copied by several other manufacturers. Threepersons was also offered a job in Hollywood, California, in the film industry, making $700 per month, but he declined.
. Four years later, in 1933, he traveled to New York City
to have corrective surgery for the injury. Following the surgery, which did correct much of the problems, he moved to Silver City, New Mexico
, and spent the rest of his life working as a rancher and hunting guide. Writer Skeeter Skelton, of Shooting Times Magazine, wrote Threepersons in 1962 in an attempt to interview him about his experiences, but Threepersons declined.
He died on April 2, 1969, in Safford, Arizona
, and is buried in the Masonic Cemetery in Silver City. Several years after his death, Skelton came into contact with US Customs Agent John Voliva, whose hobby was gun collecting. Voliva had acquired a rifle and a pistol once owned by Threepersons, which Threepersons had sold to Tom Powers, a collector who owned weapons that once belonged to Billy the Kid
and Pat Garrett
. Voliva, in his purchase of the weapons, had also obtained the personal scrapbooks of Threepersons. Together with these and documents he researched through law enforcement records of the time, he and Skelton were able to piece together a reasonable history of Threepersons career, which otherwise had been mostly forgotten outside of the El Paso area.
Cherokee
The Cherokee are a Native American people historically settled in the Southeastern United States . Linguistically, they are part of the Iroquoian language family...
lawman
Police officer
A police officer is a warranted employee of a police force...
, who is considered to have been one of the last of what were considered to be gunfighters. Although often described as being a "gunfighter," he better fit into the category of a lawman and soldier
Soldier
A soldier is a member of the land component of national armed forces; whereas a soldier hired for service in a foreign army would be termed a mercenary...
. Although at times said to be a gunfighter of the Old West, his career did not begin until the early 20th century. He invented the "Tom Threepersons holster."
The lawman named Tom Threepersons is frequently confused with the Kainai rodeo star, Tom Threepersons, who was born in Canada.
Early life
Threepersons was born in Vinita, Indian TerritoryVinita, Oklahoma
Vinita is a city in south-central Craig County, Oklahoma. As of 2009, the population estimate was 6,057. It is the county seat of Craig County.-Geography:...
on July 22, 1889 to John and Bell Threepersons. His family and the family of his friend Bill White both moved to the Montana
Montana
Montana is a state in the Western United States. The western third of Montana contains numerous mountain ranges. Smaller, "island ranges" are found in the central third of the state, for a total of 77 named ranges of the Rocky Mountains. This geographical fact is reflected in the state's name,...
-Alberta
Alberta
Alberta is a province of Canada. It had an estimated population of 3.7 million in 2010 making it the most populous of Canada's three prairie provinces...
border. He attended Carlisle Indian Industrial School
Carlisle Indian Industrial School
Carlisle Indian Industrial School was an Indian boarding school in Carlisle, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1879 at Carlisle, Pennsylvania by Captain Richard Henry Pratt, the school was the first off-reservation boarding school, and it became a model for Indian boarding schools in other locations...
in Carlisle, Pennsylvania
Carlisle, Pennsylvania
Carlisle is a borough in and the county seat of Cumberland County, Pennsylvania, United States. The name is traditionally pronounced with emphasis on the second syllable. Carlisle is located within the Cumberland Valley, a highly productive agricultural region. As of the 2010 census, the borough...
. After returning from school, Threepersons rode the rodeo
Rodeo
Rodeo is a competitive sport which arose out of the working practices of cattle herding in Spain, Mexico, and later the United States, Canada, South America and Australia. It was based on the skills required of the working vaqueros and later, cowboys, in what today is the western United States,...
circuit throughout Oregon, Washington, and Wyoming
In 1907, his father and White's father were killed during a fight with cattle rustlers. The suspects were arrested, but released on bond. Threepersons tracked them to a saloon, where he confronted both suspects, and killed them during a shootout. He was arrested for murder
Murder
Murder is the unlawful killing, with malice aforethought, of another human being, and generally this state of mind distinguishes murder from other forms of unlawful homicide...
, but acquitted.
Career as a lawman and soldier
He and his friend Bill White are said to have joined the North West Mounted Police, and were stationed near CalgaryCalgary
Calgary is a city in the Province of Alberta, Canada. It is located in the south of the province, in an area of foothills and prairie, approximately east of the front ranges of the Canadian Rockies...
; however, no records show a Threepersons in the mounted police. Shortly thereafter the two were assigned to capture a gang of outlaws who had murdered an entire family. Threepersons and White tracked the murder suspects for five days through heavy snow, toward the Yukon River
Yukon River
The Yukon River is a major watercourse of northwestern North America. The source of the river is located in British Columbia, Canada. The next portion lies in, and gives its name to Yukon Territory. The lower half of the river lies in the U.S. state of Alaska. The river is long and empties into...
in Alaska
Alaska
Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait...
, having to abandon their horses and continue on foot, carrying their weapons and backpacks. On the fifth day, they encountered the gang of three men, and engaged them in a shootout, during which Bill White was killed. One of the outlaws were killed, with the other two fleeing. Threepersons buried White, then continued after the remaining outlaws. Several days later, at a small settlement named End of the Trail, Threepersons located them. Rather than confronting them in the town, he located the cabin
Log cabin
A log cabin is a house built from logs. It is a fairly simple type of log house. A distinction should be drawn between the traditional meanings of "log cabin" and "log house." Historically most "Log cabins" were a simple one- or 1½-story structures, somewhat impermanent, and less finished or less...
where they were staying outside town, and waited for them there. When they arrived, a shootout ensued during which both outlaws were killed.
In his short career with the NWMP, which lasted from 1910 to 1912, Threepersons was involved in numerous shootouts, once killing three suspects during a failed bank robbery
Bank robbery
Bank robbery is the crime of stealing from a bank during opening hours. According to the Federal Bureau of Investigation's Uniform Crime Reporting Program, robbery is "the taking or attempting to take anything of value from the care, custody, or control of a person or persons by force or threat of...
attempt in Calgary, and later foiling a train
Train
A train is a connected series of vehicles for rail transport that move along a track to transport cargo or passengers from one place to another place. The track usually consists of two rails, but might also be a monorail or maglev guideway.Propulsion for the train is provided by a separate...
robbery near Medicine Hat. In 1912 he left the force, returning to ranching, and also began rodeo
Rodeo
Rodeo is a competitive sport which arose out of the working practices of cattle herding in Spain, Mexico, and later the United States, Canada, South America and Australia. It was based on the skills required of the working vaqueros and later, cowboys, in what today is the western United States,...
riding. That same year he was proclaimed "World Champion Cowboy" in Alberta, winning the Calgary Stampede
Calgary Stampede
The Calgary Stampede is an annual rodeo, exhibition and festival held every July in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. The ten-day event, which bills itself as "The Greatest Outdoor Show on Earth", attracts over one million visitors per year and features one of the world's largest rodeos, a parade, midway,...
. He was financially successful in the cattle business, and spent eleven months visiting other countries and places for vacation, to include Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
, Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
, China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
, Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
, and Hawaii
Hawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
.
He moved to Douglas, Arizona
Douglas, Arizona
Douglas is a city in Cochise County, Arizona, United States. Douglas has a border crossing with Mexico and a history of mining.The population was 14,312 at the 2000 census...
around 1914, where he worked as a cowboy
Cowboy
A cowboy is an animal herder who tends cattle on ranches in North America, traditionally on horseback, and often performs a multitude of other ranch-related tasks. The historic American cowboy of the late 19th century arose from the vaquero traditions of northern Mexico and became a figure of...
. In 1916, he joined the U.S. Army, and served under General
General
A general officer is an officer of high military rank, usually in the army, and in some nations, the air force. The term is widely used by many nations of the world, and when a country uses a different term, there is an equivalent title given....
Jack Pershing in pursuit of Pancho Villa
Pancho Villa
José Doroteo Arango Arámbula – better known by his pseudonym Francisco Villa or its hypocorism Pancho Villa – was one of the most prominent Mexican Revolutionary generals....
in Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
. He was later assigned to Fort Bliss
Fort Bliss
Fort Bliss is a United States Army post in the U.S. states of New Mexico and Texas. With an area of about , it is the Army's second-largest installation behind the adjacent White Sands Missile Range. It is FORSCOM's largest installation, and has the Army's largest Maneuver Area behind the...
, and although he requested service in France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
during World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, it was never granted. In the 1920 census for El Paso
El Paso, Texas
El Paso, is a city in and the county seat of El Paso County, Texas, United States, and lies in far West Texas. In the 2010 census, the city had a population of 649,121. It is the sixth largest city in Texas and the 19th largest city in the United States...
, his profession is listed as blacksmith. His wife, Susie, is also listed. While at Fort Bliss, he was injured when kicked in the head by a horse, which would cause him severe headaches for the rest of his life. He was discharged from the army in 1920.
He worked for two years for the El Paso Police
El Paso, Texas
El Paso, is a city in and the county seat of El Paso County, Texas, United States, and lies in far West Texas. In the 2010 census, the city had a population of 649,121. It is the sixth largest city in Texas and the 19th largest city in the United States...
. He was partnered with officer Juan Escontrias, and the two were involved in two shootouts during that time with smugglers, resulting in four suspects being killed, and Threepersons being shot and wounded in the chest during one incident in 1921. On June 10, 1922, Threepersons was appointed as Federal Probation Agent for El Paso, but he kept the job only a few months, resigning to manage the "Cudahy Ranch" in Durango, Mexico
Durango, Mexico
Durango, Mexico, may refer to:*The state of Durango, one of the 32 component federal entities of the United Mexican States*Durango, Durango, capital city of the State of Durango...
. During his brief employment for the ranch he killed two rustlers during a shootout. He was arrested by Mexican authorities for the shooting, but escaped and returned to the United States.
In July, 1923, Threepersons accepted a position as a Mounted Inspector for U.S. Customs. That same year he was run over by a bootleggers
Rum-running
Rum-running, also known as bootlegging, is the illegal business of transporting alcoholic beverages where such transportation is forbidden by law...
vehicle during an arrest, which resulted in injuries, but none serious. From 1925 he worked for both the El Paso County Sheriffs Office and the El Paso Police Department. Locally, Threepersons was well known for his exploits, and starting in 1925, the S.D. Myres Saddle Co., of El Paso, began advertising the "Tom Threepersons-style holsters". That style holster, which included a cutaway top exposing the pistol hammer and trigger guard became popular, and was copied by several other manufacturers. Threepersons was also offered a job in Hollywood, California, in the film industry, making $700 per month, but he declined.
Death and legacy
By 1929 he was suffering severe headaches from his head injury, and he left law enforcement and started a ranch in Gila, New MexicoGila, New Mexico
Gila is an unincorporated town in Grant County, New Mexico, United States. It is 30 miles northwest to Silver City, New Mexico.-History:Gila and the nearby town of Cliff were settled in 1884. The area was and is primarily a ranching and farming community...
. Four years later, in 1933, he traveled to New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
to have corrective surgery for the injury. Following the surgery, which did correct much of the problems, he moved to Silver City, New Mexico
Silver City, New Mexico
Silver City is a town in Grant County, New Mexico, in the United States. As of the 2000 census, the town population was 10,545. It is the county seat of Grant County. The city is the home of Western New Mexico University.-History:...
, and spent the rest of his life working as a rancher and hunting guide. Writer Skeeter Skelton, of Shooting Times Magazine, wrote Threepersons in 1962 in an attempt to interview him about his experiences, but Threepersons declined.
He died on April 2, 1969, in Safford, Arizona
Safford, Arizona
- History :Safford was founded by Joshua Eaton Bailey, Hiram Kennedy and Edward Tuttle, who came from Gila Bend, in southwestern Arizona. They left Gila Bend in the winter of 1873-74; their work on canals and dams having been destroyed by high water the previous summer...
, and is buried in the Masonic Cemetery in Silver City. Several years after his death, Skelton came into contact with US Customs Agent John Voliva, whose hobby was gun collecting. Voliva had acquired a rifle and a pistol once owned by Threepersons, which Threepersons had sold to Tom Powers, a collector who owned weapons that once belonged to Billy the Kid
Billy the Kid
William H. Bonney William H. Bonney William H. Bonney (born William Henry McCarty, Jr. est. November 23, 1859 – c. July 14, 1881, better known as Billy the Kid but also known as Henry Antrim, was a 19th-century American gunman who participated in the Lincoln County War and became a frontier...
and Pat Garrett
Pat Garrett
Patrick Floyd "Pat" Garrett was an American Old West lawman, bartender, and customs agent who was best known for killing Billy the Kid...
. Voliva, in his purchase of the weapons, had also obtained the personal scrapbooks of Threepersons. Together with these and documents he researched through law enforcement records of the time, he and Skelton were able to piece together a reasonable history of Threepersons career, which otherwise had been mostly forgotten outside of the El Paso area.