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John Wesley “Wes” Hardin (1853-1895), son of James “Gip” Gibson Hardin (1823 – 1876) and Mary Elizabeth Dixon (1826 – 1885), was a notorious outlaw and gunfighter in nineteenth-century Texas. He was said to be “the meanest man alive”, having once killed a man just for snoring. Years later, Hardin referred to the episode:
"They tell lots of lies about me," he complained, "They say I killed six or seven men for snoring. Well, it ain't true, I only killed one man for snoring."
Hardin's criminal career resulted not only in the deaths of his victims but also in the deaths of his brother Joseph and two cousins who were hanged by a lynch mob seeking revenge for a Hardin killing. Captured by Texas Rangers John Armstrong and John Riley Duncan in 1877, he was released in 1894 after eighteen years in prison. Just one year later, Hardin was shot and killed from behind on August 19, 1895 by John Henry Selman. Selman, an outlaw-turned-lawman had a grudge against Hardin and surprised him in El Paso’s Acme Saloon. John Selman was himself, gunned down just a year later. Hardin is buried at the Concordia Cemetery in El Paso, Texas. Ironically, Hardin's killer, John Selman, is buried just a few feet away.
[Extracted from a biography by Kit and Morgan Benson]
Born in Bonham, Texas on 26 May 1853, John Wesley Hardin's father was a Methodist minister and circuit rider who named him for the founder of the Methodist Church. The second surviving son of ten children, Hardin was a direct descendant of Colonel Joseph Hardin, a legislator from North Carolina, the State of Franklin and the Southwest Territory, and a Revolutionary War hero. Hardin's father traveled over most of central Texas on his preaching circuit until 1869, eventually settling in Sumpter, Texas, in Trinity County, where he taught school, and established an institution that John Wesley and his brother, Joe, would later attend.
At that school a boy named Charles Sloter accused Hardin of scrawling some graffiti on the schoolhouse wall that was insulting to a girl in his class. Hardin denied it and accused the other boy of being the author. Sloter attacked Hardin with a knife, but before he could strike Hardin, Hardin drew his own pocket knife and stabbed Charles twice in the chest and throat, almost killing him. Hardin was nearly expelled over the incident, even though it was his father's institution.
At the age of 15, Hardin challenged Mage, an ex-slave of his uncle's, to a wrestling match. Hardin won, but badly scratched Mage's face. The following day a vengeful Mage hid by a path and attacked Hardin with a large stick as he rode past. Hardin drew his revolver and told Mage to back off, but Mage grabbed the reins of Hardin's horse and threatened to kill him. Hardin fired his revolver into Mage five times before he finally dropped the reins. Hardin then rode to get help for the wounded ex-slave, who ended up dying from these wounds three days later. The shooting could be claimed as a case of self-defense according to the laws of the day. However, Rev. James Hardin saw little chance of a fair hearing for his son.Texas was going through Reconstruction and as a "Johnny Reb" accused of killing a former slave in the Union-occupied state of Texas, where more than a third of the State Police were ex-slaves, the elder Hardin believed that his son had little hope of a fair trial; so he told John Wesley to go into hiding. The authorities eventually located Hardin, and sent three Union soldiers to arrest him. Despite being warned by his brother Joe, Hardin chose to stay and fight rather than run.
"I waylaid them, as I had no mercy on men whom I knew only wanted to get my body to torture and kill. It was war to the knife for me, and I brought it on by opening the fight with a double-barreled shotgun and ended it with a cap and ball six-shooter. Thus it was by the fall of 1868 I had killed four men and was myself wounded in the arm."
At age 17, while working as trail boss for a Texas cattle ranch, Hardin got into an argument with some Mexican cowboys when they tried to cut their herd in front of his. The argument soon got out of hand, and within minutes, he had killed six of the Mexicans. While at Abilene, Kansas, he made friends with the local sheriff, “Wild Bill” Hickok. The friendship ended when Hardin shot a hotel guest in the room next to him for snoring too loudly, thus waking him up. As Hickok came to arrest him for murder, Hardin stole a horse and escaped.
In 1871, he married his hometown sweetheart, Jane Bowen, a respectable girl whose father owned a general store in town. Mary Elizabeth Hardin described her mother as "blond, highly cultured, and charity predominated in her disposition." They had three children, John Wesley Hardin (born in 18760, Jennie Hardin (born in 1877), and Mary Elizabeth Hardin. Jane remained true to her husband despite his constant absences from home to avoid the law. After killing Deputy Sheriff Charles Webb (his 40th victim) in Comanche, Texas, Hardin and his wife left Texas. They hid in Florida under an alias of Mr. and Mrs. J. H. Swain for two years before Pinkerton detectives found them. This time they fled to Alabama, where Hardin was finally caught in 1877. Tried in Austin, Texas for the death of Deputy Sheriff Charles Webb, he was sentenced to 25 years in prison.
Jane died in 1892 while Hardin was still in prison. He was pardoned by Texas Governor Jim Hogg after serving 15 years of his sentence. Hardin was released from prison on February 17, 1894, and promptly returned to Gonzales, Texas. He was a 41-year-old widower who had three children who did not even know what he looked like. Having studied law in prison, Hardin opened a law practice in El Paso, Texas. On 9 January 1895 Hardin married 15 year-old Carolyn “Callie” Jane Lewis, although they quickly separated. Neither stated a reason for the sudden breakup of their marriage and they had no children.
When his friend, Mrs. McRose, widow of another outlaw, was arrested for illegally carrying a pistol, Hardin made threats against the arresting police officer, John Selman. Several days later, on 19 August 1895 Selman observed Hardin playing dice in the Acme Saloon with another man. Selman walked up behind Hardin and shot him in the back of the head, killing him instantly. Hardin was 42 years old.
As with many of his fellow outlaws, in several cases where Hardin claimed to have been involved in killings the reports either cannot be confirmed or prove to be nonexistent. For example:
Hardin's life as an outlaw has inspired many colorful characterizations in literature, film, television, and music.
Western Outlaw. He was famous as the most profligate killers in the Old West. He is believed to have killed a total of 44 men over the course of his lifetime, all of them before he reached the age of 23. Born in Bonham, Texas in 1853, his father was a Methodist Minister who named him for the founder of the Methodist Church. He soon displayed a quick and hot temper, which would get him into trouble time and again. When he was 14, a bigger boy teased him as the author of some graffiti on the schoolhouse wall, and Wesley knifed him, although the boy lived. In 1868, at the age of 15, he got into a wrestling match with an ex-slave named Mage, and Mage’s nose was blooded. Mage then declared that “no white man could draw his blood and live,” and the next day, when Mage approached him to challenge him to another fight, Hardin drew a pistol and killed him. Post Civil War Texas was then under Union Army occupation, and Hardin believed he would not receive a fair trial for killing a Negro, so he decided to run from the law. A month later, he killed three pursuing Union soldiers searching for him, and Hardin’s relatives hid the bodies, so that no one would know that Hardin had killed them. Later, at age 17, he worked as trail boss for a Texas cattle ranch, and once got into an argument with Mexican cowboys when they tried to cut their herd in front of his. The argument soon got out of hand, and within minutes, he had killed six of the Mexicans. While at Abilene, Kansas, he made friends with the local sheriff, “Wild Bill” Hickok. The friendship ended when Hardin randomly shot a hotel guest in the room next to him for snoring too loudly, thus waking him up. As Hickok came to arrest Hardin for murder, he stole a horse and escaped. In 1871, he married his hometown sweetheart, Jane Bowen, a respectable girl whose father owned a general store in town. They would have two children. Jane remained true to her husband despite his past and his constant absences from home to avoid the law. After killing Deputy Sheriff Charles Webb (his 40th victim) in Comanche, Texas, Hardin decided to leave Texas with his wife. They hid out in Florida, under an alias of Mr. and Mrs. J. H. Swain, but after two years, Pinkerton Detectives found them, and they ran to Alabama, where in 1877, he was caught. Tried in Austin, Texas for the death of Deputy Sheriff Charles Webb, he was sentenced to 25 years in prison. In 1894, after serving 15 years of his sentence, and shortly after his wife had died, Hardin was pardoned by Texas Governor Jim Hogg. Having studied law in prison, the released Hardin opened up a law practice in El Paso, Texas. He began to court a Mrs. McRose, widow of another outlaw, and when she was arrested for illegally carrying a pistol, lawyer Hardin made threats against the arresting police officer, John Selman. Several days later, Selman observed Hardin playing dice in the Acme Saloon with another man. Selman walked up behind Hardin and shot him in the back of the head, killing him instantly. Hardin was 42 years old. Selman’s fate is unclear; depending upon differing accounts, Selman was either acquitted of murder and disappeared from history, or was killed several months afterwards in a drunken duel with US Marshal George Scarborough. (bio by: [fg.cgi?page=mr&MRid=46483611" target="_blank Kit and Morgan Benson)] Cause of death: Gunned down Maintained by: Find A Grave Record added: Jan 01, 2001
Find A Grave Memorial# 1346
1853 |
May 26, 1853
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Bonham, Fannin County, Texas, United States
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1873 |
February 6, 1873
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Karnes, TX, United States
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1875 |
August 3, 1875
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Texas, United States
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1877 |
July 15, 1877
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Texas, United States
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1895 |
August 19, 1895
Age 42
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El Paso, El Paso County, Texas, United States
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August 19, 1895
Age 42
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Concordia Cemetery, El Paso, El Paso County, Texas, United States
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