1 00:00:00,120 --> 00:00:09,879 Speaker 1: This Day in History Class is a production of iHeartRadio. 2 00:00:12,160 --> 00:00:16,040 Speaker 1: Hello and Welcome to This Day in History Class, a 3 00:00:16,160 --> 00:00:20,239 Speaker 1: show that tallies the wins and losses of everyday history. 4 00:00:21,160 --> 00:00:24,960 Speaker 1: I'm Gabe Lucier, and in this episode, we're exploring the 5 00:00:25,000 --> 00:00:29,280 Speaker 1: thrilling life and undignified depth of an Old West Folk hero, 6 00:00:29,800 --> 00:00:39,720 Speaker 1: the One and only wild Bill. The day was August second, 7 00:00:40,000 --> 00:00:45,800 Speaker 1: eighteen seventy six. Legendary lawman wild Bill Hickock was shot 8 00:00:45,840 --> 00:00:48,800 Speaker 1: in the back of the head while playing poker. The 9 00:00:48,920 --> 00:00:51,680 Speaker 1: murder took place at a saloon in the Old West 10 00:00:51,760 --> 00:00:55,640 Speaker 1: mining town of Deadwood, South Dakota. The man who pulled 11 00:00:55,640 --> 00:00:58,840 Speaker 1: the trigger was a drunken card player named Jack McCall 12 00:00:59,280 --> 00:01:03,560 Speaker 1: aka Broken Nose Jack. He had felt slighted by a 13 00:01:03,600 --> 00:01:07,360 Speaker 1: previous encounter with Hickock, so that afternoon he crept up 14 00:01:07,400 --> 00:01:09,800 Speaker 1: behind him when his back was turned and shot him 15 00:01:09,840 --> 00:01:14,840 Speaker 1: point blank with a forty five caliber pistol. Hickock died instantly, 16 00:01:15,120 --> 00:01:18,200 Speaker 1: and though McCall escaped justice for a time, he was 17 00:01:18,240 --> 00:01:25,120 Speaker 1: eventually apprehended, tried, convicted, and hung. James Butler Hickock, better 18 00:01:25,160 --> 00:01:28,520 Speaker 1: known as wild Bill, was born on May twenty seventh, 19 00:01:28,600 --> 00:01:32,880 Speaker 1: eighteen thirty seven in Troy Grove, Illinois. He was the 20 00:01:32,959 --> 00:01:36,600 Speaker 1: fourth of six children born to parents William Alonso and 21 00:01:36,720 --> 00:01:41,200 Speaker 1: Polly Butler Hiccock. Farmers by trade, The Hickocks were also 22 00:01:41,360 --> 00:01:44,640 Speaker 1: active abolitionists and are believed to have used their family 23 00:01:44,720 --> 00:01:48,960 Speaker 1: home as a station on the underground railroad. Hickock was 24 00:01:49,000 --> 00:01:51,400 Speaker 1: a crack shot with a pistol from an early age, 25 00:01:51,720 --> 00:01:54,600 Speaker 1: and when he turned eighteen, he moved west to Kansas 26 00:01:54,680 --> 00:01:57,840 Speaker 1: and joined up with a group of militant abolitionists known 27 00:01:57,880 --> 00:02:02,440 Speaker 1: as the Jayhawkers. Years later, Hickock began his career in 28 00:02:02,520 --> 00:02:05,440 Speaker 1: law enforcement when he was elected as a constable in 29 00:02:05,520 --> 00:02:09,720 Speaker 1: Johnson County, Kansas. Then, once the Civil War broke out, 30 00:02:09,880 --> 00:02:12,600 Speaker 1: he signed up with the Union Army and began working 31 00:02:12,639 --> 00:02:18,120 Speaker 1: as a teamster, spy scout, and sharpshooter. During this time, 32 00:02:18,240 --> 00:02:21,680 Speaker 1: Hickcock also gained notoriety as a gunslinger due to his 33 00:02:21,760 --> 00:02:26,280 Speaker 1: involvement in a highly publicized shootout known as the McCanless massacre. 34 00:02:27,000 --> 00:02:30,200 Speaker 1: The incident took place in July of eighteen sixty one 35 00:02:30,440 --> 00:02:34,600 Speaker 1: at the Pony Express station in Rock Creek, Nebraska. There, 36 00:02:34,760 --> 00:02:38,160 Speaker 1: Hickock and several others were attacked by a Confederate gang 37 00:02:38,280 --> 00:02:42,360 Speaker 1: led by David McCanless. Accounts differ on what happened next, 38 00:02:42,600 --> 00:02:46,880 Speaker 1: but contemporary reports claimed that Hickock shot down three attackers 39 00:02:47,080 --> 00:02:50,920 Speaker 1: and scared off the rest, despite having been wounded himself. 40 00:02:51,840 --> 00:02:55,320 Speaker 1: An exaggerated account of the gunfight appeared in print six 41 00:02:55,400 --> 00:02:58,960 Speaker 1: years later in an issue of a popular periodical called 42 00:02:59,000 --> 00:03:03,600 Speaker 1: Harper's New Monthly Magazine. The story kicked off Hickock's rise 43 00:03:03,639 --> 00:03:07,040 Speaker 1: to national fame and was quickly followed by other articles 44 00:03:07,040 --> 00:03:11,760 Speaker 1: and books recounting his many daring deeds. The gunman's prowess 45 00:03:11,800 --> 00:03:14,960 Speaker 1: with a pistol was often overstated by the press, but 46 00:03:15,040 --> 00:03:17,600 Speaker 1: he did live up to his reputation in a series 47 00:03:17,680 --> 00:03:22,000 Speaker 1: of stunning shootouts. Many of those showdowns took place after 48 00:03:22,040 --> 00:03:25,880 Speaker 1: the Civil War. When Hickock returned to Kansas. From eighteen 49 00:03:25,960 --> 00:03:29,160 Speaker 1: sixty five to eighteen seventy, he served as a U. S. 50 00:03:29,280 --> 00:03:33,440 Speaker 1: Marshal and sheriff in Hayes City. Then in eighteen seventy 51 00:03:33,440 --> 00:03:37,760 Speaker 1: one he became the marshal of Abilene. Those two towns 52 00:03:37,800 --> 00:03:42,480 Speaker 1: had become notorious havens for outlaws, but once whild Bill arrived, 53 00:03:42,640 --> 00:03:46,200 Speaker 1: things turned around fast, though usually with a good deal 54 00:03:46,200 --> 00:03:51,320 Speaker 1: of bloodshed. Unfortunately, Abilene was also the site of Hickock's 55 00:03:51,360 --> 00:03:55,320 Speaker 1: greatest failure, a shootout gone wrong in which he accidentally 56 00:03:55,360 --> 00:03:59,520 Speaker 1: shot and killed the town's deputy, Mike Williams. The event 57 00:03:59,560 --> 00:04:02,840 Speaker 1: reportedly haunted Hickock for the rest of his life, and 58 00:04:02,920 --> 00:04:06,200 Speaker 1: he never again took part in a gunfight. It also 59 00:04:06,280 --> 00:04:09,200 Speaker 1: marked the end of his career in law enforcement, as 60 00:04:09,240 --> 00:04:13,560 Speaker 1: an inquest following the accidental shooting had revealed additional claims 61 00:04:13,600 --> 00:04:17,320 Speaker 1: of misconduct. As a result, Hickock was relieved of his 62 00:04:17,400 --> 00:04:21,200 Speaker 1: duties as marshall in December of eighteen seventy one, just 63 00:04:21,279 --> 00:04:25,520 Speaker 1: two months after the deputy's death. For the next several years, 64 00:04:25,680 --> 00:04:29,560 Speaker 1: the former gunslinger got by on his famous reputation. He 65 00:04:29,640 --> 00:04:33,479 Speaker 1: made frequent appearances in Buffalo Bill Cody's Wild West Show 66 00:04:33,760 --> 00:04:37,600 Speaker 1: and worked as a guide for wealthy hunters. However, by 67 00:04:37,640 --> 00:04:41,920 Speaker 1: the mid eighteen seventies, Hickock's keen eyesight had begun to fail, 68 00:04:42,200 --> 00:04:46,039 Speaker 1: and he was subsequently diagnosed with glaucoma. He was only 69 00:04:46,120 --> 00:04:48,800 Speaker 1: thirty nine years old at the time, but without the 70 00:04:48,839 --> 00:04:52,039 Speaker 1: shooting ability that had made him a household name, Wild 71 00:04:52,120 --> 00:04:55,320 Speaker 1: Bill turned to gambling as his primary source of income. 72 00:04:56,160 --> 00:04:58,200 Speaker 1: He was said to be a pretty good poker player 73 00:04:58,320 --> 00:05:00,920 Speaker 1: and made a decent living from it, wandering from one 74 00:05:01,000 --> 00:05:04,400 Speaker 1: town to the next, though he was arrested several times 75 00:05:04,400 --> 00:05:08,320 Speaker 1: for vagrancy, so I guess he didn't always win. In 76 00:05:08,360 --> 00:05:11,920 Speaker 1: the spring of eighteen seventy six, Hickock's travels led him 77 00:05:11,960 --> 00:05:15,200 Speaker 1: to the Black Hills mining town of Deadwood, South Dakota, 78 00:05:15,600 --> 00:05:19,159 Speaker 1: which was still the Dakota Territory at the time. He 79 00:05:19,279 --> 00:05:22,960 Speaker 1: quickly set up shop at Nuttle and Man's Saloon, Number ten, 80 00:05:23,360 --> 00:05:27,000 Speaker 1: and would play cards there just about every day. On 81 00:05:27,040 --> 00:05:31,000 Speaker 1: August first, Hickock was playing poker and winning as usual 82 00:05:31,279 --> 00:05:34,400 Speaker 1: when a vacant seat at the table opened up. It 83 00:05:34,480 --> 00:05:37,920 Speaker 1: was soon filled by a visibly drunk Jack McCall, who 84 00:05:37,960 --> 00:05:43,480 Speaker 1: promptly proceeded to lose badly hand after hand. Eventually, Hickock 85 00:05:43,560 --> 00:05:46,719 Speaker 1: took pity on McCall and encouraged him to step away 86 00:05:46,760 --> 00:05:49,560 Speaker 1: from the table. He even offered to buy the man 87 00:05:49,680 --> 00:05:53,640 Speaker 1: breakfast to help him sober up, and while McCall did 88 00:05:53,680 --> 00:05:57,360 Speaker 1: accept the money, he was secretly insulted by the gesture. 89 00:05:58,120 --> 00:06:01,200 Speaker 1: The following day, Hickock returned turned to the card table, 90 00:06:01,520 --> 00:06:04,760 Speaker 1: except this time he found his usual seat had been taken. 91 00:06:05,480 --> 00:06:08,360 Speaker 1: The famous gunman always preferred to sit with his back 92 00:06:08,400 --> 00:06:10,360 Speaker 1: to the wall so that he could keep an eye 93 00:06:10,400 --> 00:06:13,840 Speaker 1: on the entrance, but when his fellow card players refused 94 00:06:13,880 --> 00:06:16,760 Speaker 1: to change seats with him, Hickock was forced to sit 95 00:06:16,839 --> 00:06:20,799 Speaker 1: with his back to the door. That arrangement proved fatal 96 00:06:21,040 --> 00:06:24,560 Speaker 1: when at four fifteen that afternoon, Jack McCall entered the 97 00:06:24,600 --> 00:06:29,239 Speaker 1: saloon and saw the perfect opportunity to exact his revenge. 98 00:06:29,279 --> 00:06:33,479 Speaker 1: Without missing a beat, McCall approached Hickock from behind, drew 99 00:06:33,640 --> 00:06:37,960 Speaker 1: his Colt forty five revolver, and shouted, damn you take that. 100 00:06:38,800 --> 00:06:41,360 Speaker 1: He then fired a single bullet into the back of 101 00:06:41,440 --> 00:06:45,279 Speaker 1: Hickock's head and rushed toward the exit before anyone even 102 00:06:45,360 --> 00:06:50,440 Speaker 1: realized what had happened. Wild Bill Hickock died immediately and 103 00:06:50,600 --> 00:06:53,960 Speaker 1: was buried the next day in a nearby cemetery. Yet 104 00:06:54,000 --> 00:06:58,600 Speaker 1: even in death, the gunfighter's legend continued to grow. According 105 00:06:58,640 --> 00:07:02,200 Speaker 1: to witnesses, the poker Hickock had been dealt just prior 106 00:07:02,279 --> 00:07:06,360 Speaker 1: to the shooting consisted of two pairs, two black aces 107 00:07:06,560 --> 00:07:10,720 Speaker 1: and two black eights, and that's why even today, when 108 00:07:10,760 --> 00:07:13,760 Speaker 1: someone has dealt those particular cards in a game of poker. 109 00:07:14,040 --> 00:07:17,960 Speaker 1: It's known as the dead Man's Hand. As for wild 110 00:07:18,040 --> 00:07:20,960 Speaker 1: Bill's killer, he was apprehended before he could make it 111 00:07:21,000 --> 00:07:23,720 Speaker 1: out of Deadwood, but since the mining camp had no 112 00:07:23,880 --> 00:07:27,920 Speaker 1: established system of law, a jury panel was hastily assembled 113 00:07:28,000 --> 00:07:30,640 Speaker 1: and McCall was put on trial in the local theater. 114 00:07:31,680 --> 00:07:34,680 Speaker 1: During the proceedings, he claimed to have shot Hickock as 115 00:07:34,760 --> 00:07:38,800 Speaker 1: payback for killing his brother in Abilene, Kansas, and the jury, 116 00:07:39,000 --> 00:07:43,000 Speaker 1: apparently convinced by the testimony, found McCall innocent and set 117 00:07:43,040 --> 00:07:47,040 Speaker 1: him free less than two hours later. That probably would 118 00:07:47,040 --> 00:07:48,880 Speaker 1: have been the end of it if McCall had been 119 00:07:48,880 --> 00:07:52,120 Speaker 1: able to keep his mouth shut, but instead he traveled 120 00:07:52,160 --> 00:07:55,720 Speaker 1: to Wyoming and immediately started bragging to anyone who would 121 00:07:55,720 --> 00:07:59,760 Speaker 1: listen that he had killed the famous wild Bill. Within 122 00:07:59,760 --> 00:08:03,720 Speaker 1: a few weeks, McCall was arrested by a US marshal, and, 123 00:08:03,800 --> 00:08:06,480 Speaker 1: since his trial in Deadwood had never been legal to 124 00:08:06,520 --> 00:08:09,440 Speaker 1: begin with, he was charged with murder and scheduled to 125 00:08:09,480 --> 00:08:14,720 Speaker 1: stand trial again. This time, McCall was found guilty, sentenced 126 00:08:14,800 --> 00:08:19,080 Speaker 1: to death, and hung the following spring. He insisted till 127 00:08:19,120 --> 00:08:21,520 Speaker 1: the end that he had only killed Hickock as a 128 00:08:21,520 --> 00:08:24,840 Speaker 1: way to avenge his brother, but it was later determined 129 00:08:24,880 --> 00:08:28,600 Speaker 1: that Jack McCall never had a brother. He had committed 130 00:08:28,640 --> 00:08:32,319 Speaker 1: murder for no other reason than to soothe his fragile ego. 131 00:08:33,360 --> 00:08:36,679 Speaker 1: Wild Bill Hickock was just thirty nine years old when 132 00:08:36,760 --> 00:08:39,959 Speaker 1: McCall killed him, but by that point he'd already racked 133 00:08:40,000 --> 00:08:43,320 Speaker 1: up enough achievements and tall tales to cement his place 134 00:08:43,360 --> 00:08:47,800 Speaker 1: as a legendary figure of the American West. Jack McCall, 135 00:08:47,960 --> 00:08:50,920 Speaker 1: on the other hand, is only remembered today as the 136 00:08:50,960 --> 00:08:57,240 Speaker 1: bitter coward who shot it. I'm Gabe Lucier and hopefully 137 00:08:57,520 --> 00:09:00,360 Speaker 1: you now know a little more about history today than 138 00:09:00,400 --> 00:09:03,960 Speaker 1: you did yesterday. You can learn even more about history 139 00:09:04,040 --> 00:09:08,000 Speaker 1: by following us on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram at TDI 140 00:09:08,440 --> 00:09:12,439 Speaker 1: HC Show, and if you have any comments or suggestions 141 00:09:12,440 --> 00:09:14,840 Speaker 1: you'd like to share, feel free to pass them along 142 00:09:15,000 --> 00:09:19,319 Speaker 1: by writing to this Day at iHeartMedia dot com. Thanks 143 00:09:19,320 --> 00:09:21,920 Speaker 1: to Chandler Mays for producing the show, and thanks to 144 00:09:21,960 --> 00:09:24,920 Speaker 1: you for listening. I'll see you back here again tomorrow 145 00:09:25,040 --> 00:09:39,080 Speaker 1: for another day in History class.