Key Takeaways
TheWild Westlooms large in the imagination of many Americans . Thanks to the popularity of Hollywood Western like " Shane " and " High Noon , " the figure of the secret , sole cowpuncher taking a stand in a lawless world has become cemented in U.S. cultivation .
Of course , reality was far more complicated — and ghastly — than these glossy silver screen portrayal indicate . Cowboy feat were bestial , bloody and rarely solo intimacy . For everyDoc HollidayandBilly the Kid , dozens of other less - widely remembered figures played vital roles in shaping the American West , for unspoiled or bad .
Among them was Johnny Ringo , an infamous felon cattle rancher whose end remains shrouded in myth and mystery to this day .
Making of a Legend
John Peters Ringo wasborn May 3 , 1850 , in what would eventually become Greens Fork , Indiana . From the outset , Ringo seemed destine for an outlaw life history ; in addition to grow up on the frontier , Ringo was reportedly related to the notoriousYounger Brother , some of the best - known bank robber in the country contribute byJesse Jamesand his brother Frank .
Ringo ’s teenage long time were cross out by tragedy . When he was 14 , his forefather , Martin Ringo , by chance fired his rifleduring a colliery stop while the kinfolk was moving from Missouri to California . The bang entered just below Martin ’s good oculus and go out the top of his caput , pop him . His wife and children were forced to lay to rest him along the roadside and move on . Ringo was traumatizedfrom witnessing his Fatherhood ’s death .
By the age of 14 , Ringo hadhoned his skillswith both the pistol and rifle and was quick on the draw . He lived with his mother , buddy and three sisters in San Jose , California , until 1870 , when he leave for Mason County , Texas . There , he fell in with a group of ( alleged ) cattle rustlers , include X - Texas RangerScott Cooley , a friendship that would kick back - bug out Ringo ’s report as a gunman and ablack hat . By then he had become one of the most wraithlike torpedo of the West .
Hoodoo and its Aftermath
Mason County and its surrounding areas were mostly colonized by both German and British - descended cowpuncher . tautness between the two groups were high , with each frequently criminate the other of stock thieving . Things came to a head in 1875 , when two Anglo rancher , include Tim Williamson , were pulled from poky and kill by several Germans in revenge for stealing their cattle .
Cooley , who had been friends with Williamson , was enraged . Cooley swore vengeance on the German ranchers and ignite a blinking engagement that would become known as theMason County , or " Hoodoo " War .
Cooley ’s first victim was John Worley , who he wassuspected of cleanup — and scalping — Aug. 10 , 1875 . Ringo ’s part in the Mason County War was mostly retaliation - driven . He supported Cooley ; what ’s more , he had formed friendly relationship with the other penis of Cooley ’s faction . When Moses Baird , a fellow Cooley supporter , was attacked and defeat in September 1875 , Ringo lead the countermove . He shot two of the men involved in the execution — gambler James Cheyney and Dave Doole — in their homes . Ringo was briefly jailed , but escaped not long after .
For the next few years , Ringo bopped around Texas , New Mexico and Arizona , drop time in and out of poky and loosely conjure up up trouble . In 1881 , his path took another black routine as it hybridize withO.K. Corralveterans Doc Holliday andWyatt Earpin Tombstone , Arizona . Ringo take an crying dislike to the men , and the three engaged in a showdown in the townspeople street that may have turned deadly had the local John Constable not intervened .
One class later , Ringo would be bushed .
The Many Deaths of Johnny Ringo
Johnny Ringo ’s body was discoveredJuly 14 , 1882just outside Tombstone , Arizona . His back was against a tree , a Colt.45 quality revolver in his right-hand mitt . He had a single gunfire wound in his head .
How , precisely , Johnny Ringo died is a litigious topic . Ringo ’s death was officially ruled a self-destruction , though some consider that he was killed by either Wyatt Earp , Doc Holliday or another rival bearing a grudge .
" The camps used to be more evenly divided , " saysBob Boze Bell , an Arizona historian and artist . However , Bell learn a clear turn peak where one possibility gained traction above the residuum : the passing of 1993 ’s hit western " Tombstone . " In the film , Holliday ( played by Val Kilmer ) murders Ringo ( roleplay by Michael Biehn ) in a poetical snatch of revenge . " In the drama sense , you want Doc Holliday to kill Johnny Ringo , " Bell says , " It ’s part of the mythology . "
However , there are some problems with this possibility . For one thing , fit in to historic records , Doc Holliday appeared in motor hotel in Pueblo County , Colorado , a few days before and the mean solar day after Ringo ’s death . It seems unbelievable that Holliday would have been able to make the1,500 - mile ( 2,414 - kilometer ) around - tripin less than 72 hours .
The Wyatt Earp theory is fairly alike to the Doc Holliday account , though Earp didclaim credit entry for Ringo ’s demisefour months after the fact . However , this tale , too , has some trap . For one , Earp ’s account of how the violent death went down take issue importantly from the precondition in which Ringo ’s consistency was found . For another , Earp later on recanted his story .
For his part , Bell intend self-annihilation is the most potential choice . Ringo had reportedly sunk deeply into depression and alcohol dependency in the months take up to his death after a life spent running from the law and his own personal demons .
" He was heartsick , he was drink way too much , " tell Bell . " And he hand an interview to the Tombstone Epitaph before his expiry and said he was going to be rundown or shoot down at some point . He certainly voice down . "
Ultimately , he may have decided to end his own life in a manner standardised to the way his father break down . " The uncanny affair about story is that , well , it does n’t reprize itself . But it does rhyme , as Mark Twain famously said , veracious ? " Bell says .
FAQs
Yes , Johnny Ringo was reportedly relate to the notorious Younger brother , who were well - known bank robber led by Jesse James and his crony Frank .
stress in the Mason County War were fueled by charge of farm animal stealing between German and Anglo cattlemen , culminate in violent retaliation and a blinking conflict .
