A Western Mystery: Who Shot Johnny Ringo?
Johnny Ringo
In
my all time favorite western, Tombstone,
Johnny Ringo was portrayed as a well educated member of the criminal gang known
as The Cowboys. He mentally sparred with Doc Holiday and was apparently the
fastest gun in the gang. I remember the part where Wyatt asked Doc why Johnny
Ringo did the terrible things that he did and Doc replied that Johnny was angry
for being born which implies that Johnny had some dark childhood. In the end,
Doc beat Wyatt to the wooded area where Johnny waited to shoot it out and shot
Johnny Ringo in the head with one fatal shot while Johnny had his gun in his
hand, but didn’t get off a shot before he died.
But
what’s the truth? What really happened at that shoot-out? And who was Johnny
Ringo anyway? Well I dug around doing some research and found some very
interesting facts about Johnny Ringo and the mystery of what happened that day
when Johnny Ringo died.
Johnny
Ringo was born John Peters, May 3, 1850 in Greensfork, Indiana. His family
moved to Independence, Missouri in 1856 where Johnny met Frank and Jesse James
who lived in Kearney, a town nearby. His
aunt, Augusta Peters married Coleman Younger, uncle of the famous Younger
outlaw making him their cousin. I can see the early connection he had to
outlaws by the time he was six, but the coincidences didn’t end there.
In
1858 the family moved to Gallatin, Missouri where they rented a house from John
W. Sheets who would become the victim of the James-Younger gang when they
robbed The Daviess County Savings and Loan Association in 1869.
The Younger Brothers with their sister, Henrietta.
The
Ringo family was traveling through Wyoming when Johnny’s father, Martin Ringo,
stepped off the wagon with his shotgun and accidently shot himself in the head.
Johnny, then age fourteen, and his family buried Martin on a hillside along the
trail.
Ringo
moved from San Jose, California to Mason County, Texas in the mid 1870’s and
became acquainted with Scott Cooley, an ex-Texas Ranger who was the adopted son
of a local rancher, Tim Williamson.
But
life didn’t remain quiet for Johnny Ringo. Two American rustlers were taken
from the jail and hanged by a predominantly German crowd. On May 13, 1875, an
all-out war started when Tim Williamson was arrested by a posse and murdered by
a German farmer named Peter Bader. Cooley and his friends, including Ringo,
began a terror campaign officially called the Mason County War, but by locals,
referred to as the Hoodoo War. Cooley killed a German ex-deputy sheriff named
John Whorley. Cooley didn’t just shoot Whorley; he scalped him and dumped his
body in a well on August 10, 1875.
Cooley
killed several more during the “war” adding to his reputation as a dangerous
man and, amazingly, gained respect as a Texas Ranger. When Moses Baird, one of
Cooley’s supporters was killed, Ringo and his friend, Bill Williams, went to
James Cheyney’s house (the man who led the ambush of Baird). He was unarmed
when he came out on the porch and invited them in. Ringo shot and killed him.
Next, the two of them rode to Dave Doole’s house and called him out, but when
he showed up on the porch with a shotgun, the two fled back into town.
Later,
Cooley and Ringo mistook Charley Bader for his brother Peter and killed him.
They were jailed in Burnet, Texas for the crime by Sheriff Strickland. They
weren’t there long before their friends broke them out of jail.
After
the Mason County War ended and many lives were lost, Ringo and his friend,
George Gladden, were locked up again. One of his cell mates was the notorious,
John Wesley Hardin. Gladden was sentenced to 99 years and Ringo was acquitted.
Two years later, Johnny Ringo served as constable in Loyal County, Texas. There
seems to be a blurry line between lawmen and outlaws in the old west. Not long
after that, Johnny Ringo migrated to Arizona. He showed up in Cochise County, Arizona
Territory with his friend John Graves from the “war”. He got drunk in a saloon
in Safford, Arizona and shot an unarmed man named Louis Hancock for refusing a
complimentary drink of whiskey because he preferred beer. Hancock survived the
wound. I should add here that Ringo did not take part in the gunfight at the OK
Corral as some may believe.
Ringo
and Doc Holiday got into a confrontation on January 17, 1882 that was about to
lead to a gunfight when they were both arrested by Tombstone’s new chief of
police, James Flynn. The former chief had been Virgil Earp who had suffered a
bad wound in an ambush just a few weeks prior. Ringo and Doc were and fined for
carrying guns in town and Ringo was rearrested and jailed over the weekend for
outstanding charges of robbery.
Doc Holliday and Wyatt Earp (they look a lot like Val Kilmer and Kirt Russel playing their parts in Tombstone.)
Ringo
had a reputation for his bad temper by the folks in Tombstone and he may have
had a connection with the outlaw gang known as the Cowboys for some robberies
and killings. A couple months later, the Earps suspected Ringo of murdering their
brother, Morgan, on March 18, 1882. Later in court, Pete Spence’s wife
testified that her husband, Frank Stilwell, “Indian Charlie” Cruz and a
half-breed named Fries had killed Morgan. The Earps tracked down the men and
killed Cruz.
After
Wyatt and his posse found and killed Frank Stilwell, the Cochise County
sheriff, Johnny Behan deputized Ringo and 19 other men, mostly members of the
Cowboys gang and friends of Frank Stilwell to tract down the federal posse, but
they never found Wyatt and his men.
Wyatt Earp killed Ringo’s friend, Curly Bill, in a gunfight in Iron Springs,
about 20 miles from Tombstone 2 days after he killed Cruz. Wyatt later told his
biographer that Cruz confessed to being an outlook for Morgan’s murder and that
Cruz said Johnny Ringo, Frank
Stilwell, Hank Swilling, and Curly Bill were Morgan's killers.
William Brocius "Curly Bill"
On July 14, 1882 Ringo was found
dead leaning against a tree with a bullet hole in his head that exited out the
back. His gun hung from one finger. Now the mystery/controversy begins. Some
said that Ringo’s gun had one shot out of the chamber and his feet were wrapped
in pieces of his undershirt. They found his horse two weeks later with Ringo’s
boots tied to the saddle. The coroner declared the official cause of death was
suicide. Some reports revealed that no bullet had been fired from Ringo’s gun
leading to the suspicion of murder either by Wyatt Earp or Doc Holiday. Of
course, there was that memorable scene in the movie Tombstone where Doc Holiday
challenged Johnny Ringo to a fight and shot him before Johnny could fire his
drawn gun.
Ringo was buried at the site of
his death In West Turkey Creek Canyon which lies on private property now.
Visitors must request to view the burial site from the owners before they can
be admitted to the area.
The controversy over Ringo’s
death continues to this day.
It must be said that Louis
L’Amour didn’t think much of Johnny Ringo as a tough outlaw. He perceived him
to be a loudmouth, mean drunk who wasn’t even fast with a gun and that his only
claim to fame was killing the unarmed Louis Hancock over a drink of whiskey.
Some authors believe Ringo’s claim to fame only came because of his opposition
to the popular good Earp brothers.
One thing’s for sure; there is
nothing boring about the old west. No wonder we just can’t get enough western
stories. So, what do you think? Did Ringo commit suicide? Did Wyatt kill him?
Did Doc Holliday kill him? Do you think he was murdered or did he lose in a
gunfight with either Wyatt or Doc?
This is a repost of my article on Sweethearts of the West from June 2013.
I have a NEW RELEASE!
Beautiful June Wingate’s perfect marriage is in shambles—and she
hasn’t even left the wedding reception! When she overhears two gossips
discussing the real reason Kit Wilding married her, June believes there must be
some truth to it—after all, things have happened just the way they said.
Is her marriage only make believe? Trust is hard for June to accept, and now,
her faith in her husband has been broken—along with her fragile heart.
Kit Wilding has loved June since the moment he laid eyes on her—a vision in
pink that he couldn’t get out of his mind. Now that he’s married her, he can’t
understand the changes that have suddenly turned her secretive and distant. How
can he make things right between them when he doesn’t know what he’s up
against?
But the tables are turned when June’s father, a pillar of the community, is
accused of a crime that brings shame on the Wingate family—along with prison
time. Kit Wilding’s not the kind of man to give up easily, but with his budding
political career at stake, will he be able to hold his marriage together? Or
will he be forced to admit IT’S ONLY MAKE BELIEVE…
EXCERPT
A loud slap echoed
through the house. June’s hand stung as she placed it back in the pocket of her
dressing gown, part of her vast trousseau paid for by her parents.
Kit stepped back and
rubbed his reddened cheek with his left hand while Snort, Kit’s dog, barked.
June couldn’t help but notice the flash of his golden wedding band in the light
of the dressing room. Her heart clenched at the sight of it. They’d been
married only a few hours, and now this…
“Hush that barking,
Snort.” The dog quieted, but kept a sharp eye on June, just in case. Kit
glanced from the dog to June. “What the hell was that for, June? Did I do
something wrong by trying to kiss my wife?”
“You bet you did. I
thought you loved me, and now…”
Sarah
J. McNeal is a multi-published author who writes
diverse stories filled with heart. She is a retired ER and Critical Care nurse
who lives in North Carolina with her four-legged children, Lily, the Golden
Retriever and Liberty, the cat. Besides her devotion to writing, she also has a
great love of music and plays several instruments including violin, bagpipes,
guitar and harmonica. Her books and short stories may be found at Prairie Rose
Publications and its imprints Painted Pony Books, and Fire Star Press and
Sundown Press. She welcomes you to her website and social media:
