Ellis County, Kansas Newspaper Articles

ELLIS COUNTY, KANSAS

NEWSPAPER ARTICLES

ROW AT HAYS CITY

One Man Killed and Others Wounded

The Sheriff Not Expected to Recover

About one o'clock Sunday morning a desperate row occurred in a drinking saloon at Hays City. The row commenced between a party of soldiers belonging to the Sixth cavalry and a number of citizens who were in the saloon. In the affray a man named Charley Harrison was fatally shot through the head. Sheriff Peter Lanihan interfered to quell the disturbance and received two shots in the body. Two soldiers of the 6th cavalry were also shot. The Call of last evening contains following particulars:

We have been shown a letter by a friend, just received from Hays. He says that the Sheriff is dying and that Mr. May, a freighter, had his thigh broken by a bullet and that a Mexican teamster was shot through the leg. It is also rumored that Capt. Ovenshine, commanding officer at Fort Hays, has serious thoughts of putting the town under martial law. We regret exceedingly to hear of our friend Sheriff Lanihan's mishap and hope he may not be so bad as reported. He was certainly a very honest and efficient officer. Harrison, the man killed in the affair, belonged at one time to the 7th cavalry. Kelly, at whose place the affair took place, was a discharged soldier and worked here a long time as runner for one of the railroads, and also for one or two clothing houses. He left immediately after the shooting had taken place and has not been seen there since. We are informed that there was serious talk of lynching him if found near the place. (Leavenworth Bulletin, July 19, 1871, page 4)

Note: A former deputy of Wild Bill Hickok, “Rattlesnake Pete” Lanihan (or Lanahan) defeated Hickok in the sheriff’s election of 1869.Evidently, Lanihan’s election upset some criminal elements and it is conjectured that they plotted to “set up” the new sheriff. On the night of July 16, 1871, a fight started in Henry “Dog” Kelley’s saloon, and when Lanihan attempted to stop the disturbance,he was shot twice. He died of the wounds within two days.

THAT SHERIFF SHOOTING

The Kansas City Times of Wednesday, has the following account of the murder of Sheriff Ramsey by a thief: Readers of the Times will remember an article to these columns a few days ago in which was given a brief account of how Sheriff Alexander Ramsey broke up a band of train robbers that had been for many months committing serious depredations in the vicinity of Hays City, Kan. Mr. Ramsey passed through this city the evening before that article appeared and the information therein stated came from his own lips to a reporter of the Tiems. he had in his charge three of the parties who had been robbing the cars and was returning with them from Julesburg, Neb., where he captured them to Hays city. Soon after arriving there he was informed of an extensive robbery being committed, in which a band of horse thieves had captured and taken away a large drove of ponies.

Summoning to his aid for that particular trip a man named Shepard, he started out on Monday for them. Traveling during the forenoon in a two horse wagon they struck the trail near Kill Creek. From the evidences of having been recently made and the tracks showing that a number of horses had passed there in a body, they at once decided that they were on the track of the guilty parties. Unhitching their horses they rode rapidly on until they reached Stockton, arriving there just after sundown.

They had not been mistaken.

They fond the droves of ponies there, and a man attempting to sell them.

Mr. Ramsey, ever fearless in the discharge of his duty, immediately walked toward the fellow and bade him hold up his hands, and declaring him under arrest. Dodging behind a pony the thief drew up his revolver and as Ramsey fired at him returned the shots. As he was protected by his horse Ramsey could not see him. Suddenly to the horror of all, Ramsey was seen to stagger for a moment after the discharge of the horse thief's revolver, and then pale as death, rush forward and send three bullets crashing through the skull and heart of his opponent. The man dropped dead, expiring almost instanatly. Ramsey sank to the ground, bleeding from a fatal wound, and was immediately carried to a drug store near by, where he soon died. Shepard, while the shooting was going on, went in search of the man who shot Ramsey and finding him in a store drew a revolver and another rattling fire of musketry was commenced. The thief fan, firing at Shepard on the jump, until he reached the street, when he jumped on a strange horse and slipping the bridle from off his head, thrust his spurs into his flanks and sped away like the wind. He did not sit firm in his saddle, but reeled from one side to the other. For this reason, Shepard concluded that one of his shots took effect. He, however, escaped, but left behind his drove of stolen ponies, over twenty in number. These Shepard took possession of and immediately started for Hays City, arriving there yesterday.

Poor Ramsey, as brave and honest an official as lived in the State, was carried back a corpse to a young wife rady to step into the grave with consumption who cannot survive her awful loss. The remains arrived in Hays City yesterday morning and will be interred today.

The thief who escaped is described as follows: Six feet in height, sharp features, dark complexion, small black chin whiskers, and mustache. In seeling the ponies he gave a bill of sale signed with the name of Stanley. (The Inter Ocean, June 11, 1875, page 1)

Note: Sheriff Ramsey was shot and killed when he and a deputy encountered two horse thieves while traveling to Stockton, Kansas. They observed a horse trail in Rooks County and went to investigate to see if the county's most wanted man and horse thief was involved. They encountered two men attempted to sell horses and a shootout ensued. Sheriff Ramsey and one of the suspects were killed. The second suspect was wounded and apprehended but acquitted in trial.