He Hunted The Wild Bunch
Heck Thomas became one of the most formidable lawmen of the American frontier. Working the dangerous Indian and Oklahoma territories, he pursued killers, thieves and some of the West's most notorious gangs. Yet Thomas's remarkable adventures began long before he ever pinned on a federal badge.
He Was Born In Georgia
Henry Andrew “Heck” Thomas was born in Oxford, Georgia, in 1850. Sources disagree on some details of his birth date and family size, but agree that he grew up in Georgia. By the time Thomas was barely a teenager, the Civil War had transformed his childhood.
He Went To War
Thomas was only about 12 when he accompanied his father and uncle Edward Lloyd Thomas into Confederate service. Acting as a courier with the 35th Georgia Infantry, young Heck carried messages while the regiment campaigned in Virginia, reportedly delivering dispatches during the Second Battle of Bull Run.
A General's Horse Arrived
After Union Major General Philip Kearny was killed at Chantilly in September 1862, his horse and equipment fell into Confederate hands. Thomas later recalled that the black horse, saddle, bridle and sword were brought to the rear, where the young courier helped care for them.
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Lee Wanted Them Returned
Thomas later wrote that Robert E. Lee requested Kearny's horse and equipment so they could be returned through the lines under a flag of truce to Kearny's widow. Thomas remembered bringing the items forward and coming under Lee's observation as one of the proudest moments of his life.
He Hated Losing That Horse
There was also a wonderfully human detail in Thomas's recollection. He had been riding and caring for Kearny's horse and admitted that he hated having to give it up. His wartime adventures ended in 1863, when typhoid fever sent him home to Georgia.
He Became A Policeman
After the war, Thomas worked in his brother's Atlanta store before joining the city's police force. His early police career was hardly peaceful. During the 1868 Brush Arbor racial violence in Atlanta, Thomas was wounded twice; another confrontation reportedly left him permanently scarred across the face.
Texas Changed Everything
Thomas married Isabelle Gray in 1871 and later moved his family to Texas. He found work guarding railroad express shipments before becoming a detective. During one attempted robbery, the National Park Service says Thomas protected the money by hiding it inside an unlit stove.
He Chased The Lees
Thomas eventually became a private detective. In 1885, he joined Deputy Marshal Jim Taylor in pursuing Pink and Jim Lee, wanted killers and cattle rustlers. The brothers refused an opportunity to surrender and did not survive the lethal confrontation that followed . Thomas shared a substantial reward, and his reputation grew dramatically.
Judge Parker Needed Men
In 1886, Thomas received a commission as a deputy U.S. marshal working from Fort Smith, Arkansas. The federal court there had jurisdiction over Indian Territory, where deputies working under the court associated with Judge Isaac Parker routinely traveled enormous distances pursuing suspects in exceptionally dangerous conditions.
He Brought Them Back
Thomas quickly demonstrated an extraordinary ability to find fugitives. In November 1887, he reportedly delivered 41 prisoners to Fort Smith at once. The National Park Service also credits one early expedition with producing murder suspects, a bootlegger, a horse thief and numerous other prisoners.
He Paid A Price
The work wasn't remotely safe. Thomas was wounded by moonshiners in 1888, and the National Park Service says he was ultimately wounded about half a dozen times in gunfights. Meanwhile, the harsh frontier life strained his marriage, and Isabelle returned to Georgia with their children.
He Hunted Ned Christie
In 1889, Thomas participated in an attempt to capture Cherokee fugitive Ned Christie, then wanted in connection with the slaying of Deputy U.S. Marshal Dan Maples. Christie survived that confrontation and remained a fugitive until 1892. Thomas, meanwhile, was becoming one of the territory's most recognizable lawmen.
Meet The Three Guardsmen
Thomas became closely associated with fellow deputy marshals Bill Tilghman and Chris Madsen. Later celebrated as the “Three Guardsmen,” the trio became legendary for pursuing the outlaws plaguing Oklahoma Territory. Accounts credit them collectively with hundreds of arrests, although the famous nickname itself appears to have been popularized later.
The Daltons Felt Hunted
Thomas's persistence apparently made an impression on the bandits themselves. Emmett Dalton later claimed Thomas's relentless pursuit helped convince the Dalton Gang to attempt an enormous final score: simultaneously robbing two banks in Coffeyville, Kansas, and then escaping the territory with the proceeds.
Coffeyville Became A Disaster
The October 1892 Coffeyville raid became a catastrophe for the Daltons. Armed townspeople fought back, and four gang members were cut down in the streets. Emmett Dalton survived despite serious wounds. The gang was effectively destroyed, but another outlaw organization soon emerged around former Dalton associate Bill Doolin.
The Wild Bunch Emerged
Doolin organized what became known as the Wild Bunch or Doolin Gang. Its members robbed banks and trains across the region, becoming one of the frontier's most dangerous outlaw groups. Thomas, Tilghman and Madsen increasingly concentrated their attention on dismantling Doolin's organization.
Ingalls Turned Bloody
In September 1893, deputy marshals descended on Ingalls, Oklahoma Territory, hoping to capture Wild Bunch members. The resulting Battle of Ingalls became brutally costly: three deputy marshals and two civilians lost their lives. Only one gang member was captured, and Doolin escaped once again.
They Kept Closing In
The failed Ingalls operation didn't end the pursuit. Thomas, Tilghman and Madsen continued chasing the gang as its members robbed banks and trains. Between roughly 1894 and 1896, authorities steadily captured or eliminated Wild Bunch members, gradually dismantling the organization that had once seemed almost untouchable.
Tilghman Finally Got Doolin
Bill Tilghman achieved a major breakthrough in January 1896. Doolin had traveled to Eureka Springs, Arkansas, seeking treatment for his injured foot. Tilghman approached him while concealing his revolver beneath his clothing and managed to arrest the notorious outlaw without the climactic duel many might have expected.
Then Doolin Escaped
Doolin's captivity didn't last. On July 5, 1896, he and other prisoners escaped from the federal jail at Guthrie. Thomas reportedly organized a posse within an hour. The hunt that had consumed so much of the lawmen's careers suddenly began all over again.
Thomas Found His Trail
Doolin eventually returned toward the area where his wife and child were staying. Thomas received information pointing toward Doolin's father-in-law's property near Lawson, Oklahoma Territory. Rather than simply riding in, Thomas and his men positioned themselves nearby and waited for the fugitive to appear.
Doolin Refused To Surrender
On the night of August 25, 1896, Doolin appeared. Thomas's posse called on him to surrender. Instead, Doolin opened fire with a Winchester and revolver. The lawmen answered back with a furious barrage of their own. Doolin fell, bringing his celebrated career as an outlaw to an end.
The Wild Bunch Collapsed
Doolin's downfall became Thomas's most famous encounter, but destroying the Wild Bunch had been a long campaign rather than one spectacular event. Thomas, Tilghman, Madsen and other officers systematically pursued its members until the gang ceased to exist as an effective organization.
He Became Police Chief
By the new century, Oklahoma was changing rapidly. Thomas moved to Lawton and became the young community's first chief of police, serving for seven years. The former frontier marshal who had spent decades chasing fugitives was now helping police a permanent and increasingly settled city.
He Even Became An Actor
Thomas received one wonderfully strange final brush with his own legend. In 1908, he appeared in the silent film The Bank Robbery, directed by old colleague Bill Tilghman. Thomas played a lawman chasing bank robbers, while former outlaw Al Jennings portrayed their leader. Quanah Parker also appeared.
The Frontier Finally Changed
Thomas died in Lawton in August 1912, with contemporary biographical sources attributing his death to heart trouble complicated by Bright's disease. He had lived from the Civil War through the final decades of the frontier, helping rid the territory of the Wild Bunch before becoming part of the mythology of the Old West himself.
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