February 8, 2019
Hello ,
Nobody knows for sure, but evidence suggests the popular radio, TV and comic book character the Lone Ranger, was likely based on an African American
lawman tracking bandits and murders throughout Indian Territory in the late 19th Century.
White guys like John Wayne personify our image of the American West, so it might surprise you to know about one in four cowboys riding the range was black.
On Saturday night when they went to down, these men couldn't stay in hotels or eat in restaurants. I'm not sure if they could drink and play cards in the saloons, but during the workweek, their skill with a horse, a rope and a gun, could gain them a level of respect.
Below: Black cowboys at the "Negro State Fair" in Bonham, Texas, in 1913, photo courtesy Texas State Historical Association.
Was the "Real" Lone Ranger Black?
During the most lawless decades of the wild west, at least 25 (probably more) African American men served as deputy U.S. Marshals.
The most famous was Bass Reeves a cowboy who started life as a slave in Arkansas.
As a boy of eight, Bass was taken to Texas by his owner William Reeves, and when the Civil War broke out, Reeves' son joined the Confederate Army and took Bass with him to the front lines as a servant.
Sometime before the war's end, Bass escaped, heading west to what was then called Indian Territory and now the State of Oklahoma. Historians say there he learned horsemanship and tracking skills from Native Americans and also became handy with Colt 45 and a rifle. After emancipation, Bass was just one of many black men looking for work.
“Right after the Civil War, being a cowboy was one of the few jobs open to men of color who wanted to not serve as elevator operators or delivery boys or other similar occupations,” says William Loren Katz, a scholar of African-American history.
The Choctaw, Creek, Seminole, Cherokee, and Chickasaw tribes had been
forcibly moved from their homelands to "Indian Territory" where they governed themselves, but the federal government was responsible for rounding up the lawless element hiding out there, thousands of thieves, murderers and fugitives.
When the call went out to hire 200 deputies for the job, Bass Reeves fit the profile. Strong, steady, 6-foot-2, with a deep voice and commanding presence, he was appointed the first African-American lawman west of the Mississippi.
By all accounts, he was one of the best, serving for more than 30-years in relentless pursuit of lawbreakers. The Oklahoma City Weekly Times-Journal reported, “Reeves was never known to show the slightest excitement,
under any circumstance. He does not know what fear is.”
Witnesses said he sang softly before going into a gunfight, and was never so much as grazed by a bullet. Reeves admitted he shot and killed 14 men, but all in self-defense.
He's credited with bringing in 3,000 outlaws alive. More than once, showing up at the District Courthouse in Fort Smith with ten or more
prisoners in tow.
From the “Court Notes” of the July 31, 1885, Fort Smith Weekly Elevator: “Deputy Bass Reeves came in same evening with eleven prisoners, as follows: Thomas Post, one Walaska, and Wm. Gibson, assault with intent to kill; Arthur Copiah, Abe Lincoln, Miss Adeline Grayson and Sally Copiah, alias Long Sally, introducing whiskey in Indian country; J.F. Adams, Jake Island, Andy Alton and one Smith, larceny.”
Though he couldn't read or write, Bass Reeves always knew which arrest warrant matched his man, and he used his brains, as well as his brawn and firepower to enforce the law. He often wore disguises to catch criminals unaware, and that may be the first clue that connected Bass with the famous "masked man."
He rode a large light gray horse and gave out silver dollars as a calling card, similar to the Lone Ranger's trademark silver bullets.
At least one biographer says the deputy marshal at times worked with a Native American partner tracking criminals. And like the Lone Ranger, he demonstrated an unshakable moral compass, even arresting his own son on a murder charge, after which the son was convicted and sentenced to life in prison.
So far, historians have not proven the Lone Ranger was based on the exploits of Bass Reeves, but the most convincing piece of evidence seems to be that many of the prisoners he captured and turned into authorities at Fort Smith, went to serve their jail sentences in Detroit, the city where George Trendle and Fran Striker created the character of the Lone Ranger.
Sources:
https://blackdoctor.org/482030/this-week-in-black-history-the-real-lone-ranger-was-a-black/
https://www.history.com/news/bass-reeves-real-lone-ranger-a-black-man
And just in case you think those black cowboys (and cowgirls) are an historical myth, take a look at this one.
Heard some great news about one of the women in my book Standing Up Against Hate. A movie's
in the works about the life of the late civil-rights pioneer and officer in the WWII Women's Army Corps, Dovey Johnson Rountree.
Film rights to Dovey's memoir have been acquired by Red Crown Productions and Octavia Spencer will serve as executive producer. I wrote about Dovey here.
After the war she became an attorney and played a key role in the desegregation of interstate bus travel when she represented an African American Army woman treated unfairly while traveling home on leave. Dovey Johnson Roundtree defended black churches, community groups, politicians and lower-income clientele in a distinguished law career than spanned nearly half a century.
She also served as the inspiration for Cicely Tyson’s character in the 1990’s TV series Sweet Justice. Dovey died at the age of 104 last May from complications of Alzheimer's disease.
My Calendar
Saturday, February 9, 12 noon
Columbia Center Barnes & Noble
Kennewick, WA
Please spread the word, especially to teens in the Tri-Cities area. There will be cupcakes and trivia game prizes. This kicks off the #YASurvivalTour!
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