(side 1)
Texas fugitive, John Wesley Hardin (1853-1895) was captured here on August 23, 1877. Hardin was wanted and dangerous, and his capture became national news that brought notoriety to Pensacola. Hardin had reportedly killed 27 men. He bragged he had killed 40 men "all in self-defense," including one for snoring too loud. Texas Rangers Lt. John B. Armstrong and Jack R. Duncan along with the Sheriff of Escambia County, William H. Hutchinson, and nine deputies apprehended Hardin and his associates at the L&N Freight Depot as they boarded a train bound for Pollard, Alabama. When approached by Sheriff Hutchinson, Hardin tried to draw a revolver but was overpowered. Deputy Martin Sullivan shot and killed one of Hardin's accomplices as he tried to escape. Hardin was returned to Texas and found guilty of killing Comanche County Deputy Charles Webb. He was sentenced to 25 years in the Texas State Penitentiary, but was pardoned after serving 17 years by Governor James Stephen Hogg and thereafter practiced law in El Paso, Texas. On August 9, 1895 Hardin was shot and killed while playing dice in El Paso.
(side 2)
Those who participated in the capture of
John Wesley Hardin
August 23, 1877
Texas Rangers
Lieutenant John Barclay Armstrong
John Riley Duncan
Escambia County Sheriff's Office
Sheriff William H. Hutchinson
Deputy Martin Sullivan · Deputy A.J. "Ace" Perdue
Deputy E.R. Payne · Deputy John Bard
Deputy William McKinney · Deputy M.L. Davis
Deputy Richard L. Campbell · Deputy Joseph Commyns
Deputy John E. Callaghan
The Superintendent of the Pensacola & Atlantic Railroad, William D. Chipley, provided special rail transport to the Rangers and valuable intelligence on the location of Hardin. Chipley later became a Pensacola mayor and state senator.
A Florida Heritage Site
Sponsored by Escambia County Sheriff's Office
Sheriff David Morgan, UWF Historic Trust, Mr. Joe Ulery
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