I recently acquired (thanks, Diron!) the case files stored at the National Archives on Alexander Lewis, thought to have been among the bandits who robbed the Katy train at Verdigris. Among the materials is a handwritten letter from Heck Thomas applying to Marshal Carroll for writs of arrest to be served by his posse. One is for the train robbers mentioned above. Another is for a ring of whiskey smugglers. The final is for Mr. Tom Purdy and a gentleman known only as "Old Dad," whom Heck accuses of stealing his own horse! Think of all the horses roaming around the Territories. The very last horse you would want to steal is Heck's.

--meursault

The name Tom Purdy caught my eye in your message. Aaron Purdy, Tom Purdy's brother, shot Heck Thomas at Snake Creek on 27 Jun 1888. Following is an excerpt from "Heck Thomas, my Papa" by Beth Thomas Meeks with Bonnie Speer:

"The trouble began when two brothers, Aaron and Tom Purdy and their gang set up at Snake Creek, sixteen miles south of Red Fork. Red Fork is now a suburb of Tulsa.
My father and his partner set out with a warrant to arrest the gang for "introducing and selling whiskey in the Indian country." The gang was also believed to have robbed a train near Catoosa the night of June 15. The two officers came upon Aaron Purdy and a man named Baker in the wagon they used to peddle the whiskey. Purdy and Baker resisted arrest. In the subsequent fight, the officers captured baker along with the wagon, horses and liquor. Purdy escaped on one of Papa's horses."

It appears that both the Purdy boys were pretty stupid!

"My father set out on this trail at once, and on June 26, he and his posse(Jim Wallace, Burrell Cox and Hank Childers) located the gang's still in a deep ravine. Papa rode boldly into the ravine calling for the moonshiners to come out. The gang opened fire and Papa was shot in the left side and his right wrist was shattered. Aaron Purdy went down, badly wounded and the rest of the gang surrendered.

One of the posse went to an Indian home about a mile from the scene of the fight and got a wagon and some water. When he returned, the waterbearer told the others later, Purdy looked at the water with such longing that Papa said to let the outlaw have the first drink. I am certain that he craved it very much himself since he was so badly wounded, but as I have said before, Papa was the most unselfish person I have ever known. Even when it came to outlaws' wants and wishes.

The posse loaded Purdy into the wagon and headed for Red Fork, sixteen miles away. Papa rode beside them on his horse trying to stem the flow of blood from his side with his arm since his right hand dangled useless. He knew that he was in very bad shape and needed help right away.

But when he reached Red Fork, he found no doctor available there, so he was forced to
ride on to Tulsa which was another fifteen miles. By the time he reached the home of Dr. H.P. Newlin, Papa had lost so much blood that he was nearly dead. He barely made it into the house before he collapsed."

Connie Karle

Fascinating stuff. Thanks, Connie, for posting this. The letter from Heck Thomas ties into all this in some interesting ways. It's dated June 21, 1888 from Catoosa, IT. Your relative Jim Wallace is mentioned as being in the posse after the whiskey smugglers, along with Dan Reeves, C.M. Smith, John Elliott, Joe Cauldwell and (?) Perryman. They're after "Texas Jack," Joe Baker, "Buckskin Boy," Tom Purdy, and "Old Dad." Heck says they have a "dead sure case. Captured their wagon and three horses and one of the pedlers." The charge was introducing and selling 100 gallons about June 16, 1888. At the end of this portion Heck asks for another writ against the same men "charge assault intent to kill." I read this to mean that there was probably a shootout before the one mentioned in your source. Then follows the part about Purdy stealing Heck's horse (value $75.00).

The train robbery mentioned is almost certainly the one at the Verdigris tank on June 15, 1888. Glen Shirley in his biography of Thomas notes that in the immediate aftermath of the crime a posse headed by Charles Leflore went after the robbers. To me it looks like Leflore's posse at some point joined that led by Heck, as Heck lists Leflore among the "witnesses" applying for the writ against the train robbers, along with Burrell Cox, known to be riding with Heck. It's a reasonable speculation that among Leflore's posse was Bud T. Kell, as both Leflore and Kell would later testify at the Lewis trial (Lewis was suspected of leading the Verdigris train robbers). Since there was no suggestion that Leflore and Kell were present during the crime, their testimony probably involved their experiences in hot pursuit of the bandits.

--meursault

This message has been edited. Last edited by: meursault,

Would it be possible for you to post the Heck Thomas Letter to the forum? I would love to read it and I think that everyone else would, too.........Connie

Catoosa, IT June 21st, 1888
Col. (?) John Carroll
US Marshal
Dear Col., Please send me writs for
1) Kelp Queen 2) Wm. Whittley 3) Joe Foster 4) Sam Holloway 5) One Stephens alias Jim Johnson
6) AS Lewis 7) Wm. R. Dawson 8) Oscar Coulter 9) John Barber
Train robbing charge also murder of B. C. Tarver on June 16th 1888.
Wit(nesses): James Martin, Burrell Cox, J. W. East (?), Chas. LaFlore and about 6 others. I have Lewis and Dawson arrested and think I can capture some of the others soon. Was in 1/4 mile from Barber, Queen, Whittley and Stephens Monday but they got away. These 4 robbed the Bank at Cisco Texas some time back. (Over)

These same parties the nine I mean also shot Chas. Colton and Harry Ryan. I heard Ryan would die. I expect to stay with this gang till I get more of them.

Also send writ for Alias Texas Jack, Alias Buckskin Boy, Alias Old Dad (no other name), Joe Baker, Tom Purdy. Charge: Intro and selling. 100 gallons whiskey on or about June 16, 1888. Witnesses: Heck Thomas, Dan Reeves, John Elliot, (?) Perryman, Jim Wallace, C.M. Smith, Joe Caudell.

Dead sure case. Captured their wagon and 3 horses and one of the pedlers. Also send writ for the same 3 men charge assault intent to kill. [Witnesses] Heck Thomas and Dan Reeves. [illegible]

All white men non citizens are these writs asked for.

Also writ for Old Dad and Tom Purdy. Charge Larceny 1 horse value 75.00 from Heck Thomas on June 16 1888. Wit(nesses) Heck Thomas, Dan Reeves, C.M. Smith A. (?). Please send writs to me at Catoosa Springs, Cherokee Nation.

Respectfully, Heck Thomas

--meursault

Thank you for posting that letter. It really gives a feel for what it was like back then. Those were some tough characters, the outlaws and the lawmen..........Connie

"Witnesses: Heck Thomas, Dan Reeves, John Elliot, (?) Perryman, Jim Wallace, C.M. Smith, Joe Caudell" by Meursault

I believe that the Perryman listed is probably Noble Perryman. I have run across that name several times in association with Heck Thomas.....Connie

Just outta curiousity, I came across a reference stating the Jim Wallace associated with Bill Dalton in the Longview, Texas robbery had been a deputy US Marshal before jumping his traces. Would the witness, Jim Wallace, be one in the same as the above Wallace?

I don't think that the two Jim Wallace's are the same. My Jim Wallace died in 1918 in Melette, Oklahoma. The other Jim Wallace died about 1895 in Texas.....Connie