Historical Figures

Who was Bass Reeves the Western lawman?

Bass Reeves (July 4, 1838 – January 12, 1910)

Deputy U.S. Marshal (1875–1907)

- An African-American lawman in the American Old West.

- Served as a deputy U.S. marshal in the Oklahoma and Arkansas Territories for over 32 years.

- Born into slavery in Crawford County, Arkansas.

- Earned freedom during the American Civil War, and settled in Texas, working as a farmer and lawman.

- Appointed as a federal agent for the Indian Territory.

- Traveled over 20,000 miles and arrested some 3,000 criminals without being wounded himself despite numerous violent struggles.

- Reputed to have shot and killed at least fourteen outlaws.

- Also served as a city marshal of Van Buren, Arkansas from 1897 to 1903.

- Died in Muskogee, Oklahoma at the age of 71 from Bright's disease.

-Inducted into the Oklahoma Hall of Fame and the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum's Hall of Great Westerners.