Volume 17 , Issue 32

100 Years Ago - Tuesday, 14 Sept. 1915

According to the Great Bend Tribune out of Great Bend, Kansas, 14 September 1915, page 7, we could read about "A Wonderful Picture," and a famous capture of notorious chief shown in thrilling film. It is concerning Untied States Marshal William Tilghman's capture of the notorious outlaw chief, Bill Doolin, early in 1896.

Found on Newspapers.com

Nearly everybody in the United States read about Deputy United States Marshal William Tilghman's capture of the notorious outlaw chief, Bill Doolin, early in 1896. Columns were devoted to the deed by newspapers everywhere and Tilghman's name was coupled with the bravest of Americans for many days because of the cool courage he displayed.

Nineteen years later, Wednesday the 15th at the Elite theatre, the people of Great Bend would witness a perfect reproduction of that throbbing scene in a bsth=house at Eureka Springs, and could see Tilghman himself, the real former marshal, grappling with and subduing a pseudo outlaw in exactly the same graphic manner with which the actual arrest was effected so long ago.

The picture outlaw was facially and physically a perfect likeness of Doolin himself, who died some time ago with his boots on.

A reward of $5,000, had been set bot the arrest and conviction of Doolin, known as the "king of outlaws," Tilghman and hunted the desperado hundred of miles, and in those days traveled in the west was mainly on horseback. The officer lay a at Burden, Kansas for days and days, awaiting Doolin's return home, for thither the outlaw had gone with his family to live under an assumed name. Then Tilghman learned Doolin was at Eureka Springs taking the baths, and so to that city the officer went.

He spotted Doolin and mae preparations for battle, for the outlaw had openly declared no person in the world ever should capture him alive. But, while awaiting developments, Tilghman strolled into a bath house. He gasped with astonishment, for he came face to face with Doolin, who was reading a paper in a reception room. Doily watched the officer suspiciously but Tilghman walked straight across the room to the bath apartments.

The officer peeked around a partition, drew his gun, kept a stove between himself and the outlaw and stealthily approached the fugitive. In an instant the order to "Throw up your hands" went out to Doolin, and in another instant the two men were struggling together, Doolin tried to reach his pistol, which swing under an arm, but Tilghman restrained him. However, the officer did not shoot, although many chances were given him, and at length Doolin, realizing Tilghman could, but did not want to kill him but would eventually take him alive or dead, surrendered.

Cooling feared he would be lynched, and pleaded that he be not handcuffed. Tilghman recalled that once in a dugout in Oklahoma, when he was surrounded by deadly enemies, colin had prevented his murder, consequently the officer seized the opportuniy to show his gratitude. Doolin promised to accompany him without trouble, and the amazing result was that Tilghman and America's most desperate bandit rode beside each other like ordinary companions in a train all the way form Eureka Springs, Arkansas to Guthrie, Oklahoma.

The vast crowd greeted the arrivals Tilghman was feted and praised for his work. But a month or so later Doolin escaped form the Guthrie Federal Jail and Tilghman never secured any of the reward that had been offered.

These thrilling scenes were enacted perfectly in "The Passing of the Oklahoma Outlwaw," and score of other incidents in the real historical life of Oklahoma were shown with the same fidelity to fact as this.
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