Volume 17 , Issue 18

Walking With Sadie

Woof! Woof! NW Okie gave me the assignment of researching Oklahoma's Notorious Outlaws this week. I found this interesting tidbit in The Daily Ardmoreite, 18 December 1910, page 8, concerning "Oklahoma's Notorious Outlaws Still At Large, Entrenched In Hills."

As the story goes ... With interest being revived in the whereabouts of the two Oklahoma outlaws who had resisted capture longer than any other outlaws in this county, Bill and Bob Christian who had been fugitives from justice for fourteen years, and although their capture had been reported many times, they were still at large, in December, 1910. Word had been received in Oklahoma City that during a raid on a stronghold of revolutionists in the Northwest part of Mexico the two desperadoes were seen. The two Oklahoma men said they were the leaders of a band of Mexicans and their capture without the aid of a small army was next to impossible. They had entrenched themselves in the fastnesses of the hills of northwestern Mexico, where government was almost unheard of.

The jail delivery that the Christian brothers and Bill Casey effected from the county jail , 6 July 1906, was daring, and the subsequent killing of Milton Jones, city marshal, one of the most atrocious and cold-blooded crimes in the history of the early days of Oklahoma. Bill Casey was killed in the fight between the citizens and police that followed. The Christian escaped and had successfully eluded all posses sent out for their capture. Bill Casey was killed, it was said, by Patrolman Jackson while in the buggy with Bob Christian that they had taken from G. White, a then resident of the city.

The jail delivery occurred Sunday afternoon, July 6, 1906, at 5 o'clock. M. L. Garber was jailer at the county jail, which occupied the site where the city jail then stood.

Jim and Bill Casey were held in the jail, charged with the murder of City Marshal Farris of Yukon, Oklahoma. Bill and Bob Christian were held for the double charge of horse stealing and murder. The alleged theft of the horses occurred near Tecumseh, Oklahoma. Deputy Sheriff Taylor, when the Christians sent word into Tecumseh that they should kill anyone sent after them, started out to arrest them. AS he neared the place where the brothers were staying one of them appeared at the door of the house and shot Taylor with a Winchester. They were afterwards captured and brought to the city to prevent a lynching.

Jim Casey was arrested with his brother in the Chickasaw nation, charged with the murder of Marshal Farris of Yukon, Oklahoma. Jim Casey died in the jail there with pneumonia.

M. L. Garber was jailer at the time of the escape of the Christians and the attempted escape of Casey. Revolvers had been smuggled to the men. Barber opened the cells to give the men their supper, when he was covered by their guns and forced to turn over the keys to the cells. Bill casey, Bill Christian and Bob Christian ran from the jail and south in the alley to Grand Avenue. Bob jumped upon the horse of Milton Jones and rode in Broadway to Reno,thence east tot he river. Bill Christian and bill Casey went to Broadway and ran into the street and jumped into the buggy driven by White. A woman was in the buggy with White. Both of them were knocked to the ground. Milton Jones, brother of Webb Jones, on the local secret service force, seeing the fight in the buggy ran from in front of the Turf saloon, which occupied the building then occupied by the Postal Telegraph company.

Jones did not recognize the two jail breakers, and ordered them to throw up their hands. Bill Casey answered with a shot from his revolver, and Jones fell dead. Patrolman Jackson stationed in Broadway opened fired on the two men, and Casey was killed. A shot from the officer's gun hit him in the neck, which was broken. Bill Christian then drove south in Broadway after his brother and joined him near the Canadian River. Posses searched for the men for months but were unable to find any trace of them.

John W. Reeves, a prisoner in the jail at the time of the delivery that resulted in the killing of Milton Jones was convicted of conspiracy in the delivery. He was sentenced to the penitentiary at Leavenworth, Kansas, and was pardoned by Governor C. N. Haskell.

M. L. Garber, jailer at the county jail, was also convicted of negligence of duty and sentenced to a year in the penitentiary. The crime that lodged the Caseys in the county jail there was committed in 1895 in Yukon, Oklahoma. The brothers entered the town and in a fight with Farris, killed him. They were chased into the Chickasaw nation and were captured there. The chase from Yukon into the stronghold of the Caseys was a running fight all the way.

Jim Casey was struck by a bullet which put him out of the fighting. Bill Casey allowed Jim to ride ahead, and he, singlehanded, would engage the posse in battle until his brother had time to get a distance in the lead. He would then catch up with his brother and ride with him until the brother would begin to lag. Bill would then fall back and fire on the officers while his brother rode ahead.

The killing of Deputy Sheriff Taylor near Tecumseh by the Christians was also a coldblooded murder. Taylor was approaching the house in which the brothers had taken shelter, when one of them shot him with a Winchester rifle without giving any warning.

Good Night! Good Luck! Woof! Woof!
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