Life and Adventures of Ben Thompson the Famous Texan (1884)

"Thompson's career as Indian fighter, gambler, saloon-keeper, sheriff, and dead-shot killer has been described in such works as...W.M. Walton's 'Life and Adventures of Ben Thompson.' -Austin American-Statesman, Mar. 18, 1958

"The book is written to lionize a man who killed without compunction and terrorized whole communities by his lawless and desperate demeanor." -Galveston Daily News, May 19, 1884

"Ben Thompson could be considered Austin's most notorious outlaw or Austin's most famous lawman." -Austin American-Statesman, Dec. 28, 1984

"The killing of Ben Thompson is the leading sensation in all the history of Texas." -San Antonio Daily Express

"Thompson's lawyer...wrote...a book...described Thompson's life and eulogizes him as being a caring husband and father." -The Texas Pistoleers: Ben Thompson & King Fisher (2009)

Was Ben Thompson simply a misunderstood hero, who got himself into scrapes defending the weak and defenseless, as well as friends, from lawless bullies? Was Wild Bill Hickok really a villain who was thwarted from preying on Texas cowboys by Ben Thompson?

In 1884, William Martin Walton (1832-1915) would answer these questions in more in his book "Life and Adventures of Ben Thompson the Famous Texan."

Ben Thompson (1843-1884) was a gunman, gambler, and sometimes lawman of the Old West. He was a contemporary of "Buffalo" Bill Cody, Bat Masterson, John Wesley Hardin, and "Wild Bill" Hickock, some of whom considered him a friend, others an enemy. Thompson fought for the Confederacy during the Civil War, and later for Emperor Maximilian in Mexico. When hired in 1881 as marshal in Austin, Texas, the crime rate reportedly dropped sharply. Thompson was murdered at the age of 40 in San Antonio, Texas, in the "Vaudeville Theater Ambush."

In introducing his book, Walton writes:

"The scenes depicted, actually occurred; the facts and circumstances narrated as attending the difficulties, and killings, so far as they relate to him, are exactly true. In all cases where a killing takes place, men who stand at different angles see the transaction differently, hence, in ninety-nine cases out of a hundred, there are two or more sets of what are claimed to be facts in every homicide."

About the author:

William Martin Walton (January 17, 1832 - July 1, 1915) was a prominent lawyer in Austin, Texas. During the Civil War, Walton served as a major in the Confederate Army. After the war, he was elected attorney general of the state and also headed the state Democratic Party. At the time of his death, Walton was one of the most respected lawyers in Texas.

Arguably, Walton's most famous client was Wild West gunman Ben Thompson. Walton participated in Thompson's defense when, in 1882, while Austin City Marshal, Thompson killed San Antonio theater owner Jack Harris. Walton later wrote Thompson's biography, The Life and Adventures of Ben Thompson.

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