John Wesley Hardin

Side One: Texas fugitive John Wesley Hardin (1853-1895) was captured here on August 23, 1877. Hardin was wanted and dangerous, and his capture became national news that brought notoriety to Pensacola. Hardin had reportedly killed 27 men. He bragged he had killed 40 men “all in self-defense,” including one for snoring too loud.

Texas Rangers Lt. John B. Armstrong and Jack R. Duncan along with the Sheriff of Escambia County, William H. Hutchinson, and nine deputies apprehended Hardin and his associates at the L&N Freight Depot as they boarded a train bound for Pollard, Alabama. When approached by Sheriff Hutchinson, Hardin tried to draw a revolver but was overpowered.

Deputy Martin Sullivan shot and killed one of Hardin’s accomplices as he tried to escape. Hardin was returned to Texas and found guilty of killing Comanche County Deputy Charles Webb. He was sentenced to 25 years in the Texas State Penitentiary, but was pardoned after serving 17 years by Governor James Stephen Hogg and thereafter practiced law in El Paso, Texas.

On August 9, 1895, Hardin was shot and killed while playing dice in El Paso. Side Two: Those Who Participated in the Capture of John Wesley Hardin August 23, 1877 TEXAS RANGERS Lieutenant John Barclay Armstrong John Riley Duncan ESCAMBIA COUNTY SHERIFF'S OFFICE Sheriff William H. Hutchinson Deputy Martin Sullivan Deputy A.J. "Ace" Perdue Deputy E.R. Payne Deputy John Bard Deputy William McKinney Deputy M.L. Davis Deputy Richard L. Campbell Deputy Joseph Commyns Deputy John E. Callaghan The Superintendent of the Pensacola & Atlantic Railroad, William D. Chipley, provided special rail transport to the Rangers and valuable intelligence on the location of Hardin.

Chipley later became a Pensacola mayor and state senator.