James Butler Hickok, better known as "Wild Bill," is possibly the most famous and greatest gunfighter during the Western era. He was also known for being a scout during the Civil War, a frontiersman, an Indian killer, a marksman, a sheriff, and a gambler. Despite all the attention he has been given, there is very little known about the life of this quick-drawing cowboy. Rumors about Wild Bill extend from of the hundreds of men he has killed, to his rumored affairs, all the way to the mystery of his death. So, "Who really was James Butler "Wild Bill" Hickok?" Was he a common cowboy or a mythical hero whose life was blown out of proportion?.
James Butler Hickok was born in Troy Grove IL on May 27, 1837. His father was Alonzo Hickok, his mother was Polly Butler, and he had five siblings, three brothers and two sisters. As a child, James Butler worked on a neighboring farm with his family after running an unsuccessful general store. Wild Bill, along with his brothers, also assisted his father with the work on the Underground Railroad, which helped slaves escape from the South to the free North. This was this that helped develop the courage, his wisdom, and resourcefulness that he used later in his life. Due to his excitement towards guns, James Butler would hunt for wolves while his family worked on the farm. He left his home at the age of 18 in the spring of 1856 to farm in Kansas and it was there that he became involved in the Free State (anti-slavery) movement. .
While working as a Union teamster in 1861, at Rock Creek (Nebraska Territory) he gunned down Dave Tutt, or was it Dave McCanles, or was it Dave Ross? History is unclear at to who he really gunned down. Why was the man's name never actually discovered? Historians have not been able to come up with an answer for that question. Historians don't know what James Butlers Hickok's role was during this fight and several different stories have been made up about what happened that day which was the beginning of the exaggerated tales of his life.
