Four Dead in Five Seconds Gunfight
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The Four Dead in Five Seconds Gunfight refers to a famous gun fight that occurred on April 14, 1881 on El Paso Street of El Paso, Texas. Four men were killed within a very small time frame. Witnesses generally agreed that that the incident lasted no more than five seconds, though a few would insist it was at least 10 seconds. The five seconds began when a single gunshot was fired. After a few seconds, Marshall Dallas Stoudenmire ran on to the street and commenced firing without uttering a word. He fired rapidly with his twin .44 calibre Colt revolvers, killing 3 men in about 4 seconds.
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[edit] Background
The events leading up to the gunfight apparently started when about 75 Mexicans rode into El Paso looking for two young vaqueros. The men, named Sanchez and Juarez, had disappeared with 30 head of stolen cattle. Ben Schucter, mayor of El Paso, had made an exception for the Mexicans, allowing them to enter the city limits with their firearms.
A constable named Gus Krempkau, at the request of the Mexican posse members, accompanied them to the ranch of Johnny Hale, a local ranch owner and suspected cattle rustler, who lived some 13 miles northwest of El Paso in the Upper Valley. The bodies of the two missing men, along with 3 cattle carcasses, were found in an outbuilding of Hale's ranch. The bodies were brought back to El Paso. [1]
A court in El Paso held an inquest into the deaths of the men, and Constable Krempkau, being fluent in Spanish, acted as an interpreter.
[edit] Verdict of the Inquest
The verdict was that Sanchez and Juarez had been in that vicinity of Hale's ranch attempting to locate the 30 stolen cattle. The court determined that the American cattle rustlers, among them Hale, feared that the men were acting as scouts for a larger group. Two American rustlers ambushed Sanchez and Juarez during the night of April 13 or in the early morning of 14th.
A large crowd gathered in El Paso, including John Hale and his friend, former town Marshal George Campbell. There was animosity about the Mexicans' being heavily armed within the city, while at the same time tensions were high among the Mexicans, who wanted justice for their two murdered men. An inquest was held. Then the court was adjourned and the crowd dispersed. The Mexicans rode quietly back to Mexico with the bodies.
[edit] Shooting begins
Constable Krempkau went to a saloon next door to retrieve his rifle and pistol. A confrontation took place with George Campbell over remarks allegedly made by Campbell about Krempkau’s translations and his apparent friendship with the Mexicans. John Hale, who was reportedly unarmed, was heavily intoxicated and was also upset with Krempkau’s involvement in the matter. Hale grabbed one of Campbell's two pistols and yelled, "George, I've got you covered!" He then shot Krempkau, who then reeled backward. Slumping against a saloon door, Krempkau drew his own pistol.
At this moment, Marshal Dallas Stoudenmire, a noted gunman who had only started as town marshal on April 11, heard the gunfire. Stoudenmire, who was eating dinner next door at the "Globe Restaurant", ran out onto the street and drew his revolvers. While still running, Stoudenmire fired once, but the shot went wild and hit an innocent bystander. When John Hale peered from behind the pillar, Stoudenmire fired again, hitting Hale between the eyes and killing him instantly.
Campbell saw Hale go down and stepped from cover with his pistol drawn, but yelling that it wasn't his fight. Constable Krempkau, still conscious and thinking Campbell had shot him, quickly fired his pistol at Campbell before losing consciousness. The first bullet struck Campbell's gun and broke Campbell's right wrist, with the second shot hitting Campbell in the foot. Campbell screamed and scooped his gun with his left hand. Stoudenmire whirled and rapidly fired. Campbell dropped his gun, grabbed his stomach and toppled to the floor. Both Campbell and Constable Krempkau died within minutes.
[edit] Aftermath
After just a few seconds of gunfire, four men lay dead or dying. Hale had killed Krempkau, and Krempkau had wounded Campbell twice before dying. Stoudenmire then killed Ochoa, an innocent Mexican bystander, while aiming at Hale. Stoudenmire finally killed Hale with a shot to the head. Stoudenmire then mortally wounded Campbell. The Mexicans present had not fired a shot. Three Texas Rangers were also standing nearby, but did not take part, saying later that they felt Stoudenmire had the situation well in hand.
Three days after the gunfight, on April 17, 1881, James Manning, who with his brothers had been friends to Hale and Campbell, convinced former deputy Bill Johnson to assassinate Stoudenmire. Stoudenmire had publicly beaten Johnson days before. That same day, Johnson, who was drunk, confronted Stoudenmire, firing a blast from a shotgun at him. Stoudenmire immediately fired at least eight times at Johnson, shooting off his testicles. Johnson bled to death shortly thereafter.
This began a feud between Stoudenmire and the Manning brothers. Between the April 17 killing of Johnson and the following February, Stoudenmire would kill six more men in shootouts during arrest situations, and the city's violent crime rate dropped dramatically. On February 14th, 1882, James Manning murdered Stoudenmire's brother-in-law, Stanley "Doc" Cummings, later claiming that an argument had ensued and that Cummings had pulled a pistol. There were no witnesses. Manning was acquitted in a mock trial that contained a large number of local residents who were friends of the Mannings. This enraged Stoudenmire. Unfortunately for El Paso, Cummings was the only man who had been able in the past to control Stoudenmire's temper. The marshall began to publicly confront those responsible for James Mannings acquittal, causing many to avoid coming into town or visiting saloons for fear of running into Stoudenmire.
Despite his prowess with handguns and his effectiveness as a lawman, Stoudenmire was regarded as an outsider. Stoudenmire was well respected by the Texas Rangers and the US Marshals Office. However, locally he had factors against him. He was not from El Paso and had no family there short of his own and his now deceased brother-in-law. The Mannings were born and raised in El Paso and had many friends in high places of city government. Stoudenmire had only two things in his favor: he had lowered El Paso's violent crime rate more than any who had come before him, and people feared him.
On May 27, 1882, the town council announced they were firing Stoudenmire. He walked into the council hall drunk, and dared them to take his guns or his job. They did not and attempted to calm him by telling him he could keep his job as Marshal. However, after sobering, he resigned from his position on his own on May 29, 1882 and became a proprietor of the "Globe Restaurant", which formerly had belonged to Cummings. He was then appointed to serve as Deputy U.S. Marshal for Western Texas and New Mexico Territory.
[edit] Stoudenmire's service as US Marshal, feud continues
For a few short months, Stoudenmire served well as a Deputy US Marshal. However, his feud with the Mannings was far from over. The Mannings, mainly "Doc" Manning, James Manning, and Frank Manning, were careful to never confront Stoudenmire alone. Despite their hatred of him, he had shown his skill with a gun on several occasions. Once, while drunk and standing in the street, Stoudenmire mocked them, daring them to come outside and fight him. They refused and remained inside a saloon, while other residents attempted to convince Stoudenmire to go and sleep off his intoxication. Eventually he tired, called the Mannings cowards, and left.
On September 18, 1882, the Mannings and Stoudenmire met in a local saloon to form what they would call a "peace treaty" to end the feud. James Manning, believing things were settled, left. "Doc" Manning, however, began arguing with Stoudenmire over the events that had led up to the feud. As Stoudenmire turned slightly away, "Doc" Manning drew his pistol and fired, hitting Stoundenmire in his left arm. A second round barely penetrated Stoudenmire's skin due to hitting some folded papers in his shirt pocket. However, it did knock him down. As he fell outside the doorway, he drew a pistol with his right hand and shot "Doc" Manning in the arm. At that same moment, James Manning came from behind Stoudenmire and fired two rounds, one hitting a barbers pole, and the other hitting Stoudenmire behind the left ear, killing him. "Doc" Manning then commenced to beat Stoudenmire over the head with his own gun, before being restrained by James Manning. The Mannings stood trial for the murder, but were acquitted, again with a jury made up of people who were their friends.
A funeral for Stoudenmire was held at the El Paso's Masonic Lodge #130. His wife then had his body shipped to Columbus, Texas for burial. All expenses were paid for by the Lodge. [2]
The Mannings continued to live in El Paso, and soon their killing of Dallas Stoudenmire was all but forgotten. On July 11th, 1883, Assistant City Marshal Thomas Mode was killed while investigating a disturbance at a local brothel. Frank Manning was appointed to replace him, but only kept the job temporarily as he was deemed too incompetent for the position, often failing to arrest friends or acquaintances.
Marshal Dallas Stoudenmire has been credited with helping to successfully tame a wild and violent town. The El Paso Police Department has often acknowledged and honored Stoudenmire for his accomplishments.
