Dave Rudabaugh
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| Born: | July 14, 1854 Fulton County, Illinois, USA |
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| Died: | February 18, 1886 Parral, Chihuahua, Mexico |
| Occupation: | Cattle Rustler Train/Stagecoach Robber Cowboy |
| Years active: | early 1870s - 1886 |
David Rudabaugh ( born David Rodenbaugh) (July 14, 1854 – February 18, 1886), better known as Dirty Dave for his personal hygiene habits, was an outlaw and gunfighter in the American Old West. Though he is not well known today, he crossed paths with many of his better known contemporaries.
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[edit] Early life
Rudabaugh was born in Fulton County, Illinois. His father was killed in the Civil War when Dave was a boy. The family moved around following this, spending time in Illinois, Ohio, and Kansas. Rudabaugh may have been involved in a train robbery in Ohio in 1870 or 1871, but this is impossible to substantiate.
[edit] Outlaw
The outlaw career of Dave Rudabaugh began in earnest in Arkansas in the early 1870s. He was part of a band of outlaws who robbed and participated in cattle rustling along with Milton Yarberry and Mysterious Dave Mather. The three were suspected of the death of a rancher and fled the state. By some accounts all three went to Decatur, Texas, but other accounts have Rudabaugh heading to the Black Hills of South Dakota, where he became a stagecoach robber.
[edit] The Trio
Sometime around 1876, Rudabaugh joined Mike Roarke and Dan Dement to form the outlaw band known as the "Trio." There is a disputed story from around this time that Rudabaugh taught Doc Holliday to use a pistol while Doc taught him the fine points of playing cards.
In 1877, Wyatt Earp was tracking the Trio from Dodge City to Fort Griffin, Texas, in the hope of arresting them. He never caught up with them but befriended Doc Holliday and Big Nose Kate while in Fort Griffin. The Trio eluded capture and built up their gang to six members, which was then known as the Rudabaugh-Roarke Gang, and set about attempting to rob trains.
[edit] Capture and release
Rudabaugh's gang made their first attempt on a train on January 22, 1878, near Kinsley, Kansas. The robbery was a failure, and the gang came away with no loot. The next day, a posse led by Bat Masterson, including John Joshua Webb, captured Rudabaugh and fellow gang member Ed West. The rest of the gang was captured shortly after. Rudabaugh struck a deal for immunity with the prosecutor and testified against his partners.
Shortly following his release, Rudabaugh accepted Masterson's offer to join a group of gunfighters to fight for the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway in the Railroad Wars.
[edit] Dodge City Gang
During this time he became a close associate of John Joshua Webb, whom he had met during his earlier arrest. After the railroad wars, he and Webb traveled to the nearby town of Las Vegas, New Mexico, where they became important members of the Dodge City Gang. This gang was a band of ruffians and gamblers who were dominating the political and economic life of the growing community. The leader was Hyman G. Neill (Hoodoo Brown); Dave's old friend Mysterious Dave Mather was also a member.
Webb was arrested for murder in the spring of 1880. Dave Rudabaugh and another gang member attempted to break him out of jail on April 5, 1880. The attempt failed, and Rudabaugh shot and killed deputy Antonio Lino Valdez in the process.[1]
[edit] The Rustlers and capture
He fled to Fort Sumner, New Mexico, where he eventually joined the gang led by Billy the Kid. Rudabaugh participated in a number of raids and several killings, including that of deputy James Carlyle.[2] [3]
On December 19, a posse led by Pat Garrett captured Rudabaugh, Billy the Kid, and other members of the gang. They were taken to Las Vegas, but the danger of a lynch mob prompted the officers to move them to Santa Fe. In February 1881, Rudabaugh pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 99 years in prison for several counts of mail robbery. He was then found guilty for the murder of Las Vegas deputy Lino Valdez and was sentenced to death by hanging.
[edit] Imprisonment and escape
Rudabaugh was reunited with Webb in jail. After a botched escape attempt in which a fellow prisoner named Thomas Duffy died, he and Webb broke out. [3] Rudabaugh fled to Arizona where he joined the Clanton faction in their feud against the Earps. Dave may even have participated in the murder of Morgan Earp and the attempted murder of Virgil Earp, and he was present at the fight in which Curly Bill Brocius was killed. [1]
[edit] Death
As the Clanton gang broke up, Rudabaugh headed down to Mexico where he worked as both a cowboy and a rustler. On February 18, 1886, Rudabaugh was involved in a gunfight with locals in Parral, Chihuahua. The fight began over a card game. He drew his pistol and killed two men and wounded another. He left the saloon unharmed, but unable to find his horse, he re-entered a few moments later, which turned out to be a fatal mistake. He was shot several times from the shadows then was decapitated with a machete and his head was placed on a pole.
[edit] Other Information
- Dave Rudabaugh was the only man ever captured by Wyatt Earp, Pat Garrett, and Bat Masterson.
- Rudabaugh was alleged to have taken part at the battle of Iron Springs, in which Curly Bill Brocius was killed by Wyatt Earp.
[edit] In Popular Culture
- Dave Rudabaugh is perhaps best known from the movie Young Guns II in which he was played by Christian Slater. In the movie the character is known as "Arkansas Dave" though the historical Rudabaugh never used this name.
- Arkansas Dave Rudabaugh is also the name of a character in the video game GUN.
- Wyatt Earp befriends Doc Holiday over their mutual hatred of Rudabaugh in the movie Wyatt Earp.
