Harry Tracy

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Harry Tracy (1875^[1]-1902) was an outlaw in the closing days of the Old West. His real name was Harry Severns. He is said to have run with Butch Cassidy and the Hole in the Wall Gang, and by the time he'd reached adulthood he was actively taking part in acts of robbery and theft. In late 1901, Tracy was captured, convicted, and incarcerated at the Oregon State Penitentiary.

In all the criminal lore of the country there is no record equal to that of Harry Tracy for cold-blooded nerve, desperation and thirst for crime. Jesse James, compared with Tracy, is a Sunday school teacher. Seattle Daily Times July 3, 1902

He escaped on June 9, 1902, shooting and killing corrections officers Thurston Jones Sr.^[2], Bailey Tiffany,^[3] Frank Ferrell and three civilians in the process. His claim to infamy is the size and scope of the manhunt and the extensive media coverage of same. He evaded capture for a month, mostly taking refuge in the Seattle, Washington area. On July 3, 1902, he set up an ambush near Bothell, Washington, where he killed a detective, Charles Raymond,^[4] and deputy John Williams^[5] during a shootout. Tracy fled, took several hostages in a residence, and engaged other law enforcement officers in a shootout. During that shootout he killed posse members Cornelious Rowley^[6] and Enoch Breece.^[7] On August 6, 1902, in Creston, Washington, Tracy was cornered and shot in the leg during an ambush by a posse from Lincoln County, resulting in his being badly wounded. Sheriff Gardner arrived and had the field surrounded that Tracy had crawled into. Harry committed suicide to avoid capture.