Bat Masterson: The Man and the Legend

by Robert K. DeArment

The colorful figures of the western American frontier, the Indian fighters, the mountain men, the outlaws, and the lawmen, have been romanticized for more than a hundred years by writers who found it easier to invent history than the research it. "Bat" Masterson was one such character who cast a long shadow across the pages of western history as it has been routinely depicted. "A legend in his own time," he was called in a television series produced in the 1960's. A legend he has become―one firmly fixed in the popular imagination. But in his own time W.B. Masterson was a man, a less-than-perfect creature subject to the same temptations and vices as his fellows, albeit one who, through circumstance and inclination, led an exciting life in an exciting time and place. As buffalo hunter, army scout, peace officer, professional gambler, sportsman, promoter, and newspaperman, Masterson's career was stormy and eventful. Surprising to many readers will be the account of Masterson's career after his peace officer days, during his employment as a sports writer and columnist. The gun-toting western peace officer reputed to have killed more men than Billy the Kid (not so, says DeArment) spent his last years happily in New York City, writing for a nationally known newspaper. This book, the product of more than twenty years of research, separates fact from fiction to extricate the story of his life from the legend that has enmeshed it. It is the most complete biography of Bat Masterson ever written.

Genres: Biography, Nonfiction

456 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 1989

Reviews

[Jeffrey Keeten · Rating 4 out of 5]

”Josephine Earp recalled Bat’s dropping in on them at their home in San Diego about 1885. He was on his way to Ensenada, Mexico, to pick up an army deserter who was reputed to be a tough hombre. Bat asked Wyatt to accompany him. ‘That made sense to Wyatt,’ wrote Josephine. ‘This careful approach, so characteristic of both these men, may account for their survival to a ripe old age despite years in a dangerous business that claimed the lives of many. Neither of them took unnecessary chances.’”


The always Dapper Bat Masterson.

Bartholomew Masterson was the name he was born with. His family called him Bart, which eventually evolved into Bat. There are several stories about how he came to be called Bat, but the most pedestrian story is the one that is true. The Penny Dreadfuls liked the idea that he got that nickname by batting desperadoes over the head with his cane. He didn’t like his given name, Bartholomew, and renamed himself William Barclay. This name ended up on his tombstone, but of course, everyone called him Bat.

The West is filled with stories of brothers standing by brothers, but I don’t think there are any more compelling stories about siblings than those about the Earps and the Mastersons. Growing up in Kansas, I enjoyed hearing lurid stories about these famous brothers. I was an avid reader of True West Magazine. The articles regarding the Earps or the Mastersons were the ones I kept to read again and again. I inhaled books about them. I filled my head with all kinds of facts and fictions about them. The truth is not easy to sort out because Tall Tales were as much a part of the West as were whiskey, doxies, and six shooters.

What Robert K. DeArment set out to do was write the definitive biography of Bat Masterson. Of course, to do so is the same as telling the history of the West. He recently wrote a second biography of Bat called Gunfighter in Gotham which I’m so glad he did because the time that Bat spends in New York is certainly worthy of special attention.

Bat was born in Quebec, but his family homesteaded in New York, Illinois, and finally in Wichita, Kansas. It is interesting to think about who Bat Masterson would have been if his father hadn’t moved to the state that gave Bat such a great opportunity to become a legend. Would he have still come West? I’m sure he would have. The West was too alluring for young men in this time period, especially infinitely curious men like the Masterson brothers. Would he have landed in Dodge City? Who can say?

Bat started out as a Buffalo hunter. He did his part, practically government sponsored, to eradicate the main source of food of the American Indian from the face of North America. He also graded the way for railroad tracks and was not paid for that work. This is the first opportunity where we see what kind of man he was before he was even really a man. A friend described him thus: ”He was a chunk of steel and anything that struck him in those days always drew fire.” To illustrate, Raymond Ritter was rumored to be arriving on the train in Dodge City with a roll of cash. He still owed Bat $300. Bat went to meet the train and drew a crowd as he went. He held a pistol on Ritter and demanded his pay. He got his money and came off the train to the cheers of the crowd. He bought a round of drinks for everyone.

Now what is most interesting about this incident is Bat Masterson was 19 years old.

Bat Masterson acquired the reputation for being a killer, but the reality was far removed from what people had been led to believe. One of his friends, who had been drinking, had some fun with a newspaper reporter from back East and spun him a story about the then 27 year old Masterson having killed 26 men. This story stuck, and over the years Masterson did little to dispel that lie, nor did he ever confirm it. It did make men careful around him.


The Original Long Branch Saloon, unfortunately long gone. Those walls could tell stories.

In actuality, he thought he’d killed three men, but on one of those he was misinformed. The one man we know for sure was killed by Bat was Sergeant Melvin K. King.

It was over a girl.

Mollie Brennan was coveted by King, but at least on the night of January 24th, 1876, she preferred the company of the rather dashing and handsome Bat Masterson. It happened in Sweetwater, Texas, after hours in the dancehall, The Lady Gay. Bat knew the owner and had acquired a key so he could spend some time alone with Miss Brennan.

”When King pounded at the door, Bat, thinking that some friend who knew he was there wanted a nightcap, unlocked the door and stepped back. King sprang inside, cursing and brandishing his six-shooter. Mollie, shrieking at King, jumped in front of Bat, but the sergeant, insane with rage, jealousy, and bad liquor, opened fire. A bullet tore through Mollie’s abdomen, struck Bat, and lodged in his pelvis. The girl sank to the floor with a groan and Bat staggered backward. His legs turning to jelly under him, half-blinded with shock and pain, he managed to draw his gun and fire once. His bullet hit King squarely in the heart, killing him instantly.”



When his older brother, Edward, was shot down in the streets of Dodge City in 1878 by Jack Wagner and his trail boss Alf Walker, Bat opened fire from across the street and believed that one of his bullets killed Wagner. He even testified to the fact in the hearing, but my feeling is that it was Ed’s bullet that killed Wagner.

The other man that Bat thought he killed was James Kenedy. A posse had been formed to chase Kenedy after he killed the actress Dora Hand, who happened to be in the bed of the man he had intended to kill. Once they caught up with Kenedy, Bat shot him in the shoulder. He was later informed that Kenedy died from the wound, but Kenedy it turns out died from other causes. Mainly from being an idiot.

Masterson might have killed, but he certainly wasn’t a killer. . Considering how much time he spent wearing a badge in more than one state and in numerous cities, I would say that he was judicious in his need to terminate men from breathing.


Dubbed the Dodge City Peace Commission when they arrived to help Luke Short sort out his difficulties with the powers-that-were in Dodge at the time. These were, without a doubt, the toughest hombres ever assembled.

He loved to gamble and seemed to be pretty good at it. He loved to dress well, and the ladies seemed to like him. He was loyal to his friends. He bailed out Doc Holliday from a very serious extradition order back to Arizona by trumping up some charges to keep him in Colorado because Wyatt asked Bat to help. Bat didn’t even like the acerbic Holliday. He came running whenever his younger brother Jim was in trouble. He dropped everything to come back to Dodge City to help his friend Luke Short with some difficulties. He brought some friends by the name of Wyatt Earp, Charlie Bassett, and several other famous gunfighters, as well. Thank goodness they took a photograph while all of them were together. Needless to say, the difficulties his friends encountered were quickly settled once Bat showed up.


Still dapper as the Gotham Gunfighter.

As he got older, he exchanged his six-shooters for the power of the pen. He started a political newspaper in Dodge City called Vox Populi to write articles to destroy his political opposition. He only needed to release one scorching issue, and all of his party swept to victory at the polls. This made a lasting impression on Bat, and when he moved to New York, he became a full time newspaper reporter. He loved prize fighting and attended every major fight held in North America while he was alive. He wrote about the sport, and when he spotted something fishy, he called the fighters on the carpet.

He died at his desk at work, writing what turned out to be his last column. ”Things had broken pretty well for him in ‘this old dump of a world of ours,’ and he had departed the same way so many of his friends had died; fast, with his boots on, and with his chosen weapon in his hand.”



Certainly, there is no one more famous in the West than Wyatt Earp. He was a good self-promoter, and newspapers were always hungry for his stories. Doc Holliday, probably riding on the coattails of his friend Wyatt and helped by some wonderful depictions of his character by the actors Val Kilmer and Dennis Quaid, is probably the second most famous personage from the history of the West. Debates would range after that, but for me there is no doubt that Bat Masterson should be at the top of the rest of the list. There was a lot to admire about him. His loyalty, not only to his brothers, but to his friends as well. His honesty. His toughness and grit. His willingness to be more than just a famous gunfighter and embrace the change of a new century. There are statues in Dodge City to Wyatt Earp and Doc Holliday, but I’ve heard rumors that Bat Masterson will be the next statue erected to commemorate those days when there wasn’t a rougher, tougher town in the world than Dodge City.

I want to thank Robert K. DeArment for sifting facts from the Tall Tales. It was a difficult task given that Bat and Wyatt, in some cases, did very little to confirm or deny certain stories. I’m sure they both had many chuckles over the whoppers that circulated about them. The great thing is the truth about their lives is just as compelling. I’ve only touched on a few of the points about Masterson that I found most interesting. This book is filled with a multitude of tense scenes, involving gunplay, women, drinking, boxing, and politics. When you reach the end, you will realize that, even though Bat put himself in many dangerous situation, they were always based on careful calculations. He always shaved the odds in his favor, whether it was in a gunfight or at the card table.

If you wish to see more of my most recent book and movie reviews, visit http://www.jeffreykeeten.com
I also have a Facebook blogger page at:https://www.facebook.com/JeffreyKeeten

[Rachel · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed this biography so much that now I want to read DeArment's follow-up book, Gunfighter in Gotham, which delves into Masterson's decades in NYC with more depth than is provided here.

This book focuses mostly on Masterson's exploits in the Old West, beginning with his teen years as a buffalo hunter and exploring his various lawman jobs and gambling pursuits in a very thorough way. It does devote a couple of chapters to his years as a sportswriter and columnist, too.

DeArment has a clear and enjoyable writing style, and I've got a lot of his books on my TBR list now, thanks to this one.

[Mark Luongo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fact? Legend? Sometimes the real story is better than what we see on TV or in the movies. That is true of this biography of "Bat" Masterson. An interesting life to be sure but not the "notorious gunslinger and swell" as portrayed or imagined by many. Buffalo hunter, scout, lawman, gambler, boxing referee and journalist would be enough for anyone's life. Friend or acquaintance of Wyatt Earp, John "Doc" Holliday, Billy Dixon, Bill Tilghman, "Buffalo Bill" Cody, Theodore Roosevelt and brother of Ed & Jim Masterson.
For those of us who grew up to the tune of "he wore a cane and derby hat", it is accurate to some extent. The cane did not lead to his nickname of "Bat" I'm sorry to say. He was born "Bartholomew", probably in Canada, and later went by the name of William Barclay Masterson."Bat" was probably a corruption of his given name.
Reputation is what made "Bat" Masterson and with that many a scoundrel's life was saved. He died quietly at his desk at the NY Morning Telegraph in 1921 and it was said by a close friend he "had never known Bat Masterson to do a dishonorable deed, never betray a friend, never to connive at dishonor and never fear an enemy."
Great book, lots of primary source material.

[John Nelson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bat Masterson piled one colorful chapter after another into his life - buffalo hunter, lawman, gunfighter, friend of Wyatt Earp, professional gambler, boxing promoter, and, after he left the West, New York City sports writer. This book follows Masterson through his many adventures. The reader doesn't learn much about Masterson's private life. He appears to have been reluctant to disclose his home life to public view, and only a relatively small amount of documentation exists regarding that side of his life. His public life as a man of action, however, is more than enough to fill a book-length biography. Four stars.

[Alan Rockman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Richard O' Connor's Biography of Bat Masterson is, as his Wild Bill Hickok was, the gold standard in Bat Masterson biographies, but try getting a copy. Few copies and those available are extremely high price.

DeArment's biography is more recent, and he probably picked up on O'Connor's work but it is readable and it will do. DeArment covers Masterson's early days and his participation at the 2nd battle of Adobe Wells, but covers all of the Dodge City days (a worthy companion to Clavin and Drury's "Dodge City"), goes on to cover Masterson's days in Denver, and ends with the old Cowboy-Lawman's sad demise at the Sports desk of a New York paper.

[Mark Hartman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting read on Bat Masterson’s life. Well worth reading the history of the “wild west”. Friend to Wyatt Earp and not necessarily to others that were friends of Wyatt Earp.

[Avis Black · Rating 2 out of 5]

Useful details combined with stodgy writing.

[Mark Lisac · Rating 4 out of 5]

Maybe 3.5 stars, but closer to 4 because after a year I find I remember it better than many other books after a year's time. Well written and intensively researched. Far better than the recent book Dodge City, by Tom Clavin, large sections of which read like rewrites of DeArment's biography.
Masterson is interesting as a man who spanned the divide between legend and fact, and as a figure who spanned eras — in his case beginning as a buffalo hunter on the plains of western Kansas in the 1870s and ending as an influential columnist (largely sports columnist) on a New York City newspaper at the start of the Jazz Age.
It's an engaging read. The author seems favourably disposed toward his subject, but not to an objectionable degree. There are other drawbacks, though. The last 20 years of Masterson's life after he left the West get short shrift. His wife, with whom he lived for about 40 years, is nearly a complete blank. One is left wondering about their relationship, given that the stories in the book suggest Masterson went home only to sleep. There's no indication of how Masterson got the education that allowed him to become a journalist and, given the evidence of a photographed letter, develop fine penmanship.
The biggest lack is the understatement of the trajectory of Masterson's life. He was to an arguable degree a semi-tragic victim of his own success. He helped bring law and order to frontier towns, but he wanted only a certain degree of that, revelling in gambling and drinking and turning a tolerant eye to prostitution. He never played politics successfully. And as the frontier grew up, the lifestyle that "sports" like him enjoyed was increasingly forced to the margins. A scene in which a woman "reformist" hits him with an umbrella in 1902, setting off a chain of events that drives him to the big city in the East, combines comedy and tragedy. In the end, Masterson lamented in print about the loss of "personal liberty" and suggested a time would come when men might turn to guns to restore it. But by the end of his time, the forces he referred to as "clerical humbugs and sordid politicians" had managed to institute the horror of Prohibition. He had left a number of western towns in disgust and was beginning to be disgusted by the country as a whole. There was an early sign of what might happen: when he arrived in New York, the police confiscated a Colt .45 he had carried since 1877. He once spotted through a train window the agricultural wonder that southwestern Kansas had become, but stayed on the train to return to New York City, where he was still trying to recreate in boxing arenas and bars the kind of excitement and freedom he had known in the West of his younger days. Yet he maintained undying admiration and loyalty among an astonishing variety of lowlifes and highly placed luminaries.
All of which makes for entertainment and moments to ponder. DeArment has the essentials of the story in place; the reader has to imagine the drama (or perhaps poetry) that a more literary effort might have produced. (On second thought, a year later, I think it's possible that the raw material produced enough of the drama in itself.)

[Ralph Estes · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pretty good. Seems more objective than most western biographies. Says Masterson never killed more than one person, & that one is uncertain. May be a bit biased toward Masterson.

[Quinn Dempsey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very good