"Texas" John Slaughter - Taming Arizona

Texas John Slaughter

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In 1886, Slaughter was elected Cochise County Sheriff tasked with ridding the lawlessness of Tombstone and Galeyville. Working closely with Wells Fargo Express Agent and former U.S. Deputy Marshal, Jeff Milton, the two were deadly in tracking and capturing fugitives. During this time, Slaughter was known to have worn a pearl-handled .44 and carried a 10-gauge, double-barreled, sawed-off shotgun, which he called an “equalizer.”

Slaughter also made the “mistake” of hiring Burton Alvord as a Deputy Sheriff. Though, Alvord quickly earned a reputation as an excellent tracker, bringing in a number of cattle rustlers and other wanted fugitives, he also was a heavy drinker and would, within a few years, turn “outlaw.”

John Slaughter in later years.

One of Slaughter's first tasks was to bring in the Jack Taylor Gang, who had robbed a train near Nogales and shot at the train crew. He and his men heard the gang was hiding out at the home of Flora Cardenas. However, by the time they arrived the bandits had fled. They then traveled to Willcox, then Contention, where they found gang members, Manuel Robles and Nieves Deron sleeping at the camp of Manuel’s brother, Guadalupe Robels. When Slaughter shouted for the two men to get up, a gunfight ensued, in which Guadalupe Robles, who had otherwise been an upstanding citizen, joined in. He was immediately shot and killed.

Manuel Robels and Deron tried to run away while still blasting their six-guns. One bullet caught Slaughter's ear, who returned the fire, killing Nieves Deron. Manuel Robels; though seriously wounded by a shot from Burton Alvord, was able to escape. Soon, the leader of the gang, Jack Taylor was arrested in Sonora, and Manuel Robles, along with Geronimo Miranda, were killed by the Mexican police in the Sierra Madre mountains.

During his first term, Slaughter also assisted the United States Calvary against Geronimo's Apaches. So successful was Slaughter in his role of sheriff, he was reelected in 1888.

Burton Alvord, Outlaw In the meantime, Slaughter's deputy Burton Alvord's efficiency as a lawman began to slip by 1889 as his drinking had increased. Frequenting the many saloons of Tombstone, Alvord started to socialize with some of the criminal elements and was known to get into frequent scuffles. As Slaughter began to chastise his actions, Alvord soured on both the sheriff and the law. Alvord soon moved on, but Slaughter would receive criticism for ever having hired the man, especially when he turned full-blown outlaw at the end of the century.

By 1890, the lawless Cochise County had been mostly tamed and Slaughter retired from law enforcement to tend to his ranch.

In 1906, Slaughter served briefly in the territorial assembly, but concentrated primarily on his business investments and his ranch. Eventually he bought a meat market in Charleston and two butcher shops in Bisbee. So wise were his investments throughout the years that he also began to act as a “banker” for his neighbors, loaning money for mortgages when needed.

In his later years, his health began to deteriorate as he suffered from eczema on his hands and feet and high blood pressure. He died in his sleep at Douglas, Arizona, on February 16, 1922, after complaining of a headache the previous evening. He was buried at the Cavalry Cemetery in Douglas, Arizona.

Imposing the law with his six-shooter and sawed off shotgun, Slaughter cleaned up Arizona Territory more than any other single individual. Along the way, he met and was much respected by other more famous Old West characters such as Wild Bill Hickok, Ben Thompson, Wyatt Earp, Big Foot Wallace, King Fisher, Sam Bass, Billy the Kid, and Pat Garrett.

One lawman who rode with Slaughter said of him, "He was like a spider spinning its web for the unwary fly."

Today, the Slaughter Ranch has been fully restored and serves as museum.

John Slaughter's ranch is now a museum, photo courtesy Slaughter Ranch.

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