U.S. Deputy Marshal Badge
Everett Creekmore was a U.S. Deputy Marshal that later turned outlaw, working with Henry Starr in Oklahoma.
Everett Milo Creekmore was born in Arkansas to Randolph B. and Frances Creekmore on October 21, 1870. His father was a U.S. Deputy Marshal and when Everett grew up, he followed in his footsteps and was commissioned in the Western District of Arkansas in May 1889. In November of 1891, Milo was with U.S. Deputy Marshal Bass Reeves near Okmulgee, Oklahoma, when they tried to arrest Ben Billey, a whiskey peddler, and Tom Barnett, a horse thief. When a gunfight erupted, Billey took two slugs in the legs, and they were arrested.
On October 11, 1892, Creekmore, and fellow marshals, William Bouden, David Rusk, and Charlie Copeland cornered Ned Christie in the Cherokee Nation. When another gunfight ensued, three lawmen were wounded, and Christie managed to escape. After this, Creekmore left his position and soon went to the other side of the law, joining the Henry Starr Gang and robbing two stores. He was soon arrested and taken to Fort Smith, Arkansas. However, after making bail and awaiting trial, he shot and killed the father of his girlfriend, Cora Runyan, who objected to the courtship.
Later, Creekmore gave himself up at Fort Smith and was tried on robbery and murder charges. Though acquitted on the murder charge, he was found guilty on the robbery charges and sentenced to five years in the Kings County Penitentiary in Brooklyn, New York. After his release, he moved to Cherokee County, Texas, where he worked as a locomotive engineer and married Alma Yarbrough in September 1902. The couple would eventually have three children.
Henry Starr, Outlaw
He died on May 10, 1931, and was buried in Hope Cemetery in Wells, Texas.
© Kathy Weiser/Legends of America, updated January 2020.
Also See:
U.S. Marshals – Two Centuries of Bravery