Abilene: Law and Order in a Cow Town

-In 1867 Abilene was little more than a collection of huts, its potential was recognized by Joseph McCoy, who built shipping pens and advertised itto Texas cattlemen and to the Chicago cattle buyers. The first herd was shipped east in 1867. For the next five years Abilene was a booming cowtown. -The cattle drives brought prosperity to Abilene but also brought problems with Law and Order. With the cattle came the cowboys at the end of thedrive they received their wages. After hard months on the townless trail and with money in their pockets it was not unexpected that theycelebrates. They went to saloons, and spent their money at gambling tables and at the brothels. -the town population had jumped by roughly 7000 due to the arrival of the cowboys and thus the gamblers, prostitutes etc. -their wild behaviour as made worse by the ill-feeling that remained at the end of the Civil War, most of the cowboy were Texans, southerners who supported the Confederacy. Meanwhile the people of Abilene were supporters of the Union.

Wild Bill Hickok-in 1871 the residents of Abilene hired Wild Bill Hickok as town marshal. During the civil war Hickok had fought for the union, and gained a nationalreputation as a top gunfighter after killing Davis Tutt. Since then he had killed 3 men.-While he was marshal of Hays City he had arrested Tom Custer (brother of George) and in fighting off a revenge attack Hickok shot and killed asolider. He was forced to escape of the Kansas Railroad from the angry Seventh Cavalry.-As town marshal of Abilene he was paid $150 per month and added to his income by gambling-some of the towns residents disapproved of him as he drank too much and lived with prostitutes BUT he did keep the cowboys under controland enforced a ban of carrying weapons in the town-Eventually in a gunfight over either a woman or gambling he killed a man called Phil Coe and accidentally his own deputy, after that his contractas town marshal was not renewed-in 1872 the citizens of Abilene made it clear that the cattle and cowboys were no longer welcome-the cattle drives moved on to other towns and Abilene no longer needed a highly paid gunfighter to keep the peace

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