Battle of Lincoln (1878)

Battle of Lincoln
Date July 15–19, 1878 Location Lincoln County, New Mexico Territory, United States Result Regulators escaped and disbanded afterwards
Belligerents
Murphy-Dolan Faction	Regulators
Commanders and leaders
Nathan Dudley George Smith George Peppin	Alexander McSween  † Billy the Kid
Strength
150 Murphy-Dolan Faction 60~	46–53
Casualties and losses
2 killed 5-10 wounded	5 killed unknown wounded

150

The Battle of Lincoln, New Mexico, was a five-day-long firefight between civilians that took place from July 15–19, 1878 in Lincoln, New Mexico. It was the largest armed battle of the Lincoln County War and the climax of that civilian conflict in the New Mexico Territory. The firefight was interrupted and suppressed by United States Cavalry led by Lt. Col. Nathan Dudley from Fort Stanton.

By September 1878, when Territorial Governor Lew Wallace was appointed by the president, many of the Regulators and other fighters had returned to normal life, as many had left the area. Wallace tasked Lincoln County Sheriff Pat Garrett to reduce lawlessness in the region, and, within three years, he and his deputies had hunted down and killed William "Billy the Kid" Bonney and other figures who had continued to operate in the area.

Armed conflict in the Lincoln County War began with the murder of John Tunstall on February 18, 1878, by members of the Jesse Evans Gang (who were hired as gunmen by the "Murphy-Dolan" faction – referred to as "The House" by local residents) to harass their commercial competition in Lincoln. Tunstall had become a competitor of the established Murphy-Dolan mercantile store and bank.

Due to the murder and Lincoln County Sheriff William J. Brady's inaction in the case, Tunstall supporters formed their own armed vigilante group. They called themselves the Lincoln County Regulators, and were led by Richard "Dick" Brewer. Other members included gunmen such as Charlie Bowdre, John Middleton, Frank Coe, George Coe, "Big Jim" French, Doc Scurlock, and William Bonney (later known as "Billy the Kid"). The conflict resulted in numerous deaths on both sides, including the murder of Sheriff Brady on April 1, 1878.

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