Doc Middleton
| James M. Riley | |
|---|---|
| Born |
February 9, 1851 Bastrop, Texas |
| Died | December 29, 1913 (aged 62) Orin Junction, Wyoming |
| Cause of death | Illness |
| Other names | Doc Middleton, David C. Middleton, Texas Jack, Jack Lyons, Gold-Tooth Jack, Gold-Tooth Charley |
| Occupation | Horse Thieving |
| Criminal charge | Horse theft, murder (multiple counts) |
| Conviction(s) | Guilty |
James M. Riley (better known as Doc Middleton and also known as David C. Middleton, Texas Jack, Jack Lyons, Gold-Tooth Jack and Gold-Tooth Charley) (February 9, 1851 - December 29, 1913) was an outlaw and horse thief, whose exploits of stealing perhaps 2,000 horses over a two-year period earned a spot in the Wild West Show.
Riley was born in Bastrop, Texas.
He stole his first horse at age of 14. In 1870 he was convicted for murder in Texas and was sentenced to life in prison at the Huntsville Prison. In 1874 he escaped the prison.
He was caught stealing horses in Iowa. After serving 18 months he moved to Sidney, Nebraska where he shot and killed a soldier Pvt James Keith of the 5th Cavalry Regiment January 13, 1877 from nearby Fort Sidney in a bar fight. He was arrested but he escaped as a lynch mob gathered.
He was eventually wanted by and the Union Pacific Railroad, which offered rewards for his capture. Army officer William H. H. Llewellyn, seeking to protect pony herds on the Pine Ridge Reservation, was dispatched to capture him. Llewellyn along with an army from detachment under George Crook lured him to a meeting with a promise of a pardon from the governor. In a melee two of Doc's gang were killed and a lawman named Hazen was wounded but Middleton was captured and was taken to Cheyenne, Wyoming where he was convicted of Grand larceny and served a prison sentence from September 18, 1879 and released on June, 18 1883. {At the time of his 1879 arrest it was reported that he had stolen thirty-five horses from William Irving of Cheyenne in 1877}
In 1884 he and his third bride (a 16-year-old girl) moved to Gordon, Nebraska where he operated a saloon and was briefly a deputy sheriff.
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Wikipedia