Milton J. Yarberry

Milton J. "Milt" Yarberry (1849 – February 9, 1883) was an outlaw, gunman and lawman of the Old West, best known for having been the first Town Marshal for Albuquerque, New Mexico.

Yarberry was born in Walnut Ridge, Arkansas, to a family whose name was not Yarberry. He confessed this just prior to his death, to friend Elwood Maden, and that his family was respectable, and to protect them from the shame of the life he led, he would never reveal his true name, and, he never did. He also confessed to Maden that he'd been born in 1849, and that he had left his family's home after being involved in the killing of a man during a land dispute, after which he fled and changed his name. All of this is recorded in the book Deadly Dozen, written by author Robert K. DeArment. That book gives details about Yarberry, classifying him as one of the twelve least known but more dangerous gunmen of the Old West. Later research seems to indicate that he was, in reality, John Armstrong, and that he'd fled Sharp County, Arkansas wanted for murder. In 1873 he killed a man in Helena, Arkansas, fleeing once again.

Yarberry first appears in historical accounts while riding with outlaw Dave Rudabaugh and gunman "Mysterious Dave" Mather during the 1870s, beginning in 1873, operating mostly in southern Missouri and northern Arkansas. During this period, the three engaged in several robberies. When they were implicated in the murder of a prominent rancher in Arkansas, the three rode into Texas. The three separated, and Yarberry settled for a time in Texarkana, Arkansas, but in 1875 he killed a man there also, whom he suspected of being a bounty hunter. At that time, Yarberry's bounty for the Sharp County murder was $200.

He then entered Texas, and joined the Texas Rangers, serving in "Company B" of the "Frontier Battalion, stationed in Jack County, Texas. By accounts uncovered by Robert DeArment, Yarberry served honorably with the Rangers during his brief service with them, and departed in 1876, surfacing in Decatur, Texas under the name "John Johnson". He opened a saloon there, partnering with Bob Jones. However, when a bounty hunter came to Decatur, asking questions about Yarberry relating to the Sharp County murder, he sold out to his partner quickly and left town. The bounty hunter's body was found days later near Decatur, having been shot to death.

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