John Wesley Hardin, born on May 26, 1853, in Bonham County, Texas, and died on August 19, 1895, in El Paso, Texas, remains a legendary figure of the American West. He was infamous as a prolific killer and exceptionally fast gunman during the Texas frontier era. Between 1868 and 1877, John W Hardin reportedly killed at least 21 men in various confrontations, including gun duels and ambushes, solidifying his place in the annals of Wild West history as one of its most notorious figures.
Hardin’s youth coincided with the tumultuous Reconstruction period following the Civil War. Growing up in the defeated South, he developed strong anti-Black and anti-Union sentiments. This volatile environment likely contributed to his violent tendencies, and in 1868, at the young age of 15, John W Hardin committed his first homicide, killing a former slave. This act marked the beginning of a life characterized by gunfights, gambling, and heavy drinking. Throughout his violent career, Hardin demonstrated his deadly skills by reportedly killing at least eight Union soldiers and four Black policemen who were attempting to apprehend him on multiple murder charges.
His life on the run eventually led to his capture in Pensacola, Florida, in a train depot. John W Hardin was then extradited back to Austin, Texas, for trial in September 1877. He was convicted and sentenced to 25 years of hard labor in the state prison in Huntsville. However, Hardin’s story didn’t end with imprisonment. After serving a significant portion of his sentence, he received a pardon in 1894. Upon his release, Hardin attempted to settle into a more peaceful life in Gonzales, Texas, with his three children. His first wife, whom he married in 1872, had passed away while he was incarcerated. He remarried but soon abandoned his second wife and relocated to El Paso. In El Paso, John W Hardin reverted to a life of dissipation and petty crime.
His tumultuous life reached its violent conclusion on August 19, 1895, at the Acme Saloon in El Paso. While standing at the bar, John W Hardin was fatally shot in the back of the head by John Selman, Sr., a local policeman and known thief. Selman and Hardin had a long-standing feud, which culminated in this deadly encounter. Despite killing Hardin, Selman was subsequently tried but acquitted of murder, further adding to the complex and often lawless narratives of the Wild West.
The legend of John W Hardin was further cemented by his posthumously published autobiography, The Life of John Wesley Hardin as Written by Himself (1896). This book, while potentially self-aggrandizing, provides a first-hand account of his life and exploits, offering a unique, if possibly biased, perspective on the life of one of the Texas frontier’s most notorious gunfighters, John W Hardin.
