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Seth Bullock US Marshal Badge Deadwood

Currency:USD Category:American Indian Art Start Price:10.00 USD Estimated At:2,500.00 - 3,500.00 USD
Seth Bullock US Marshal Badge Deadwood
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3" long. Seth Bullock (July 23, 1849 – September 23, 1919) was a Canadian-American frontiersman, business proprietor, politician, sheriff, and U.S. Marshal. He was a prominent citizen in Deadwood, South Dakota, where he lived from 1876 until his death, operating a hardware store and later a large hotel, the Bullock Hotel. Deadwood was a lawless, rowdy camp. Two days before Bullock and Star’s arrival, Wild Bill Hickok was murdered by Jack McCall. McCall shot Hickok in the back of the head while he sat playing poker. McCall was later found not guilty by an impromptu camp court and released, after which he promptly left town. (McCall was later re-tried, found guilty, and executed.) The demand for law enforcement grew following Hickok's murder and Bullock's background made him the logical choice for Deadwood's first sheriff. However, he was not elected to the position, but rather was appointed by then-Governor Pennington of Dakota Territory in March 1877. In November 1877, a special election was held in Lawrence County of which Deadwood was located. Bullock was the candidate for sheriff on the Peoples Party (Republican) ticket, and John J. Manning was the candidate for the Democratic Party. Manning won the election, thereby becoming the first elected sheriff for Lawrence County of which the main city was Deadwood. Bullock's tenure as appointed sheriff lasted approximately nine months. In 1878, Bullock again ran for sheriff of Lawrence County on the Republican ticket, and faced incumbent John Manning. As was the case in 1877, Manning won the election against Bullock and was awarded a two-year term as sheriff. During his tenure as the appointed sheriff, Bullock took his job seriously, deputizing several residents and tackling the job of civilizing the camp. Despite (or perhaps because of) a reputation for fearlessness and an uncompromising nature, Bullock managed the task without killing anyone. Bullock had several 'run-ins' with Al Swearengen, proprietor of the notorious Gem Theater, Deadwood's most notable brothel. Swearengen had a knack for making money from vice and shrewdly invested some of his profits in cultivating alliances with the camp's wealthy and powerful. Bullock was appointed Marshal in 1905 by President Theodore Roosevelt and again in 1909 by President William Howard Taft. When appointed sheriff, one of Bullock's first duties was to confront Dodge City Deputy Marshal Wyatt Earp, who was possibly interested in the sheriff's job. Bullock told Earp that his services were not needed. A week later, Earp left Deadwood to return to Dodge City. Having attained some stability in Deadwood, Bullock brought his wife Martha Eccles Bullock and daughter, Margaret, to town from her parents home in Michigan, where they had been living during this period. They subsequently had another daughter, Florence, and a son, Stanley. Bullock and Star purchased a ranch where Redwater Creek met the Belle Fourche River and dubbed it the S&B Ranch Company. Bullock is also credited with introducing alfalfa farming to South Dakota in 1881. Later, he became a deputy U.S. Marshal, partnered with Star and Harris Franklin in the Deadwood Flouring Mill, and invested in mining, the local growth industry. Bullock and Star eventually expanded their business interests to the towns of Spearfish, Sturgis, and Custer. Bullock, then a deputy sheriff from Medora, North Dakota, met Theodore Roosevelt in 1884 while bringing a horse thief known as Crazy Steve into custody on the range, near what would become the town of Belle Fourche. The two became lifelong friends, Roosevelt later saying of Bullock, Seth Bullock is a true Westerner, the finest type of frontiersman. Provenance: Jack Ooley Collection.