Hot Springs gunfight facts for kids

The Hot Springs gunfight, also known as the Gunfight at Hot Springs, or the Hot Springs Shootout, was a gunfight on March 16, 1899, between two separate law enforcement agencies that occurred in Hot Springs, Arkansas during the Old West period in the United States.

Background

The spa town of Hot Springs, Arkansas, had a long history of illegal gambling, which had developed into frequent violence by the late 19th century. Beginning in the 1870s, two factions—the Flynns and the Dorans—fought one another for control over the gambling inside the city of Hot Springs, which by that time had a population of around 10,000. The two factions were involved in numerous gunbattles in downtown Hot Springs during the course of that feud.

Local politics

Thomas C. Toler was the chief of police during this period, having originally been hired in the early 1870s by the first Garland County sheriff, William Little. By the mid-1890s, Toler had a falling out with Mayor W.W. Waters, leading Toler to support William L. Gordon in the 1897 mayoral election. The Hot Springs Police Department had acquired a reputation for enforcing the will of the gambling factions, often assisting gambling houses with the collection of unpaid debts or forcing unwanted competition to leave town.

Gordon once again appointed Toler as police chief but ordered him to enforce new regulations that would restrict gambling activities. Toler disagreed, preferring a more liberal policy. He had strong contacts inside the gambling community, alliances he did not want to lose.

Toler and his police department opposed the new regulations, but County Sheriff Bob Williams supported the mayor. Coffee Williams, the sheriff's brother, was also his chief deputy. Coffee Williams, a heavy drinker, frequented the gambling houses but was otherwise considered competent in his duties. As tensions built between the two law enforcement agencies over the proposed crackdown on gambling, there were several heated verbal disputes between law enforcement officers. Although from the outside it would appear that the county sheriff was siding with the mayor to rid Hot Springs of gambling, in reality the clash was ultimately over whether the county sheriff's office or the city police department would control the illegal profits.

Aftermath

A series of trials followed the gunfight that took place on March 16, 1899, leaving two people wounded and 5 killed, including Sheriff Williams's son, Johnny. The tensions between the Hot Springs Police Department and the Garland County Sheriffs Office continued well into the early 20th century over the affair. Although Frank Flynn was forced out of town following the shootout by a "Citizens Commission" formed by Mayor Gordon, illegal gambling did not go away, and corruption within both law enforcement agencies remained.

See also

In Spanish: Tiroteo de Hot Springs para niños