Roy Bean facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Judge Roy Bean
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Phantly Roy Bean Jr.
1825 Mason County, Kentucky, U.S.
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| Died | March 16, 1903 (aged 77–78) Langtry, Texas, U.S.
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| Burial place | Whitehead Memorial Museum Del Rio, Texas |
| Other names | "Only Law West of the Pecos" |
| Occupation | Justice of the Peace/Coroner/Notary Public Saloon keeper |
| Years active | 1882–1903 |
| Spouse(s) | Virginia Chavez (divorced) |
| Children | 4 |
| Relatives | Joshua Bean |
Phantly Roy Bean Jr. (born around 1825 – died March 16, 1903) was a famous American saloon owner and Justice of the Peace in Val Verde County, Texas. He was known for calling himself "The Only Law West of the Pecos". People say he held his court in his saloon, which was located along the Rio Grande in a lonely part of the Chihuahuan Desert in southwest Texas. After he passed away, many movies and books about the Old West made him seem like a "hanging judge." However, he only sentenced two men to hang, and one of them even managed to escape!
Contents
Roy Bean's Early Life
Roy Bean was born in Mason County, Kentucky, around 1825. He was the youngest of five children. His family was very poor. When he was 16, Roy left home and traveled to New Orleans on a flatboat, hoping to find work. After some difficulties in New Orleans, he went to San Antonio, Texas, to join his older brother, Sam.
His brother, Samuel Gore "Sam" Bean, was a teamster who hauled goods to Santa Fe and then to Chihuahua, Mexico. After Sam fought in the Mexican–American War, he moved out of San Antonio, and Roy joined him. In 1848, the two brothers opened a trading post in the Mexican state of Chihuahua. By 1849, Roy Bean had moved to San Diego, California, to live with another older brother, Joshua Bean. Joshua later became the first mayor of San Diego.
Later, Roy Bean moved to New Mexico to live with Sam again. Sam had become the first sheriff of Doña Ana County. In 1861, Samuel G. and Roy Bean ran a store and saloon in Pinos Altos. They sold drinks and had a billiard table. Roy Bean even had a cannon outside the store, which had been used to help defend the town during an Apache attack.
Moving to Texas
During the American Civil War, the Confederate Army moved into New Mexico. After a battle in March 1862, the Confederates had to retreat to San Antonio. Roy Bean took money from his brother's safe and joined the retreating army. For the rest of the war, he helped get supplies by hauling cotton from San Antonio to British ships off the coast and bringing back needed goods.
For the next 20 years, Bean lived in San Antonio. He tried different jobs, like selling firewood (but he cut down a neighbor's trees) and running a dairy (but he added water to the milk). He also worked as a butcher.
On October 28, 1866, he married Virginia Chavez. They had four children: Roy Jr., Laura, Zulema, and Sam. The family lived in a poor area called "Beanville." By the late 1870s, Bean was running a saloon there. He heard that many construction camps were being set up as railroads were expanding west. A store owner in Beanville wanted him to leave so much that she bought all of his belongings for $900. This allowed him to move west.
Becoming a Justice of the Peace
With the money he received, Bean bought a tent, some supplies, and ten large barrels of whiskey. By the spring of 1882, he had set up a small saloon near the Pecos River in a tent city he called Vinegaroon. About 8,000 railroad workers were living nearby. The closest court was 120 miles away, so there was little law and order.
A Texas Ranger asked for a local court to be set up in Vinegaroon. On August 2, 1882, Roy Bean was made a justice of the peace for the new area. However, his very first case was actually heard earlier, on July 25, 1882.
Bean then turned his tent saloon into a part-time courtroom. He started calling himself the "Only Law West of the Pecos." As a judge, Bean mostly used one law book, the 1879 edition of the Revised Statutes of Texas. When newer law books arrived, he would use them to start fires! Bean did not allow juries to disagree, and his decisions could not be appealed. Jurors were chosen from his best saloon customers and were expected to buy a drink during every break in court. He was also known for his very unusual rulings.
By December 1882, the railroad construction had moved further west. Bean moved his courtroom and saloon 70 miles to Strawbridge (now Sanderson). He sent for his children, who then lived with him at the saloon. His youngest son, Sam, even slept on a pool table. A competitor in the area put kerosene in Bean's whiskey, so he couldn't get customers. Bean then left and moved to Eagle's Nest, which was 20 miles west of the Pecos River. This place was soon renamed Langtry.
The original owner of the land in Langtry had sold 640 acres to the railroad. The deal said that no part of the land could be sold or leased to Bean. However, a man named O'Rourke, whose case Bean had dismissed earlier, told Bean to use the railroad's right-of-way. This land was not covered by the contract. So, for the next 20 years, Bean lived on land he didn't legally own.
Bean named his new saloon The Jersey Lilly. He did this to honor a famous actress named Lillie Langtry. She later wrote in her autobiography that she visited the area after Bean had died. However, she did send Bean a pair of Colt .45 pistols. Langtry did not have a jail. It is said that outside The Jersey Lilly, there was a large oak tree with a heavy chain. This served as a "jail" for anyone who couldn't pay their fines. All cases were settled by fines, and Bean kept all the money. Often, the fines were for the exact amount of money the accused person was carrying.
Later Years and Death
In 1890, Bean heard that a railroad builder named Jay Gould was going to pass through Langtry on a special train. Bean stopped the train using a danger signal. The engineer thought the bridge was out and stopped the train. Bean then invited Gould and his daughter to visit his saloon as his guests. The Goulds stayed for two hours. This caused a brief panic on the New York Stock Exchange because people thought Gould had been killed in a train crash!
In 1896, Bean organized a world championship boxing match between Bob Fitzsimmons and Peter Maher. He held it on an island in the Rio Grande because boxing matches were illegal in both Texas and Mexico. The fight only lasted 1 minute and 35 seconds, but news reports about it made Bean famous across the United States.
As he got older, Bean used much of his money to help the poor people in the area. He always made sure that the local schoolhouse had free firewood in the winter.
Roy Bean died peacefully in his bed on March 16, 1903, in San Antonio. He and his son, Sam Bean, are buried at the Whitehead Memorial Museum in Del Rio. In 1965, an official Texas Historical Marker honoring Bean was placed at the museum grounds.
See also
In Spanish: Roy Bean para niños
