The Old West Life of Baz Outlaw

By Bob Alexander

University of North Texas Press, 2016 – Captain Frank Jones, a celebrated figure in the 19th-century Texas Rangers, offered a powerful commendation when speaking of his company’s top sergeant, Baz Outlaw. He described him as “[He is] a man of unusual courage and coolness and in a close place is worth two or three ordinary men.” Yet, the legacy of Baz Outlaw is far from a universally celebrated one. Some of his contemporaries within the Texas Rangers held a starkly contrasting view, labeling him as "one of the worst and most dangerous." This divergence in perception speaks to the complex and multifaceted nature of the man. His life, a true tapestry woven with the threads of the Old West, is a narrative overflowing with Texas Rangers, dramatic horseback pursuits, audacious train robberies, vigilante justice (often blurred with injustice), clandestine nighttime ambushes, treacherous bushwhacking sheriffs, and, of course, the iconic symbol of the era – the duel. In Whiskey River Ranger, author Bob Alexander provides a balanced and meticulously researched account of this infamous Texas Ranger, chronicling not only his heroic acts and renowned bravery but also his volatile temper and his ultimately tragic struggle with alcoholism. The life of The Old West Life of Baz Outlaw is a prime example of the moral ambiguities that often characterized the era.

The following passage is excerpted from Bob Alexander’s 2016 book, Whiskey River Ranger: The Old West Life of Baz Outlaw, and is presented courtesy of UNT Press.

Chapter 10 – Undaunted Courage and Fine Generalship

The spring of 1893 drew to a close, leaving U.S. Deputy Marshal/Special Ranger Baz Outlaw in a comparatively favorable position professionally. Despite his past episodes of drunkenness and the messy situations they engendered, there was a glimmer of hope that his promise to abstain from alcohol might hold true. Indeed, many residents of the Big Bend Country still considered him the man to rely on in times of crisis. John Humphries, the storeowner who had previously advanced Baz funds in anticipation of Captain Frank Jones forwarding Outlaw’s quarterly pay vouchers, seemed to have either forgotten or forgiven the past, or perhaps it had never been a significant issue in the first place. After a series of serious and involved consultations, John Humphries became the messenger. He wrote to Baz Outlaw, urging him to exercise his authority as a federal officer and declaring that the "Mescal business" at the Chispa Coal Mines had to be stopped. The would-be lawmen had devised what they believed to be an ingenious plan. As explained to the Deputy U.S. Marshal, they would furnish – or rather, loan – him with a Winchester rifle, a horse, and a saddle for the task. (1) This would allow him to:

go out dressed as a miner and loiter at the mining camp [manager’s camp] during the heat of the day, so as not to get into [the laborers’] camps till after dark on Thursday, Then Friday and Sat night you can lay for them across the Canyon… (2)

There was no ambiguity in the request or the choice of Baz Outlaw – a well-known and largely respected lawman in the Big Bend area – to address the perceived or actual smuggling problem. The notion that he had been banished from the region’s decision-making or physically removed from the area by some of the Big Bend Country’s influential figures was a gross misrepresentation, as vast as the picturesque Far Wild Country itself. While his attempts to navigate the "whiskey river" had earned him poor marks, Baz, as everyone in Alpine, Marfa, and along the Rio Grande knew, had pledged to steer his course through calmer waters. If he could maintain his sobriety, good days might await the reformed alcoholic Baz Outlaw. However, fate had other plans in store for Captain Frank Jones. The narrative of The Old West Life of Baz Outlaw would soon intertwine with tragedy.

Following his marriage to divorcee Helen Baylor Gillett and careful consideration of the numerous pleas and petitions for a company of Rangers to be stationed in El Paso County, Company D headquarters was relocated to Ysleta. Sergeant Hughes remained in the Big Bend Country with a small detachment to patrol a vast territory. At this time, the primary offenders along El Paso County’s stretch of the Texas/Mexico border were the Olguins, a family crime syndicate known as the Bosque Gang. A dictionary definition is hardly necessary, but it’s clear that members of a gang are, by definition, gangsters. From the gang’s aging patriarch, Clato Olguin, the family tree was laden with sons and grandsons who boasted prison records, thefts, murders, and at least one rape conviction. In addition, a host of unrelated individuals had proven their worth through bloodshed and were inducted into the despicable organization. They were, without exception, gangsters to the core, preying on Texans, Tejanos, and Mexicans alike. Company D’s initial objective after the June 1893 transfer into El Paso County was to crush the Olguins – figuratively if possible, but literally if necessary. (3) The life of The Old West Life of Baz Outlaw would intersect with this violent reality.

Tragically, on June 30th, the Olguins and their crew held the upper hand, not the Texas Rangers. The shifting sands of the Rio Grande had created an island, Pirate Island, divided by an imaginary line delineating the sovereignty of Texas and Mexico. It was there that Captain Frank Jones and Corporal Carl Kirchner, along with Privates Eddie Aten, T.F. Tucker, Wood Saunders, and Ed Bryant, suffered a devastating blow. Bushwhackers’ bullets tore into Captain Frank Jones, leaving him dead on the Mexican side of the line. The Rangers’ retreat was a desperate but necessary move. Mexican soldiers were responding to reports and the sound of gunfire, perceiving an invasion of their country by armed Texans. The situation demanded a swift exit. (4) The death of Captain Jones would deeply affect The Old West Life of Baz Outlaw.

Despite the numerous criticisms levied against Baz Outlaw, he was never accused of being passive. Upon learning of the Pirate Island shootout and Frank Jones’s death, Baz Outlaw, in his capacity as a Special Ranger, immediately telegraphed the adjutant general with his itinerary: "Capt Jones was Killed near Ysleta by thieves today will go up on first train do all I can to capture murderers." (5)

Even amidst the chaos and turmoil, Special Ranger Outlaw – whether on the train or in his room at the Lindell Hotel in El Paso – recognized his obligation to submit his monthly report for June to Texas Ranger headquarters. He informed the adjutant general of an arrest and other pertinent news: "On acct of leaving Alpine to assist in recovering Captain Jones’ body I am late in Sending report. Arrested Wm Louis in Brewster Co on 15th June, Assault and Attempt to Murder. I arrived at Ysleta yesterday with Seven Men but was too late to get to the River before the Mexican authorities had delivered the Captain’s body – Which was intered [sic] yesterday at Ysleta with Masonic honors! His wife is in very delicate health and I think it doubtful about her recovery from the Shock! There is a hard gang of Mexicans in the vicinity and Several bad White Men that assist them in their depredations. I think that Captain Jones’ body lay in the Sun Nearly all day & was in a bad condition–his wife was not allowed to look at it. My address for the Ensuing month will be at Alpine." (6) This report provides a glimpse into the practical realities of The Old West Life of Baz Outlaw.

Unbeknownst to Baz Outlaw, Frank B. Simmons, recently elected Sheriff of El Paso County, had seemingly been compelled to succumb to the common borderland practice of "la mordida" – the bribe. Reading between the lines of Sheriff Simmons’ message to Governor Hogg reveals a similar scenario:

I have been to quite an expense in getting the body of Captain Frank Jones, Company D State Rangers from Mexico. Will the state help me pay these expenses. . . .(7)

Read the rest of chapter 10 and the entire new novel “Whiskey River Ranger: The Old West Life of Baz Outlaw,” by author Bob Alexander. Available through University of North Texas Press.

Foot Notes in this article:

John Humphries to Baz Outlaw, June 22, 1893, in HML&HC.
Ibid.
Readers interested in a more inclusive examination of the political maneuverings and analysis of criminal intelligence that fostered Company D’s deployment to El Paso County and a cursory genealogical peek at the Olguin crime family may wish to consult Alexander’s Six-Shooters and Shifting Sands, particularly Chapter 15, “Boys, I’m Killed.”
The actual events of this particular incident—a truly horrific gunfight between bandits and Rangers—are also covered in detail, based on primary source documents, in Alexander’s Riding Lucifer’s Line, Chapter 9, 127–138.
Telegram, Special Ranger Outlaw to AG Mabry, June 30, 1893, TSA.
Special Ranger Outlaw to AG Mabry, July 2, 1893, TSA.
Sheriff Frank B. Simmons, El Paso County, to Governor Hogg, July 7, 1893, TSA; Parsons, Captain John R. Hughes, puzzlingly proffers: “Sheriff Simmons did not realize that Kirchner had recovered the body, and anticipated trouble in attempting to do so.” 87; In real time Corporal Carl Kirchner certainly wasn’t confused: “We [an editorial ‘we’] then made a demand on the chief officer at Juarez, Mex. Who acted very nicely (I am told by Sheriff Simmons who made the demands) & ordered the body delivered to us at the State line.” See, Corporal Carl Kirchner to AG Mabry, July 2, 1893, TSA; Nor were newspapermen at faraway Dallas, Texas, baffled: The Dallas Morning News of July 1, 1893, picking up the story from El Paso, reported: “The sheriff’s posse and rangers returned to Ysleta and El Paso this evening with the body of Captain Frank Jones of the rangers, who was killed across the Mexican line yesterday morning at sunrise while in pursuit of a gang of smugglers and murderers in the bosque, twelve miles below San Elizario in this county.” And the edition of July 2, 1893: “The murder of Captain Frank Jones by Mexicans yesterday morning is still causing much excitement on the border. The sheriff’s posse, which made a demand on the Mexicans for Captain Jones’ body, met with refusal, backed by 100 armed Mexicans. Sheriff Simmons was taken by a special train to Juarez, Mexico, where he made a request on the Mexican war department for the necessary aid and the lieutenant commanding at once repaired to the scene of trouble with a troop of cavalry and gave the sheriff the necessary help, which secured the body at 11 a.m.” Additionally, the Dallas Morning News of December 19, 1893: “. . . Sheriff F.B. Simmons of El Paso county was in the city yesterday. It was he who on the 30th of last June, recovered the body of Capt Frank Jones, who was killed at Tres Jacales, in the state of Chihuahua, Mexico.” Also, C. L. Sonnichsen, Pass of the North: Four Centuries on the Rio Grande: “Next day Sheriff Simmons and a posse demanded the body of the dead Captain, but got nowhere until the Mexican authorities were asked to help. Lieutenant Rafael García Martínez, the Juárez jefe politico, rode with Simmons down the Mexican side of the border with a Mexican police escort. They had better luck than they expected, for not only did they bring home the body of Captain Jones—they met three members of the gang making their way out of the brush and rounded them up without a fight.” 315.

About the Author:

BOB ALEXANDER began a policing career in 1965 and retired as a special agent with the U.S. Treasury Department. He is the author of Rawhide Ranger, Ira Aten (winner of WWHA Best Book Award); Six-Shooters and Shifting Sands, Bad Company and Burnt Powder, Riding Lucifer’s Line, and Winchester Warriors, all published by UNT Press. He lives in Maypearl, Texas.

Note: We know of no relation between Bob Alexander, and Legends of America co-owner Dave Alexander.

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Bass Outlaw – Lawmen, Gunfighter & Texas Ranger

Texas Rangers

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