City Marshal Thomas Johnson Nevitt

Thomas Johnson Nevitt

City Marshal Thomas Nevitt was shot and killed while attempting to arrest an intoxicated subject on the streets of El Reno, in the Indian Territory.

As Marshal Nevitt confronted the cowboy, who had been trying to take the town on his horse after visiting a local saloon, the subject took offense to his intervention. As both men raised their revolvers at the same time at about 6:00 pm, Marshal Nevitt was struck in the abdomen and succumbed to his wound the following morning.

The 20-year-old suspect attempted to escape, but citizens who witnessed the murder fired a volley of shots, with one shot breaking the suspect's left arm before he was taken into custody and arrested.

Marshal Nevitt was survived by his wife, son, daughter, brother and parents. He was buried in the Poheta Cemetery in Saline County, Kansas.