Driving the Old West Justice Trail - Part 1

"On the road again, on the road again, seeking Old West Justice, and paying sales tax, on the road again."

That's right, folks, I'm on the road again in another Avalara-sponsored Sales Tax Trip Tuesday. This time, I'm taking the path of old west justice in this two-part mini-series, from Fort Smith, Arkansas, through Oklahoma Territory, large portions of Texas, into New Mexico, and even as far as Tombstone, Arizona.

Sometime we drive, sometimes we take the train, we've even spent time on my Harley, but each of these trips is a true adventure. Each of them is a trip of my imagination; however, in many cases these imaginary trips are adapted from real-life adventures lumped together in one trek into some of the most beautiful, historic or adventurous locations within this very special country of ours, the USA. I do my best to find you spectacular views and even more spectacular meals along the way. We strive to find great places to see the sights, and visit the aura of the locations as best can document them. And yes, thanks to our friends at Avalara we can check the applicable taxes that you would encounter if you were to take these trips, or make these stops along our route.

This month's installment sees us begin our trip in Fort Smith, Arkansas, in the Court of Isaac C. Parker, also known as the "Hanging Judge." Judge Parked was appointed by President Ulysses S. Grant with the specific commission to 'clean up Indian Territory. '
→ Suggested: This week, we start in Fort Smith, Arkansas, in the Court of Isaac C. Parker, also known as the "Hanging Judge." [Judge Parker] was appointed by President Ulysses S. Grant with the specific commission to 'clean up Indian Territory. '

Source: National Park Service

In his 21 years on the federal bench, Judge Parker tried 13,490 cases; yet, despite his nickname, he only sentenced 160 people to death.

Source: National Park Service

You can still see where the Court was held, and prisoners were hanged at the Fort Smith National Historic Site.

Recreated Courtroom at the Fort Smith National Historic site (National Park Service photo).

Although the Court of Old is part of the historic site, the Western District of Arkansas federal court still exists today, and sessions are held in the Judge Isaac C. Parker Federal Building, located just three blocks from the National Historic Site.

Judge Isaac C. Parker near the term of his tenure in Fr. Smith Source: National Park Service

Judge Parker may have tried thousands of prisoners, but numerous other wanted criminals were killed during capture, killed during resisting arrest, killed during escort from "the territories" back to Fort Smith, or "killed by mistake" when being interrogated by Deputy U.S. Marshals appointed by Judge Parker.

While Judge Parker's Court had jurisdiction over portions of Arkansas, it primarily served to 'police Indian Territory,' which is now Oklahoma. In 1896, Judge Parker's Court's authority over Indian Territory came to an end.

At least two of the several hundred marshals are noteworthy because they are among the very first black federal lawmen. Judge Parker commissioned Bynum Colbert to a four-year term as a Deputy U.S. Marshal for the Fort Smith Court on June 10, 1889. Roughly four years later, on June 1, 1893, he was again commissioned by the Court, but apparently for an extended period, as he served through 1895. During this time, Colbert was responsible for the capture or until his own 'conviction' for perjury, swearing to a false account, and what today we would call expense misappropriation. He was sentenced to serve time at Leavenworth Prison and was apparently released the following May.

At least two of the several hundred marshals are noteworthy because they are among the very first black federal lawmen. Judge Parker commissioned Bynum Colbert to a four-year term as a Deputy U.S. Marshall for the Fort Smith Court on June 10, 1889. Roughly four years later, on June 1, 1893, he was again commissioned by the Court, but apparently for an extended period, as he served through 1895. During this time, Colbert was responsible for the capture or until his own 'conviction' for perjury, swearing to a false account, and what today we would call expense misappropriation. He was sentenced to serve time at Leavenworth Prison and was apparently released the following May.

Another formerly enslaved person who became a lawman might be better known to you, as he has been the subject of no fewer than a half-dozen television shows and movies. Bass Reeves was first commissioned by Judge Parker in 1875 and worked for thirty-two years as a Deputy U.S. Marshal in Indian Territory. By all accounts, Reeves arrested more than 3000 men and women within the territories, and reported that he had killed over twenty men during arrest skirmishes or assassination attempts on his life. Bass Reeves retired from federal service at the age of 67 upon Oklahoma's statehood in 1907.

All this law enforcement has made me hungry, so we head over to Doe's Eat Place.

Source: Doe's Eat Place, 422 N. 3^rd Street, Fort Smith, AR 72901 (479-785-9111)

Looks almost like the Old Court and Lockup. But it's actually rated among the best places for a "good old dinner." And speaking of 'good', how does my Bone-in Ribeye Steak and French Fries look?

Source: Doe's Eat Place, 422 N. 3^rd Street, Fort Smith, AR 72901 (479-785-9111)

For starters, we tried some of their famous Hot Tamales, still made from their 1941 Family recipe, and they are best eaten with a little of the house chili on top.

This place has some history, though not quite as far back as Judge Parker's days. It actually began in Greenville, Mississippi, when Dominick 'Doe' Signa and his wife, Mamie, turned a small grocery into their first restaurant. Those tamales and the chili were staples way back then, but as their popularity grew, so did their menu, and Doe's name became synonymous with mouthwatering steaks. Today, Doe's is a franchise operation, and the location in Fort Smith is one such franchise, but the family's commitment to quality has paid off: the tamales, chili, and steaks are still mouthwatering.

Since we split our steak and fries, a small order of tamales with chili, cheese, and onions, and a couple of iced teas, our pre-tax tab was $54.00. Avalara tells us the sales tax for this part of Fort Smith is a combined rate of 9.5% (6.5% Arkansas State Sales Tax, 1.0% Sebastian County Sales Tax, and 2.0% Fort Smith Sales Tax). That's $5.13 in sales tax for a total bill of $59.13 (see the Avalara calculator below).

We just left $73.00 on the table to pay the bill and provide a gratuity for our server.

A few paragraphs back, I discussed a couple of lawmen that Judge Parker appointed to serve in the Indian Territory. In other words, to track down outlaws in what is now Oklahoma, and there were plenty to track down.

Before Oklahoma statehood in 1907, my home state was comprised two regions: the Oklahoma Territory and the Indian Territory. The complexity of jurisdictions prevented local officials from taking action against the growing number of outlaws who saw "these Territories" as a safe haven from justice. The 'lighthorsemen' (local tribal lawmen) couldn't arrest non-tribal members, and the local sheriffs had no authority on tribal lands, nor with tribal members. Many of the winding boundaries between the tribal nations and public lands were ripe for thieves, murderers, and rustlers.

The Territories also proved to be a killing ground for Judge Parker's Deputy Marshals. Chris Madsen, Bill Tilghman, and Heck Thomas were noteworthy members of Parker's 'Guardsmen' who set out into the Territories in search of the most vile gangs. Tilghman, who at one time was the Marshal of Dodge City, Kansas, never gained the notoriety of his associates, Wyatt Earp and Bat Masterson; however, he did gain recognition for capturing the outlaw Bill Doolin and members of his gang, some of who were killed during the attempt to capture him.

At the time of Doolin's capture, Tilghman was accompanied by U.S. Deputy Marshal Chris Madsen, who had a shootout with Dan 'Dynamite' Clifton and Richard ‘Little Dick' West. West, who had also been part of the Jennings Gang, was one of the gang members killed during Doolin's capture. Deputy Madsen would later be appointed U.S. Marshal for the entire State of Oklahoma and, in his later years, served as Oklahoma City's Chief of Police before his retirement.

Deputy Marshal Tilghman would also serve as the Police Chief of Oklahoma City in the years following the end of his commission from Judge Parker. Unfortunately, while serving as City Marshal of Cromwell, Oklahoma, after coming out of retirement to do so, he was shot and killed by a drunken prohibition agent in 1924. The prohibition agent was obviously too busy sampling the illegal whiskey he confiscated to abide by the city ordinances of Cromwell. 

The days of 'western justice' were dangerous to say the least, in fact, more than sixty Deputy U.S. Marshals were killed while trying to apprehend more than 6,000 criminals in early Oklahoma. 

One of the places that served as a way stop for both outlaw and lawman in the Territories was the store of J.J. McAlester, an early entrepreneur who later became a notable politician. You may have seen this place depicted in western movies like True Grit (both adaptations) and the Outlaw Josie Wales. 

McAlester, his family and store would become the foundations for McAlester, Oklahoma. In close association with its outlaw past, the city is home to the Oklahoma State Penitentiary, which was built in 1908. Unfortunately, there are no old photographs of the original McAlester's store/home. As J.J. McAlester's wealth grew so did his residence and store. He separated the two and built a single story house around the original cabin, later he would build multiple additions to his family residence.

Before the prison, most convicted Oklahoma felons were sent to the Kansas Penitentiary, but when Oklahoma became a state in 1907, one of the first authorizations approved by the legislature was for the construction of a prison, and where better to put it than what has seemingly been the center of the outlaw haven? So it was that fifty inmates from Kansas were returned to McAlester to begin construction of the prison while living in temporary facilities.

U.S. Federal Jail (Oklahoma State Penitentiary shortly after completion of construction. Source: McAlester News 

Many of those early felons chosen to do the work had come from the area surrounding McAlester and had worked in the coal mines after the mineral had been discovered in the 1870s.

Italian immigrants were among the thousands of workers who came from near and far to work in the coal mines. While they were hard workers, many were shunned by other ethnic groups in the McAlester area. As a result, they moved to an area just east of town. One of them, Pete Piegari, started working in the mines when he was just eleven years old. Ten years later, one of his legs was crushed during a cave-in, leaving him unable to work the mines.

To support himself, Pete brewed and sold 'Choc Beer', a drink which the Choctaw Indians brewed and traded to the McAlesters, who sold it out of their store. Soon thereafter, Pete realized he could sell meatball or Italian sausage sandwiches to coal miners and prison workers who would stop at his back door on their way to and from work. Twelve years later, Pete moved to a new home and opened most of the ground floor as a dining area. Today, Pete's Place is still operating at the exact same location.

The original 'Pete's Place' : Source Pete's Place 120 S West 8th Street, Krebs, Oklahoma (918-423-2042)

If you have wondered why we seemingly transitioned from old west criminals in Oklahoma to their capture and incarceration in McAlester, and then to someplace called Pete's Place, it just happens that Pete's is the center of Oklahoma's "Little Italy," and that's our next meal stop.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                   "Pete Piegaria" Source: Pete's Place 120 S West 8th Street, Krebs, Oklahoma (918-423-2042)

It's been one hundred years since Pete moved into his restaurant home and started serving authentic Italian food. For four generations, the Piegari family has been serving up some of the finest family-style food you will ever put in your mouth, all with some Oklahoma favorites to accompany Italian traditions like Spaghetti, Meatballs, Sausage, Ravioli, and Antipasto. And, Pete's still serves their original 'Choc Beer.'
For dinner, we are going to split the steak and lamb fries, which come with Pete's spaghetti, meatballs, ravioli, salad, antipasto, and garlic bread. We will also order an extra Italian dinner, which includes all the side dishes as a meal in itself; that way, there will be plenty to eat.

Source: Pete's Place 120 S West 8th Street, Krebs, Oklahoma (918-423-2042)

Didn't I say plenty?

The only problem with this place is having enough room in the car for all the take-home containers you will have after you've spent 90 minutes eating yourself full to the brim.

And the cost of this place is minimal compared to other so-called old world Italian restaurants. $19.25 for the extra Italian meal, $37.50 for the steak and lamb fries we split, plus a couple of $4.50 drinks for a total of $65.75. Avalara tells me that our sales tax should be $6.58 because the sales tax rate here is 10% (4.5% Oklahoma sales tax, 1.5% Pittsburg County sales tax, 4% Krebs sales tax).

Krebs City's sales tax is high because there isn't much else besides Italian restaurants, most of which are family members related to Pete, that generate the revenue to provide city services.

I consider this place to be one of the best, if not THE best, place to eat in all of Oklahoma. So, I'm not only happy to have been able to dine at Pete's one more time, but to hand over a $100 bill and be on my way.

While I feel like I need a four-hour nap, our trip doesn't allow for that. We are going to head south down Highway 69, which becomes Highway 75 south of Atoka, Oklahoma. From there, we continue southwest to McKinney, Texas, then west to Denton. At Denton, we take Interstate 35 West to Fort Worth, which is our next 'Old West Justice Trail' stop.

In the old west, Fort Worth's Hell's Half Acre was a magnet for outlaws and gamblers, and jails were no deterrent. A significant reason was that it didn't take long for a guard to 'turn his head the other way' or accidentally drop the cell key just outside the cell door if the bribe was big enough. Many a lawman looked the other way at the criminal element and criminal activities associated with the profiteering of saloons and brothels in this 'cattle town.'

In 1900, five men sat for a photograph by John Swartz in a parlor above John Sheehan's Fort Worth saloon, just a short distance from the area known as Hell's Half Acre. They had just come from the Washer Brothers clothier store, where they had acquired new felt derby hats. Quite calmly, Harry Longbaugh, Benjamin Kilpatrick, and Robert LeRoy Parker sat on chairs in the front row, while William Todd Carver and Harvey Logan stood behind them.

The Fort Worth Five, 1900 (aka: The Wild Bunch) Source: National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution (a 1982 gift of the Pinkerton's, Inc.)

As it turns out, Benjamin Kilpatrick was known by the moniker "The Tall Texan,” while Harvey Logan was called by his few friends and the law as "Kid Curry." Robert LeRoy Parker, also known as George Parker, was better known as "Butch Cassidy," and Harry Longbaugh was, of course, "The Sundance Kid." William Todd Carver, sometimes called Todd Carver and sometimes called "News Carver," was the least known of this group at the time. But the group as a whole was very well known as "The Wild Bunch."

Photographer Swartz proudly hung a copy of the picture he had made for himself in the downstairs window of his shop. Apparently, a Railroad Detective by the name of Fred Dodge saw the picture while outside his favorite saloon and wired the Pinkerton Agency that he had a photograph of the gang, in hopes of garnering part of the reward money for their identification.

Source: Pinkerton's, Inc. Archives

Wanted circulars (like the one issued by the Pinkerton's as shown above) featuring the men's headshots, taken from the original photograph, were circulated across the western states, Mexico, and South America. Soon thereafter, the Wild Bunch split up, but Butch and Sundance moved to Bolivia, where they were finally gunned down in an ambush by the Bolivian military police in the small village of San Vincente in 1909. Reportedly, for each of the two pistols Butch and Sundance had, the Bolivian forces had 8 rifles, or so the story goes.

After a bloody story like that, how does a rare Buffalo Burger sound? While you might have heard the place to go is the Lonesome Dove, that's way too fancy for real cowboys and cowgirls. We’re headed over to Forth Worth's Hopdaddy Burger Bar. As for me, I'm having a Bison El Diablo burger featuring a 1/2-pound grass-fed, pasture-raised bison meat patty, Tillamook pepper jack cheese, jalapeños and habaneros, caramelized onions, spicy salsa verde, chipotle aioli, lettuce and tomato. Well, my companion is a bit of a sissy, so she is having a Buffalo Bill Burger: a single bison patty, blue cheese spread, bacon slices, buffalo sauce, and lettuce, tomato, and onion.

Source: Hopdoddy Burger Bar 2300 West 7th Street, Suite 140, Fort Worth, Texas 76107 (817) 290-2337

We are splitting an order of sweet potato fries and a couple of drafts. So, the total, pre-tax bill is $54.25. Avalara tells us that the sales tax should be $4.48 (6.25% Texas State sales tax, 1% Fort Worth sales tax, 0.5% Fort Worth Crime Control sales tax, 0.5% Fort Worth Metro Transit Authority sales tax, or 8.25% total).

I'm perfectly content with the numbers, the service, and the wonderful bison burgers, so I'm leaving $75.00 on the table.

From here, we continue southward and then west. When we pick up next time, we will be on the trail in San Antonio, which was home to the Texas Rangers of old, then out to Langtry, TX where "Judge Roy Bean" held Court as ‘the Law West of the Pecos' and we will try out best to separate the truth of his goings on verses the dramatic fiction concerning his life.

We will then proceed northwesterly till we reach Lincoln County, NM, home of the infamous Lincoln County War and "Billy the Kid." Then southwesterly again until we reach the final stop on our Old West Justice Trail… Tombstone, AZ, where the Earps fought the "Cowboys," a criminal group at the OK Corral.

You can count on the fact that we will be stopping a few more times for breakfast, lunch, and dinner at some of the best 'old west' food emporiums along the way, and paying sales tax all along the way.

Who knows, we might even find our way into a gunfight or two, I guarantee it will be an adventure.

And speaking of adventures, have you ventured into becoming a Avalara Accountant Pardner?  If you are looking to provide Sales Tax benefits for your clients who are repeatedly running into issues with the taxing authority saying they are out of compliance, you should introduce those clients to Avalara. Be sure to head to the Avalara Accountant Partner website for more information on partnering to benefit your clients and your practice. By the way, tell them, "Murph sent ya."

Till next month, "happy trails to you, until we meet again."