Grat Dalton As A Marshal In Fort Smith.
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The Fort Smith National Historic Site Where Grat Was A U.S Deputy Marshal.
First of all let me lay the grounds for which the Dalton’s as well as the other marshals of this time period had to work against. The Indian Territory which is now what we call Oklahoma in the year 1888 was estimated by the U.S. Attorney General that out of the 20,000 whites that had populated the territory only 5,000 were law abiding citizens! It was so bad in this area that it gave way to the phrase, ”There is no Sunday west of St. Louis-and no God west of Fort Smith.” This tells you what horrible conditions that they, the Dalton’s and other marshals as well as what few law abiding people who were trying to live and raise families, were under at that time. As far as being lawmen the Dalton’s certainly proved that they were very capable of doing the job and certainly took punishment from the terrible criminals in Indian Territory! Grat Dalton served as a U.S Deputy Marshal and took over this position when his brother Franklin Dalton was killed brutally just outside of Fort Smith, probably in the location of where Roland, OK is today, in the year 1887 by whiskey runners. After Franklin was murdered it was said that the brothers Grat, Bob, Emmett were set adrift. Franklin was looked up to very much by the boys he was also a strong advocate against capital punishment from what has been written on him. Being so against capital punishment and seeing prisoners hanged in Parker’s court, like Franklin was, it is sad that he himself would be a victim of brutality the way he was. In Emmett Dalton’s book “Beyond The Law”, written in 1918, Franklin was described on page 11, chapter two of this book,” He was our real leader, and after him was Bob. And it was as a direct result of his death that the future dark events occurred.” On many of Grat’s documentations, that are available at the Fort Smith National Historic Site, it states he lived here in Fort Smith. Many of the marshals lived in tents that were set up outside and around of the courthouse. This would have been very cold living conditions in the winter and very terrible in the summer with the heat and humidly. Also, the Arkansas River just being yards from the courthouse would have meant poisonous snakes where sometimes a problem being found in and around those tents at times! As with the Daltons many of the other marshals were never paid for their expenses for bring in outlaws. It is often amazing that anyone even stayed with this line of work in this time period seeing the horrible conditions that they were under. The pay for bring in one of the prisoners was only $2.00 and they had to be alive! In many cases it was very hard to bring these felons in that were very dangerous and vicious killers alive with out any problems. All in all I think that the Daltons certainly showed their strength in staying with this line of work for as long as they did and not receiving the pay they deserved for many of those prisoners brought in. I think that they certainly tried and tried hard to do their work and to do it well! There is certainly historical documentation that proves that the Dalton boys were very effective at being marshals in the Indian Territory at the time. Grat Dalton was shot in the arm and his partner William Moody was killed while trying to make an arrest in the Indian Territory in the year 1889. In the ”Fort Smith Elevator” dated 3/22/1889 it states that Grat Dalton, William Moody, both U.S Deputy Marshals, as well as the Indian Policeman William Burgess, Bud Heady and Bob Cox left Tulsa Creek Nation for the purpose of arrest of a Jeff Berryhill, which was one of the Wesley Barnett gang. Evidently Moody was in the lead of this group which rode up to where Berryhill was supposedly staying at the time rather fast. As soon as Moody pulled up to the door shots were fired from inside of the house fatally wounding Moody by entering the lower part of his heart. It is stated that after this happened a firing at once began and this is where Grat took his bullet to his left arm. Grat was left handed and this would have been his main arm for shooting but in many articles that I have read over the years states he was capable of shooting just as well from the other arm too.
No photos were ever taken of Grat with his badge on or of him as a marshal which is a shame. I always wanted to see him in one of the many famous line up shots that was taken at the time with his badge on or in a group shot. Grat didn't seem to get his photo taken that much in his life time. There are only three photos of him alive, that I know of, one was of him when he was young about the age of 24-25, which you can see on the home page here on this site, and the other two are when he was arrested for the Alila train robbery. All other photos of him are after the Coffeyville raid in 1892 when he was killed. Grat supposedly got into trouble for an incident that was described in the March 1890 "Indian Chieftain" it states, “Delonadale was belabored over the head with a six shooter a few days ago by Deputy Gratz Dalton, almost to insensibility.” This was alleged to be the reason that Gratton was dismissed from being a marshal. Even though he was dismissed as a marshal this wouldn't be the last time that he would see the courthouse and Judge Parker. There would be trouble for him later in Baxter Springs that would send him back to Fort Smith as a prisoner and spending time in a cell than out of one which he was accustom to.
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This letter was written by Gratton in October,1888. It is requesting a writ to be sent to Tulsa, OK. It is stating that a Andy Harris was assulted by a knife in the hands of a Tom Law. The assult was on September 15th, 1888 and Andy Harris was cut several times. Grat Dalton's signature is at the bottom of the letter. This was the only full letter,as a marshal, that was on record that I could find of Gratton's handwriting. The full letter goes as follows:
Tulsa. I.T. Oct 25/88 John Carroll U.S. Marshal Fort Smith, Ark Dear Sir There has been complaint made to me by Andy Harris a U.S. citizen (Collard) of being assulted with a knife in the hands of Tom Law (Collard) a U.S. citizen in the Indianm country of Western District of Arkansas on or about Sept. 15, 1888 and was cut several times. I seen the witness who is John Webber and he says that Tom Law assulted him. Have writ issued send to me at Tulsa, I.T.G. Dalton U.S.Dept.M
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This is the burial site of Judge Isaac C. Parker the "hanging judge" who is buried at the Fort Smith National Cemetery. His burial plot is located in section 9, row 0, grave no. 4000 there at the cemetery. His wife Mary is buried beside him there. The Fort Smith National Cemetery is located at 522 Garland Ave. & 6th Street in Fort Smith. This is the judge that Bob,Grat, Emmett and Franklin would have served under as marshals during their careers as law men. |