Burt Alvord
Burt Alvord | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | 1866 |
| Died | After 1910 |
| Nationality | American |
| Occupation(s) | Deputy Sheriff and outlaw |
| Criminal charge | Armed robbery |
Burt Alvord (1866-after 1910), or Burton Alvord, was a lawman and later outlaw of the Old West, who had witnessed the Gunfight at the O.K. Corral at age 15. He began working as a deputy under Cochise County Sheriff John Slaughter in 1886, but he turned to train robbery about the beginning of the 20th century.
Biography
Alvord was an capable lawman and tracker, and he assisted in the capture and or killing of several rustlers and outlaws between 1886 and 1889. However, his reputation suffered when he became an alcoholic. Alvord frequented saloons in and around Tombstone, and began to associate with gamblers and even outlaws. When Sheriff Slaughter reprimanded him, he quit.
Alvord worked as a lawman in several towns in the 1890s, including Fairbank, Arizona and Pearce, Arizona. In the late 1890s, Alvord turned to crime and joined outlaws Billy Stiles and "Three Fingered Jack" Dunlop. Together, they committed several armed robberies in Cochise County, Arizona. Alvord and Stiles were captured in 1899, but they managed to escape. On February 15, 1900, Dunlop was killed by lawman Jeff Milton during a train robbery attempt in Fairbank, Arizona. Gang member Bravo Juan Yoas was wounded. Later that year, Alvord himself was captured and taken to Tombstone. Billy Stiles went to Tombstone and wounded the deputy on duty, allowing Alvord and 24 other prisoners to escape.
In 1902, Alvord assisted Arizona Rangers Captain Burton C. Mossman in capturing the Mexican bandit Augustine Chacon, in exchange for part of the reward money and a reduced sentence. Chacon was hung at Solomonville, but Alvord decided not to surrender after all.[1][2]
Alvord and Stiles returned to crime, now pursued by the Arizona Rangers. They were captured in December, 1903, but again managed to escape. Alvord decided fake their deaths using the bodies of two Mexicans. They sent the bodies to Tombstone, with the news that they had both been killed. However, an examination of the bodies showed it was not the wanted men.
The Arizona Rangers finally pursued them into Mexico, trapping them near Naco in February 1904. The outlaws resisted, but they were captured after they had been wounded. Alvord spent the next two years in Yuma prison. After his release, he sailed traveled for South America. He was last seen in 1910 working as a canal employee. His last years are unknown.
In 1955, Alvord and Stiles were portrayed by Chris Drake and Paul Sorensen in an episode of the syndicated television series, Stories of the Century, starring Jim Davis.[3]
See also
References
- ^ Raine, pg. 74-77
- ^ Wilson, pg. 45
- ^ "Stories of the Century: "Burt Alvord", January 2, 1955". Internet Movie Data Base. Retrieved September 15, 2012.
- Sifakis, Carl. Encyclopedia of American Crime, New York, Facts on File Inc., 1982
- Burton Alvord, lawman and outlaw
- Wilson, R. Michael (2005). Legal Executions in the Western Territories, 1847-1911: Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Kansas, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Dakota, Utah, Washington and Wyoming. McFarland. ISBN 978-0-7864-4825-8.
- Raine, William MacLeod (1905). Pearson's magazine: Carrying Law into the Mesquite. Pearson Publishing Co.