Henry F. Grammer (July 20, 1883 – June 14, 1923) was an American cowboy, bootlegger, and murderer from

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

. Grammer was among the perpetrators of the

Osage Indian murders The Osage Indian murders was a serial killing event that took place in Osage County, Oklahoma, United States, during the 1910s–1930s. Newspapers described the increasing number of unsolved murders and deaths among young adults of the Osage Nat ...

. He died in 1923 under suspicious circumstances during a federal investigation of these events. For his career as a cowboy, he was posthumously inducted into the

National Rodeo Hall of Fame The National Rodeo Hall of Fame was established by the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum in 1955. Located in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, U.S., the Hall was created to celebrate the contributions of cowboys and cowgirls from around the world. ...

in 2000.

Early life and conviction

Henry Grammer was born on July 20, 1883, near

Marlin, Texas Marlin is a city in Falls County, Texas, United States. Its population was 5,462 at the 2020 census. Since 1851, it has been the county seat of Falls County. Marlin has been given the nickname "The Hot Mineral Water City of Texas" by the ...

where he was raised. By age 15 both of his parents had died, and he began working in the Texas rodeo circuit. Around 1901, he first moved to the

Osage Nation The Osage Nation ( ) () is a Midwestern Native American nation of the Great Plains. The tribe began in the Ohio and Mississippi river valleys around 1620 A.D along with other groups of its language family, then migrated west in the 17th cen ...

(later

Osage County, Oklahoma Osage County () is the largest county by area in the U.S. state of Oklahoma. Created in 1907 when Oklahoma was admitted as a state, the county is named for and is home to the federally recognized Osage Nation. The county is coextensive with t ...

after Oklahoma statehood in 1907). In 1904, he was arrested in

Montana Montana ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North Dakota to the east, South Dakota to the southeast, Wyoming to the south, an ...

for murdering sheepshearer L.A. Houtaling in

. He was charged with murder, but convicted on a lesser charge of manslaughter and served three years in prison.

Rodeos

After his release, Grammer returned to Osage County. He participated in rodeos from

Fort Worth Fort Worth is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the county seat of Tarrant County, Texas, Tarrant County, covering nearly into Denton County, Texas, Denton, Johnson County, Texas, Johnson, Parker County, Texas, Parker, and Wise County, Te ...

, Texas to

Madison Square Garden Madison Square Garden, colloquially known as the Garden or by its initials MSG, is a multi-purpose indoor arena in New York City. It is located in Midtown Manhattan between Seventh Avenue (Manhattan), Seventh and Eighth Avenue (Manhattan), Eig ...

in New York City. He participated in the annual

Dewey, Oklahoma Dewey is a city in Washington County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 3,179 at the 2000 census and 3,432 at the 2010 census, an increase of 8 percent. It is located near the north side of Bartlesville. History In 1899, Jacob B ...

"Dewey Roundup" every year between 1908 and 1922. From 1909 to 1910, he traveled across

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a considerably smaller portion in the Northern Hemisphere. It can also be described as the southern Subregion#Americas, subregion o ...

touring with J. Ellison Carroll and the IXL Wild West Show. In 1912, he helped

Guy Weadick George Guy Weadick (February 23, 1885 – December 13, 1953) was an American cowboy, performer and promoter. He and his horse Cyclone quickly became well known in the Calgary area. Today, he is best known as the founder of the Calgary Stampede in ...

stage and participated in the first

Calgary Stampede The Calgary Stampede is an annual rodeo, fair, exhibition, and festival held every July in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. The ten-day event, which bills itself as "The Greatest Outdoor Show on Earth", attracts over one million visitors per year a ...

. In 1914, he toured in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

with the

101 Ranch Wild West Show The Miller Brothers 101 Ranch was a cattle ranch in the Indian Territory of Oklahoma before statehood. Located near modern-day Ponca City, it was founded by Colonel George Washington Miller, a veteran of the Confederate Army, in 1893.Hoy, JimC ...

. In 1916, at Weadick's Sheepshead Bay Stampede, he won the title "World Champion Steer Roper." From 1920 to 1922 he was a judge at the annual Fort Worth Fat Stock Show Rodeo.

Osage Indian murders

In the 1920s Grammer ran the

moonshine Moonshine is alcohol proof, high-proof liquor, traditionally made or distributed alcohol law, illegally. The name was derived from a tradition of distilling the alcohol (drug), alcohol at night to avoid detection. In the first decades of the ...

industry in

Osage County Osage County is the name of several counties in the United States: * Osage County, Kansas * Osage County, Missouri * Osage County, Oklahoma Osage County () is the largest county by area in the U.S. state of Oklahoma. Created in 1907 when Ok ...

. He employed many individuals who were also local thieves, robbers, and cattle rustlers. Writer

David Grann David Elliot Grann (born March 10, 1967) is an American journalist, a staff writer for ''The New Yorker'', and author. His first book, '' The Lost City of Z: A Tale of Deadly Obsession in the Amazon,'' was published by Doubleday in February 200 ...

alleged in his 2017 book on the murders that Grammer had ties to the Kansas City Mob. His operation included at least five stills and a small power plant to supply electricity. In August 1920, he was acquitted for the killing of Jim Berry, a ranch hand employed by his brother-in-law. Grammer had met rancher

William King Hale William King Hale (December 24, 1874 – August 15, 1962) was an American murderer and political and crime boss in Osage County, Oklahoma, who was responsible for the most infamous of the Osage Indian murders. He made a fortune through cattle ...

in 1909 when they competed in a rodeo together. When Rita and Bill Smith's house was blown up during the

, Grammer was Hale's alibi, as the pair had traveled to the Fort Worth Fat Stock Show Rodeo during the bombing.

Death and legacy

Grammer died in an automobile accident on June 14, 1923, when his

Cadillac Cadillac Motor Car Division, or simply Cadillac (), is the luxury vehicle division (business), division of the American automobile manufacturer General Motors (GM). Its major markets are the United States, Canada and China; Cadillac models are ...

spun out and flipped near

Shidler, Oklahoma Shidler is a city in Osage County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 328 in the 2020 census, a decline from the figure of 441 recorded in 2010. History Shidler was founded in December 1921 and named for Eugene S. Shidler, a Pawhuska ...

alleges

may have been involved in his death by tampering with the steering wheel and brakes. In 2000, Grammer was posthumously inducted into the

Representation in other media

He was portrayed by

Sturgill Simpson John Sturgill Simpson (born June 8, 1978) is an American country music singer-songwriter and actor. As of June 2024, he has released eight albums as a solo artist. Simpson's style has been met with critical favor and frequent comparisons to ou ...

in the 2023 film '' Killers of the Flower Moon'', about the Osage murders.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Grammer, Henry 1883 births 1923 deaths American people convicted of manslaughter American people acquitted of murder American prisoners and detainees American bootleggers American ranchers American robbers Criminals from Texas Contract killers Road incident deaths in Oklahoma Rodeo entertainers Perpetrators of the Osage Indian murders Prisoners and detainees of Montana