John Gardner (Texas Ranger)
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John Gardner (c. 1845–1926) was a Texas Ranger,
cowboy A cowboy is an animal herder who tends cattle on ranches in North America, traditionally on horseback, and often performs a multitude of other ranch-related tasks. The historic American cowboy of the late 19th century arose from the ''vaquero'' ...
, fighter of
Native Americans Native Americans or Native American usually refers to Native Americans in the United States. Related terms and peoples include: Ethnic groups * Indigenous peoples of the Americas, the pre-Columbian peoples of North, South, and Central America ...
, and trail boss who was the subject of a folklore song titled, "John Gardner's Trail Herd". It was often alleged that Gardner was a member of the Sam Bass Gang.Miller, Rick. Sam Bass & Gang. Austin, Tex: State House Press, 1999. He was the father of Joe Gardner, a noted World Roping Champion.


Biography

John E. Gardner was born in 1845 at
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, Louisiana. His father removed the family to
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 ...
. The Gardner family were known as cowboys and Indian fighters. The Gardner brothers all worked as cowboys on the Texas frontier. John and his brothers, Alex and Peter Gardner were hired as cowboys in Southwest Texas working ranches and driving cattle to the
Kansas Kansas ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the west. Kansas is named a ...
cowtowns. Gardner stated in a short autobiography that he was involved in many fights with Mexicans and Indians, but held back thinking it would "sound fishy these days". Gardner was a friend of the famous
outlaw An outlaw, in its original and legal meaning, is a person declared as outside the protection of the law. In pre-modern societies, all legal protection was withdrawn from the criminal, so anyone was legally empowered to persecute or kill them. ...
Sam Bass and it claimed that Bass recalled his friend Gardner while on his deathbed. Gardner was said to have been a gunman with the Sam Bass Gang during the 1870s robbing stagecoaches in the
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. Gardner was one of the first men to drive cattle into the
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along with the Collins brothers and Sam Bass. It was said that Gardner was involved in the Big Springs train robbery with the gang. Gardner later settled on a ranch in
Maverick County Maverick County is a County (United States), county located in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, its population was 57,887. Its county seat is Eagle Pass, Texas, Eagle Pass. The county was created in 1 ...
, Texas. He married and fathered children. The Texas folk song, "John Gardner's Trail Herd", described Gardner as a man who "would meet you on the square" and that he was the "biggest cow - thief" that ever roamed. Gardner's reputation as an outlaw is controversial, but he had been a Texas Ranger for three years. A neighbor described him as "big" and "hairy", and man who was kind and never allowed anyone to run over him. John Gardner died in 1926 from natural causes in
El Paso El Paso (; ; or ) is a city in and the county seat of El Paso County, Texas, United States. The 2020 United States census, 2020 population of the city from the United States Census Bureau, U.S. Census Bureau was 678,815, making it the List of ...
, Texas.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gardener, John (Texas Ranger) Members of the Texas Ranger Division 1926 deaths 1840s births