March 31, 1923- Captain George W. Arrington, one of the greatest Texas Rangers on record, died on this date on his ranch. He was born in Greensboro, Alabama on 23 December 1844. He fought for the Confederacy in Mosbys Rangers a unit that never surrendered after Lee did, but did disband. Following the Civil War, Arrington joined other Confederate soldiers and went to Mexico, offering his services to the doomed Emperor Maximilian and then moved on to seek adventure in Central America before returning to the U.S. in 1867. He eventually moved to Texas and joined the Texas Rangers in the early 1870s, fast rising through the ranks until he was appointed a captain. Arringtons territory was the Panhandle of Texas, then one of the worst nightmares for any lawmen. The area was overrun with hostile Indians and hundreds of hard case outlaws. Like the Mounties, always getting their man, he would track fugitives to both ends of the continent. He trailed one wealthy cattle rustler all the way to New England, returning him to Texas secretly. Arrington left the Rangers in the early 1880s and became sheriff of Wheeler County, a post he kept for eight years before retiring to his Rocking Chair Ranch in 1890. The old lawman came out of retirement briefly to become sheriff for the same county in 1894 and during this time he was confronted by six tough drunken cowboys in a local saloon who dared him to throw them into jail. Arrington had a small jail and no deputy so he did the next best thing. The lawman handcuffed the six men to the bar rail and held them in custody for twenty-four uncomfortable hours, until all promised to leave town without creating further disturbances
Posted on: Mon, 31 Mar 2014 13:04:41 +0000
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