By the time William Horseman was appointed city marshal of Caldwell, Kan., on April 12, 1880, the town had already seen eight seasons of Texas trail cattle along the famous Chisholm Trail. 1880 would be the ninth. However, in eight of those nine years the town had operated without an official government.

Trail herds had been passing by as early as 1867 when the Chisholm Trail first pointed the way to Abilene, Kan. Caldwell was platted in 1871, just above the Indian Nations two miles north of the Kansas line.

As trail towns go Caldwell was well on the way to a wicked reputation long before the town was ever incorporated. City fathers finally got around to incorporating the town in July of 1879. Incorporation gave the city the authority to hire an official city marshal.

The first city marshal was a fearless two-gun man by the name of George Flatt. Flatt was also in partnership with William Horseman in “an elegant saloon” one door south of the City Hotel. But soon the partners were arguing. In fact, Flatt gained enemies regularly as he played no favorites in upholding law and order in Caldwell.

Lawmen often served in dual positions on the frontier and Flatt was no exception. The 1880 census listed his occupation as “Detective S.W. D.”, a vague position that has eluded material documentation.

Even the mayor was not above the law while Marshal Flatt was on the job. On Nov. 22, 1879, Mayor Cash Hollister was charged with assaulting J. Frank Hunt. Hollister pled guilty and was fined $1 plus court costs. Two days later the tables were turned as Hunt was up before the judge on assault charges against mayor Hollister. He also pled guilty.

Apparently, Hollister continued to support Marshal Flatt, but a little over four months later, April 6, 1880, Mike Meagher was elected mayor. Meagher had served as city marshal in Wichita before coming to Caldwell to open a saloon and gambling hall.

Meagher fired Flatt and appointed Flatt’s hostile former partner to the position. Adding to the insult Meagher also added Frank Hunt to the force as a “deputy policeman”.

Lawmen continued to be frustrated with Flatt as he continued to openly wear a pistol. Caldwell’s “no gun” law would normally have prohibited Flatt from carrying a weapon, however as a recognized detective he could not be disarmed. Additionally, Flatt was steadfast in his belief that his life was in danger from enemies made as Caldwell City Marshal.

From all accounts those enemies were not the regular citizens, but the men that had recently seized power.

On July 19, 1880, Flatt had a run-in with Deputy Hunt in one of the dance halls. The fight was broken up and each went his way.

Flatt was on a “spree”.

Drinking heavily, he passed from the Red Light Dance Hall to the Kentucky Saloon. He finally went to his room in the back of his IXL Saloon. Later that night Flatt left the IXL Saloon in the company of Sam Rogers and Charlie Spear.

The men had decided to go out for a late-night lunch. Flatt was feeling pretty good at the time and told his companions that he was “Cock of the walk of Caldwell.” That was the last he ever said. Suddenly a flash of light split the night! Flatt fell hard to the ground as Rogers and Spear dived for cover. Shots continued to ring out as bullets ricocheted over Flatt’s motionless body. Rogers finally cried out in desperation,“Let up, the man is dead or killed!”

The mayor and his lawmen were on the scene immediately after the shooting let up. Friends of George Flatt were immediately suspicious. The gunfire had come from two directions, one of which was the same direction that Mayor Mike Meagher and his men emerged from. Curiously, no one had seen any evidence of the assassins.

On June 25, 1880, six days after Flatt’s death, the entire police force along with Mayor Meagher was arrested and charged with complicity in the killing of George Flatt. Nothing came of the accusations and the men were soon released. Accusations continued to persist that Deputy Hunt had played a central part in the killing leading to Hunt’s death at the hands of an unknown assassin on Oct. 8, 1880. Horseman was the only man still standing for the murder of George Flatt in April of 1881. He was acquitted on the 22nd.

Interestingly, no one ever asked how it came to be that George Flatt’s assassins were prepared to kill him at a second’s notice. He had gone home to bed but was persuaded to go out for something to eat by his “friends”. From all appearances everyone on the street that night knew George Flatt was a dead man walking his last steps on The Way West.

“The Cowboy,” Jim Gray is author of the book Desperate Seed: Ellsworth Kansas on the Violent Frontier, Ellsworth, Kan. Contact Kansas Cowboy, 220 21st Road, Geneseo, Kan. Phone (785) 531-2058 or kansascowboy@kans.com.