Cause of death Gunshot Other names The Tall Texan Criminal penalty 15 years Name Ben Kilpatrick | Nationality American Occupation Cowboy Conviction(s) Robbery | |
Allegiance | ||
Ben Kilpatrick (January 5, 1874 – March 12, 1912) was an American outlaw during the closing days of the American Old West. He was a member of the Wild Bunch gang led by Butch Cassidy and Elzy Lay. He was arrested for robbery and served about 10 years of his 15-year sentence. Upon his release from prison he returned to crime and was killed by a hostage during a train robbery.
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Early life
Kilpatrick was born in Coleman County, Texas, in 1874, the third of nine children of a Tennessee-born farmer, George Washington Kilpatrick (or "Killpatrick"), by his wife, Mary, a native of South Carolina, according to the 1880 Federal Census.
He worked as a cowboy for a time in Texas and became acquaintances with Tom and Sam Ketchum and Bill Carver.
Outlaw life
After Cassidy's release from prison, he and Lay organized the Wild Bunch gang, and the gang began the most successful train robbing career in history. Kilpatrick is thought to have been a friend of Lay, but he may have had minimum or no involvement with crimes involving Butch Cassidy or the Sundance Kid. Kilpatrick became involved with Kid Curry, but it is uncertain where or how they met.
Escape
As was their trait, the gang would commit their robberies, then break up heading in several different directions, meeting up some time later in the Hole in the Wall hideout in Wyoming. He and Bullion made their way to Nashville, Tennessee, where they met up with Kid Curry and his girlfriend Della Moore. Moore was arrested shortly thereafter for passing money traced back to one of the gangs robberies.
Arrest
Kilpatrick was captured on November 5, 1901, in St. Louis, Missouri and received a 15-year sentence.
Death
He was released from prison in June 1911. On March 12, 1912, Kilpatrick and outlaw Ole Hobek were killed while robbing a train near Sanderson, Texas. The duo is thought to have participated in several train robberies outside of Memphis in November 1911 and February 1912, as well as other small robberies in West Texas.