Died 21 December 1938 | ||
Born 1864 Ephraim, Utah Other names Matt Warner, Ras Lewis, The Mormon Kid Occupation Farmer, Cowboy, Rancher, Ferryman, Rustler, Bank Robber, Justice of the peace, Lawman, Bootlegger. Parent(s) Father: Patrick McCarty
Stepfather: William Antrim
Mother: Catherine Devine Relatives Brother: Joseph McCarty Other name Matt Warner, Ras Lewis, The Mormon Kid Books The Last of the Bandit Riders ... Revisited | ||
Willard Erastus Christianson, also known as Matt Warner, Ras Lewis, and The Mormon Kid, (1864 – December 21, 1938), was a notable figure from the American old west that was a farmer, cowboy, rancher, ferryman, rustler, bank robber, justice of the peace, lawman, and a bootlegger. He operated in the Robber's Roost area of Utah before teaming up with Butch Cassidy. While on the run from the law he married Rose Morgan. For a while he operated a cattle ranch in Washington's Big Bend Country. Later he operated a ranch on Diamond Mountain in Utah.
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Early life
The son of a Swedish farmer and a German mother who had come to Utah as Mormon Converts. During a fight as a teen in 1878 he thought he had killed a man and ran away from his parents home with the intention of becoming a cowboy. He instead became a rustler and earned the name the Mormon Kid.
Gunfights
Later life
After his release from prison, his wife had died, he remarried and settled in Carbon County, Utah. He ran for public office under his real name, Willard Erastus Christianson, and lost. He then had his name officially changed to alias Matt Warner, the name most people knew him by, and was elected justice of the peace and then served as a deputy sheriff. Later he worked as a night guard and detective in Price, Utah He died a natural death on December 21, 1938 at the age of seventy-four.