Town marshal had law-breaking past

There was plenty about Henry Brown's past that could be considered unsavory: He had ridden with Billy the Kid, stolen horses and fled New Mexico to avoid murder charges. But Brown didn't disclose his past to residents of Caldwell. They were looking for a lawman in June 1882 and were most impressed with the way he handled a gun. He was known throughout the Southwest as one of the quickest men on the trigger. And those were credentials enough for a rowdy Kansas cowtown that had seen four of its lawmen murdered shortly before his arrival. He was hired as an assistant marshal, then promoted to marshal. Town residents gave him a Winchester rifle on New Year's Day 1883. It was inlaid with gold and silver and inscribed: "Presented to City Marshall [sic] H.N. Brown for valuable services rendered in behalf of the Citizens of Caldwell, Kas." That was a stark contrast to his background. He was born in 1857 in Rolla, Mo., and raised by relatives after being orphaned. At age 17, he began drifting West. By the mid-1870s, he was in Lincoln County, N.M., where he met rancher John Tunstall and Billy the Kid and joined the Lincoln County War between ranchers and merchants accused of price gouging. The battle over local politics and economics escalated into cattle rustling, gunfights and court battles. Brown was one of the Regulators who fought on behalf of the ranchers against Lawrence Murphy and James Dolan, owners of Murphy & Dolan Mercantile and Banking...Wichita Eagle