On this day, March 11, in 1884,Texas gunslinger Ben Thompson was ambushed in a Texas theater.
Thompson, a gambler, outlaw and occasional lawman, was considered one of the most spectacular pistoleers of the Old West. He personally knew Wyatt Earp, Doc Holliday and John Wesley Hardin. Bat Masterson said Thompson could outshoot them all.
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In 1882, Thompson, then the marshal of Austin, shot and killed vaudeville theater owner Jack “Pegleg” Harris in San Antonio. After a sensational trial, Thompson was acquitted and returned to Austin a hero. Two years later, Thompson visited the theater for a show.
From another theater box, gunfire erupted and killed Thompson. Residents of Austin and San Antonio engaged in a nasty debate after the slaying was ruled to be self-defense.
— Scott McCabe
