I so enjoyed reading Rosemaryt's old story, thought I would post about one of my ancestors.

William Riley Seaboalt, known as Riley to family, oldest son of W.R Seaboalt ( my gr-gr-grandfather) decided to go back to Arkansas, from Texas, to visit with relatives. Wearing a new pair of fancy high heeled boots and riding a fine white mare, he set out for Arkansas in November of 1874.During his travels he met up with another traveler, Daniel Evans. They rode together for protection as they crossed the Red River and entered the Indian Territory.

Unknown to William Riley Jr, Evans was a member of one of the most notorious outlaw gangs of the "Old West"

John F . Simpson, U.S. Marshal in Eufaula, Creek Nation, received word that a local Indian had discovered the body of a young white man at a camp site. Upon investigating, Simpson found the body to be wearing socks, but no boots, lytng face down with a bullet hole in the back of the head, and carried a pocket book with the name SEABOALT inscribed within. Nearby he found a pair of freshly discarded worn-out shoes, obviously left by the killer who had taken Riley's boots, horse and saddle. Simpson tracked Evans to his brothers house and arrested him.

Evans was given a quick trial in either late December 1874 or early January 1875. After a hung jury, Evans was returned to his jail cell. By now W.R Seaboalt Sr heard of his son's death and traveled to Fort Smith Arkasas for the re-trial in May, 1875. The judge was Isaac C, Parker, "The Hanging Judge". Willaim Riley Seaboalt Sr took the witness stand and testified that Evans, sitting in the defendant's chair, was still wearing the very boots, which he had given his son. He said that at the time he purchased the boots for his son, he had a similar pair made for himself. Where upon, he raised his pants leg revealing the boots he was wearing to be identical to those on the defendant. When challenged by the defense attorney to prove that the boots Evans was wearing were indeed the same pair of boots he had given to his son, William explained that shortly after receiving his son's boots, a heel came off of the left boot and he had used three horseshoe nails to drive it back on. Evans was asked to remove his left boot and sure enough, the three horseshoe nails were reealed to the jury. Evans was found guilty and sentenced to be hanged from the gallows on September 3, along with seven other others. The hanging got world wide attention, and gave Judge Parker his title of "The Hanging Judge"

This event was enacted, with some amount of Hollywood's freedom, in the Clint Eastwoods movie, "Hang 'Em High".