Bon Homme County Vigilante Protection Society & William Albert "Kid" Wade the Horse Thief

During the late 1800's, horse and cattle theft became a serious problem in the Bon Homme County area. A vigilante 'protection society' existed in Bon Homme County to counteract cattle and horse rustlers: "Some thirty farmers of Bon Homme County have organized a horsethief protection society. Money was collected to defray expenses, all were sworn to secrecy, a captain was elected, and it was decided to hold semi-weekly meetings for the present (The Canton Advocate, April 15, 1880)."

The term vigilante comes from "Vigiles Urbani" or the nightwatchmen of Ancient Rome, who were tasked with fighting fires and keeping a lookout for runaway slaves and burglars. Vigilantes are self-appointed citizens who undertake law enforcement in their community without legal authority, typically because the legal agencies are thought to be inadequate.

William Albert "Kid" Wade, a member of the Pony Gang led by Middleton, once lived in Springfield and thieved in Bon Homme County.

William Albert ‘Kid’ Wade

Born 1862 (possibly in Canada). Died 1884 near Bassett, NE.

Perhaps the third of eleven children of John Wade of Scottish descent from New York and Deborah Wade of Irish descent from Canada. The family moved to the Bon Homme, DT area in 1874, residing for a time in Springfield, before moving to Holt County, NE. Significant migration and settlement occurred in the region during this time.1 Historians term this period the Dakota Boom.

A group of Springfield boys, in the spring of 1874 having just finished a term of school, got together, and decided their future was to be adventuresome. Rather than clerk in a store of take up farming, they would become outlaws. They would “steal stock and horses and sell them, taking care to keep out of the way of the law.” They formed two independent gangs but maintained contact with each other.

One gang chose for its field of operations the valleys of the James River and Firesteel Creek. This group ranged of the Wessington Hills and became known as the Firesteel Gang. They ranged between the Missouri River and the Big Sioux River.

The other gang concentrated its activity along the Missouri River in Dakota and the Niobrara River in Nebraska. This outlaw enterprise, known as the Niobrara Gang, was headed by Doc Middleton and later by Albert “kid” Wade. By 1878 the thieves had expanded their operation to include theft of cattle, mostly from men who had contracts with the government to provide beef for the Indian reservations.

In the summer of 1879, pursuit of horse thieves became focused on gangs operating along the Niobrara and Missouri rivers. Attention turned to a flamboyant outlaw from Texas, James B Riley, who went by the name “Doc Middleton.” While his headquarters was in Holt County, NE, his marauders ranged far into Dakota Territory, often targeting horses on Indian reservations. Among members of Middleton’s Niobrara Gang were Albert “Kid” Wade, John Hoyt, Andy Culbertson, and Ephriam “Eph” Weatherwax, the later known as the “Bon Homme County desperado.”

The youthful Weatherwax made news in the winter of 1876 when it was learned that he had eloped with a Bon Homme County girl named Luella Fitch. Her father was opposed to her marrying Weatherwax. But Luella was determined to wed her dashing beau, and one January night, while riding in her father’s wagon, “the girl who longed to be a bride” jumped out and vanished in the darkness.

Weatherwax made headlines again when arrested in March 1882 and jailed in Springfield. Once again, he eluded justice. Finally, Weatherwax was captured by vigilantes during the Christmas season of 1883 and was made to “stretch hemp.” His freedom-ranging days at an end, Weatherwax was left hanging from a “until the wolves are the flesh from his legs.”2

Vigilantes of the Niobrara Mutual Protective Association hung Albert “Kid” Wade from a telegraph pole near Bassett NE in 1884. None were ever identified or charged.

References:
1 Harold Hutton, Vigilante Days (Sage Books, Swallow Press, Chicago, IL, 1978) 7-114
2 Wayne Faneburst, Outlaw Dakota (Center for Western Studies, Augustana University, 2016) Chapter 15