Philip Houston Coe

PHILIP HOUSTON[4] COE (Philip Alexander Haddox[3], Rachel[2], Edward[1]) was born July 17, 1839, in the Coe Valley, near Gonzales, Texas. He enlisted with several Texas regiments during the Civil War. A private with the Gonzales Rebels, Twenty-Fifth Brigade, Texas Cavalry, under Captain L.M. Rayburn, he enlisted in May 1861 and was still with that unit in August 1861. In September 1861 he enlisted as a third lieutenant with Company E, Terry's Texas Rangers, Eighth Cavalry, also under Captain Rayburn. He resigned the same month. Confederate war records list him as having served as a second lieutenant with Company E. On March 24, 1862, he was enrolled for three years at Belmont, Gonzales County, by William L. Foster, and mustered in three days later at San Antonio. He served as a private in Foster's Company, which subsequently became Company D, Wood's Regiment, Texas Cavalry. A roster of Company F, Second Regiment, Texas Mounted Rifles, shows him as a first lieutenant, with a commission date of September 21, 1862. On December 11, 1862, he was transferred to William G. Tobin's Company (F), Colonel C.L. Pyron's Regiment, as a private. It was rumored that he was demoted for striking an officer. On February 2, 1863, he was admitted to the General Hospital in Houston for treatment of gonorrhea. He was released February 9 but readmitted March 2, the second time as a lieutenant.

Following the war he made his home for a time in Austin. He later joined Ben Thompson in Mexico to fight with Maximilian's forces. The pair was later engaged in gambling and business pursuits, including an enterprise in Abilene, KS, known as the Bull's Head Saloon.

Before settling at Abilene, Coe gained a reputation as a gambler and gunfighter along the cattle trails of the Old West. Often accused of cheating patrons at their watering hole, Coe and Thompson were the targets of Abilene Marshal James Butler ``Wild Bill'' Hickok's ire. Thompson left town in the fall of 1871, leaving ownership of the saloon to Coe.

Throughout the summer of 1871 there were rumors of bad blood between Coe and Hickok. Many were predicting a showdown between the two gunmen, and Coe had been heard to say that he would get Wild Bill before the frost. The showdown came on October 5, 1871.

On the evening of the above mentioned date, Coe and Hickok had been drinking in Abilene's Alamo Saloon with about fifty of Coe's Texas cattlemen friends when a fight erupted. Hickok, who had already earned his now immortal reputation as a pistoleer, had been serving as the marshal of Abilene since April 15.

There are conflicting reports of Coe's murder, but it apparently started when one of Coe's friends got drunk. Others claimed that Coe, a well-established Abilene gambler, and Hickok had been long at odds over the attentions of local prostitute Jessie Hazell. At any rate, Coe and the marshal were reportedly on good terms when one of the young Texans named Hardin got drunk and Coe took his pistol for fear of an accident. A short time afterward, a pistol shot was heard and Wild Bill went into the street to investigate the disturbance. Hickok asked who had fired the gun, at which Coe admitted that he had shot at a dog. With a no discharging of firearms within city limits edict in effect since June 24, the marshal made a comment about the pistol still in Coe's hand. Before Coe could answer, a friend called to him from one side and while his head was turned, Wild Bill drew a pistol and fired from a distance of about eight feet. Coe, with lightning speed, got off three rounds in the marshal's direction before falling into the arms of one of his friends with two holes through his stomach. Two of Coe's slugs passed through Hickok's coat, but did no personal damage. During the foray Hickok had ducked inside the Alamo and hid behind a door. Not realizing Coe was down, the marshal came back through the door of the saloon with guns blazing. In either an attempt to protect the downed gambler or an involuntary reaction, Deputy Mike Williams stepped in the line of Wild Bill's fire and took two slugs that killed him instantly. Williams was buried at Kansas City the following Sunday, with Wild Bill paying the funeral expenses out of his own pocket.

An eyewitness to the shooting gave a slightly different version than was reported in the newspapers. He was aware that Hickok had somehow incurred Coe's violent wrath and was planning to have him killed. His understanding was that Coe was going to get some of his friends drunk and when Hickok tried to arrest them, one of them would simply pull a gun and kill the marshal. He stated that Hickok was also aware of the plot.

The witness explained that he remembered well the evening of the final showdown, and was walking past Abilene's Gulf House when he met a gang of crazy men. Describing them as a drunken mob of about two hundred of Coe's friends going up and down the street with a loud roar, totally oblivious to anything in their path, he ran home and locked his family inside for fear that the group was out of control. The howling mob gathered around Marshal Hickok, who directed his comments to the leader of the gang, Phil Coe. Coe had his pistol drawn, at which Hickok drew his and leveled them at Coe. Without warning, Hickok fired a slug from each gun. He claimed that Mike Williams was accidentally killed by the first two shots when he rushed into the line of fire. Hickok then fired another round, with both bullets lodging in Coe's stomach. Hickok then faced the crowd with both guns still drawn and calmly said, If any of you want the balance of these pills, come and get them. Within five minutes the remaining members of the Coe faction dispersed. Hickok then got a preacher out of bed to go and pray for and with the dying Coe. He also agreed that Hickok paid for Williams' funeral.

After the shoot-out, Coe was taken to a nearby house where he lingered on in terrible agony. He felt certain that he would live, though, explaining to a friend that his father had been wounded in a similar manner and had recovered. He died on October 9, 1871. His body was returned by train to Brenham, TX, where burial was at Prairie Lee Cemetery. Hickok became a marked man.

Coe's death aroused the ire of the Texans. Some claimed he was a kind and generous hearted man well thought of by all who knew him. He had many friends among the Texans and cattle dealers about Abilene. Some held such loyalty to Coe that many predicted that we will probably soon hear of another tragedy in Abilene, referring to the expected revenge on Hickok by Coe's friends. Texas newspapers lambasted the affair, calling Hickok Wild Bill, the terror of the West, a notorious gambler and desperado. An Austin paper later in October recorded that 'Wild Bill,' the marshal of Abilene, shot and killed two of his policemen on the night of the 4th instant. This is the same man that killed Phil Coe, of this city, a few weeks ago. The gallows and the penitentiary are the places to tame such blood thirsty wretches as 'Wild Bill.' Texans in the Abilene area offered a large reward for anyone who would take Hickok's life.

Some of the good folks of Abilene held a different view of Coe. Theophilus Little, who owned the local lumber company, claimed that Coe's saloon was a low down gambling den, and Coe himself was a red mouthed, bawling thug -- plug ugly -- a very dangerous beast. Little delighted in Wild Bill's dispatch of Coe and stated he felt a great sense of relief when I learned that Phil Coe was dead. Little's feelings toward Coe were apparently the result of a $40 debt which Coe owed him. As the bill became overdue, Little went to Coe to request payment. Little stated that when he asked for the money Coe was very abusive and I was always afraid that he would burn me out. After Coe's death Little stated that the bill was never paid, but he was of no mind to go where he is to get it.

Hickok took the threats by Coe's friends seriously. Friends of Hickok reported that he began carrying a sawed-off shotgun for protection. Late in November 1871 an attempt was made on Hickok's life for the infamous killing as he traveled from Topeka to Abilene by train, but he escaped unscathed after learning of the plot and holding a gun on the conspirators while he left the train. On December 13, 1871, he was dismissed as Abilene town marshal.

The killing of Philip H. Coe left a blot on Hickok's reputation as a lawman and quickly took its place among the epic legends of the Old West. Coe was the last man Hickok killed. Feelings were so strong about the affair that when Hickok was murdered at Deadwood, South Dakota, August 2, 1876, by Jack McCall, the rumor was that it had been plotted by friends of Phil Coe.

Reproduced by permission.

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