When frontier towns debated which gunman was the most dangerous, the name Bill Longley carried as much weight as Billy the Kid or Jesse James. Described as cold-blooded, unpredictable, and exceptionally quick on the draw, Longley built a reputation that made him one of the most feared figures of the American Old West. William Preston Longley was born on October 6, 1851, near Mill Creek in Austin County, Texas. He was the sixth of ten children born to Campbell and Sarah Longley.
When he was two, the family moved to a farm near Old Evergreen in what is now Lee County, Texas. Growing up in this rural setting, Longley became familiar with firearms at an early age, a common skill for boys on the frontier. By the end of the Civil War in 1865, Longley was approaching adulthood. He stood six feet tall, had a slender build, and was known for his jet black hair.
Texas during this period was undergoing dramatic changes under the Reconstruction Acts of 1867, which placed the state under military authority. Federal troops enforced new laws, creating social and political tension that many residents resented. It was during this unsettled time that Longley left school and drifted into a less structured lifestyle, spending time in frontier towns and engaging in drinking and aimless travel. In December 1868, three formerly enslaved men named Green Evans, Prior Evans, and another identified only as Ned passed through Evergreen on their way to visit friends farther south.
They encountered Longley and a few companions. According to later accounts, Longley and the others confronted the travelers and directed them into a nearby dry creek bed. When Green Evans attempted to leave, Longley fired multiple shots, killing him. Longley and his companions then searched Evans’s belongings.
The other two men were able to ride away. Longley was held responsible for the death, though he later claimed that others also fired their weapons and that he should not bear the blame alone. Some accounts alleged that Green Evans may have been affiliated with the Texas State Police, but this detail is uncertain since that organization was not formally established until 1870, two years after the incident. After leaving his family’s farm, Longley drifted across Texas, spending time in saloons and becoming acquainted with professional gambler Phil Coe, who would later be associated with Wild Bill Hickok.
By 1869, Longley had partnered with his brother-in-law, John Wilson. The pair traveled through southern Texas committing unlawful acts against local settlers. Among their crimes was the killing of a freedman named Paul Bryce in Bastrop County, after which they took his horses. Reports also suggest that a freed woman in Evergreen lost her life under similar circumstances involving the pair.
In March 1870, federal authorities issued a reward of $1,000 for the capture of Longley and Wilson, a significant sum reflecting the seriousness of their crimes. Longley later claimed Wilson was killed by outlaws in Brazos County in 1870, but historical records conflict with this version. Alternative sources indicate Wilson may have actually died in 1874 in Falls County, Texas, highlighting how some details of Longley’s life were altered or exaggerated over time. Seeking to avoid mounting legal trouble, Longley headed north.
By May 1870, he had joined a group of gold seekers departing from Cheyenne, Wyoming, headed for the Black Hills of what is now South Dakota. The region was protected under a treaty with the Sioux Nation, which prohibited non-native mining. When a US cavalry unit discovered the expedition, it was quickly disbanded. On June 22, 1870, Longley enlisted in the US Army, joining Company B of the Second Cavalry Regiment under a five-year contract at Camp Stambaugh in Wyoming Territory.
The discipline of military life did not suit him. Within two weeks, he left his post without permission. He was brought back and sentenced to hard labor with restraints. Though his sentence called for two years of labor, he was released after four months and returned to active duty.
Despite his difficulty adjusting to military expectations, Longley’s skill with firearms did not go unnoticed. He was frequently assigned to hunting parties that supplied the post with fresh game. Nevertheless, his dissatisfaction persisted, and in May 1872, Longley deserted for a second time. Little is known about Longley’s whereabouts for the rest of 1872.
By February 1873, he had returned to Texas. Soon after, he was accused in connection with the death of a freedman in Bastrop County. He sought refuge with his family in Bell County, but this offered little protection. During the summer of 1873, Sheriff J.
J. Fain of Mason County arrested Longley and transported him to Austin, hoping to claim the federal reward. When state officials failed to honor the payment, Fain released him. Some accounts suggest Longley’s release may have been facilitated by his uncle, Alexander Preston Longley, who had traveled from California, possibly offering compensation for Bill’s freedom.
On March 31, 1875, tragedy struck closer to home. Longley killed Wilson Anderson, a boyhood friend from Evergreen. The act was reportedly prompted by a long-standing family grievance. According to some sources, another uncle, Caleb B.
Longley, believed Anderson was responsible for the earlier death of his son Kyle and allegedly urged Bill to take matters into his own hands. Afterward, Longley fled north with his brother, James Stockton Longley. James was arrested and stood trial for involvement in Anderson’s death but was later acquitted. A fresh reward was issued for Bill Longley’s capture.
As law enforcement pressure mounted, Longley moved from town to town, often adopting false names. He briefly worked on a cotton farm, attempting to lay low. In November 1875, he was once again on the run following the death of George Thomas, a hunting companion who reportedly died after a heated argument and physical altercation. In January 1876, Longley was involved in another deadly encounter in De Witt County, targeting Lou Shroyer.
What began as an attempted ambush turned into an armed standoff. Shroyer managed to shoot Longley’s horse, but Longley ultimately prevailed. Notably, this was the only documented instance in which someone Longley targeted fought back. Longley then made his way to East Texas, securing work as a sharecropper for a local preacher named William Arloy.
For a short time, he appeared to be settling into a more stable routine. That peace ended when Longley found himself in a rivalry with Arloy’s nephew over the attention of a young woman. Longley allegedly assaulted his romantic competitor. He was jailed but soon escaped.
He later blamed the reverend for his incarceration. On June 13, 1876, Longley returned to the preacher’s farm and confronted Arloy, who was tending to his daily chores. The confrontation ended in the preacher’s death. Arloy is believed to have been the final person killed by Longley.
Following this, Longley reportedly helped two acquaintances, Jim and Dick Sanders, escape from prison in Grayson County, disarming Deputy Matt Shelton during the incident. Nearly a year later, Shelton confirmed he had encountered Longley during the jailbreak. Longley fled east to Louisiana. On June 6, 1877, law officers located Longley living under the assumed name Bill Jackson in De Soto Parish, Louisiana.
Nacogdoches County Sheriff Milt Mast along with two deputies apprehended him without resistance. He was taken back to Texas to face legal proceedings. In Lee County Court, Longley stood trial for the death of Wilson Anderson. The court found him guilty and sentenced him to capital punishment.
Longley appealed, but his request was denied in March 1878. On October 11, 1878, the sentence was carried out in Giddings, Texas, not far from Evergreen, where Longley had spent his childhood. Today, he is buried in Giddings City Cemetery, where a historical marker recognizes his life and legacy in Texas history. Though Longley was confirmed to have taken part in seven fatal encounters, he later claimed responsibility for as many as 32 deaths, most of them, he said, involving African American individuals.
However, many of these claims remain unverified, and historians view them with skepticism. Years after Longley’s execution, his father, Campbell Longley, publicly challenged the official story. He asserted that his son’s hanging had been staged and that Bill had actually escaped punishment. This claim drew attention for decades.
To address lingering doubts, researchers confirmed the location of Longley’s grave in Giddings. In 2000, the grave was exhumed and the remains were transferred to the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, DC, for scientific analysis. Forensic experts conducted DNA testing and performed a facial reconstruction based on the skull. In June 2001, it was officially announced that the remains were indeed those of Bill Longley, settling the long-standing rumors.
Many stories about Longley have developed over time, but few can be confirmed by records from his lifetime. A significant number originate from accounts Longley shared while incarcerated in Giddings in 1877. Some are likely exaggerated or untrue, while others may have a basis in fact but lack independent evidence. Longley’s tendency to embellish seems partly driven by a wish to match the notoriety of John Wesley Hardin, another well-known Old West figure.
Longley reportedly reacted with anger upon learning of his death sentence, while Hardin, convicted of multiple offenses, received a 25-year prison term instead of capital punishment. One clearly disproven tale Longley shared was about being captured and lynched in 1869 alongside a member of Cullen Baker’s outlaw group. According to Longley, he survived after a shot cut the rope during his hanging and then joined Baker’s gang. However, Baker had already died and his group had disbanded by that time, making the story inaccurate.
There is no contemporary evidence supporting claims that Longley killed a Black militiaman in Old Evergreen in 1866 after an insult to his father, nor that he shot eight Black individuals in Lexington in 1867 to settle a dispute over a horse race bet. Longley would have been only 14 and 15 years old during these alleged events. Whether true or not, these stories reflect the racial attitudes Longley expressed. He admitted he was taught to believe such views, highlighting the prejudices of his upbringing and era.
His claim of killing a trail boss named Rector while traveling to Wyoming in 1870 also remains unverified. Longley is traditionally believed to have carried a pair of Dance . 44 revolvers, Texas-made copies modeled after the Colt Dragoon pistols. However, for the two confirmed killings of Wilson Anderson and William Arloy, Longley used a shotgun, the only cases where the specific weapon is clearly documented.
Longley’s legend has also lived on in popular culture. He appears as a figure in Louis L’Amour’s 1959 novel The First Fast Draw, and is a central character in the novel Pistolero by James Carlos Blake. On television, Longley was portrayed by Douglas Kennedy in a 1954 episode of Stories of the Century, and by Steve McQueen in a 1958 episode of Tales of Wells Fargo. He was also the title character in The Texan, a CBS series starring Rory Calhoun that aired from 1958 to 1960, depicting him as a noble wanderer in a more romanticized version of his story.
Bill Longley’s name still echoes through the legends of the Old West, not just as a deadly gunman, but as a symbol of the brutal and chaotic era that shaped America’s frontier.
