Newton travels 151 years back in annual reenactment
Newton travels 151 years back in annual reenactment
The event recounts a gunfight more deadly than the OK Corral shootout.
NEWTON — Cruising through downtown Newton, one may see the various family-owned businesses, feel the temptation to parooze through the inventory of the various thrift stores, or get stuck at the railroad tracks for the 17th train of the day.
However, what many believe to be a sleepy small Kansas town of Mennonites has a red stain on its history; one of the deadliest massacres in the American Wild West — earning it the name of the “Wickedest Town in the West” — and Newton’s oldest cold case that remains unsolved 151 years later.
As the story goes, provided in a reenactment by the Harvey County Historical Museum, a shooting took place in 1872 Newton, two weeks before the infamous massacre. The two men involved were Mike McCluskie, a native Ohioan hired by the Santa Fe Railroad company as a lawman, and William “Bill” Bailey, a native Texan and cowboy who was another hired lawman by the SFR.
Keep in mind, “law” was a loser term for these men. The American Civil War had ended 7 years earlier, and on top of that, Kansas had only been a state for 11 years; both the federal and state governments were still focused on the Reconstruction of the Union, leaving much of the American West to enforce itself. McCluskie and Bailey allegedly began arguing over a local woman.
At one point, McCluskie reached for his revolver. Bailey was shot dead in the streets of Newton. McCluskie fled the town.
About a week later, McCluskie returned to Newton, hearing a rumor that his crime would be forgiven as the shooting was seen as an act of self-defense, despite Bailey never drawing a weapon. McCluskie and his young friend Jim Riley went to Tuttle’s Dance Hall in Hyde Park, a popular saloon in Newton, full of alcohol, dancers, and gambling.
It was the early morning hours of Aug. 20 when four of Bailey’s friends, hearing Bailey’s murderer was back in town, sprung a trap on McCluskie.
Hugh Anderson and his three cowboys were Texans and friends of Bailey. McCluskie was several drinks in at the cards table when Anderson walked to him, asking him if he was McCluskie. When McCluskie confirmed, Anderson drew his pistol, called him a coward, and fired — hitting him in the neck.
As McCluskie fell, he attempted to draw his revolver, misfiring the gun in the process. It is said the remaining three cowboys either kept the other people in the saloon away as Anderson got his revenge for Bailey’s murder, or even partook in shooting McCluskie after he had already hit the ground. The second theory is more likely, meaning the Texan’s guns were empty for what happened next.
As mentioned earlier, McCluskie had a friend in the saloon named Jim Riley. Historical accounts know extremely little about Riley. He was thought to be around the age of 18, some records say he was sick with a terminal disease, and he had been living with and working for McCluskie for an unknown amount of time. With McCluskie on the ground fatally wounded, Riley drew his revolvers, opening fire into the crowd.
Whether Riley was acting in rage or out of self-defense is unknown. He, in total, hit seven people and killed four: two Texans and two Newtonians. After his guns were empty, Riley holstered his weapons and left the saloon and Newton, never to be seen or heard of again.
A posse was formed to hunt him down, but he simply vanished from the area.
Anderson, though injured from a shot to the leg from Riley, lived. Though much unrest lay in town as many fellow Texans felt Anderson shouldn’t be put on trial for killing a murderer, even going so far as to threaten the jury. Later, several of Anderson’s associates would help the wounded Texan escape Newton on a train to Kansas City before his trial. Five individuals were left dead in the Hyde Park Massacre: McCluskie, two cowboys, and two Newton citizens.
There are many mysteries surrounding the actual event. One of the published accounts was by a reporter known for embellishing details and exaggerating facts. In this account, Riley was a cold, calculated gunslinger who barred the door of the saloon before opening fire. This account would be easily proven wrong as one of the injured men ran through that door and died in the street.
Other accounts are hazy due to the panic of the gunfire as well as the haziness in the room from the gunsmoke. Further, Riley himself disappeared. Some accounts claim he became a famous outlaw in Nebraska, while others claim he started anew in Ellsworth under a fake name.
Still, others claim he succumbed to disease shortly after. More say he began work at a plantation east of the Mississippi River. This means that 151 years later, a boy in Newton — who caused a gunfight more deadly than the famous shootout at OK Corral — remains unknown to us today.