Texas Jack Omohundro

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Texas Jack

John Baker "Texas Jack" Omohundro (born July 26, 1846 in Palmyra , Virginia , † June 28, 1880 in Leadville , Colorado ) was an American scout , cowboy and actor . Omohundro was part of Buffalo Bill Cody's Wild West show , among others .

Life

Early years

Omohundro was born in 1846 on Pleasant Hill near Palmyra to John B. and Catherine. As a teenager he left his home country and traveled to Texas , where he eventually worked as a cowboy. In 1861 his attempt to join the Confederate Army failed because he was too young. Instead he became a scout and courier of the Southern States and then came under the command of General J. E. B. Stuart in 1864 .

After the Civil War , Omohundro returned to Texas, where he again worked as a cowboy and participated in various cattle drives, often on the Chisholm Trail . On one of these cattle drives through Arkansas and Tennessee , grateful residents nicknamed him the "Texas Jack". Shortly after the war, he adopted a little five-year-old boy whom he had found abandoned. The child's parents had been killed by Indians and Texas Jack began to look after the boy; since his last name was unknown, he simply called him Texas Jack, Jr.

With Buffalo Bill

From left: Ned Buntline, Buffalo Bill Cody, Giuseppina Morlacchi, Texas Jack Omohundro, around 1870

In 1869, Texas Jack moved to Cottonwood Springs , Nebraska , near Fort McPherson , where he made a living as a scout and buffalo hunter. During this time he met William L. "Buffalo Bill" Cody, with whom he teamed up. Both hunted buffalo, gave tours for influential people like the Earl of Dunraven, and took part in battles against Indians. In 1872, Texas Jack was also part of the popular buffalo hunt with the Russian Grand Duke Alexei and other important military personnel.

In December 1872, Texas Jack and Cody traveled to Chicago , where they appeared on Ned Buntline's Wild West show The Scouts of the Prairie . Appearances on the show were successful, so Texas Jack and Cody together with their friend Wild Bill Hickok 1873-1874 put up the new show Scouts of the Plains . Texas Jack was the first to introduce lasso throwing to the broad US public.

Later years

Texas Jack spent the 1870s mainly on the one hand with the shows on the east coast of the USA, on the other hand as a hunter in the Great Plains . He also directed hunts with European nobles. On August 31, 1873, he married the actress and dancer Giuseppina Morlacchi , with whom he had previously played in various shows. In 1877 he ran his own Wild West show in St. Louis and began writing articles and books about his hunting and scouting experiences. Many Texas Jack legends have been formed over the years, primarily through the novels of the author Colonel Prentiss Ingraham.

Texas Jack Omohundro died of pneumonia in Leadville in 1880, where he was buried in Evergreen Cemetery . Texas Jack Jr. continued his father's work by staging Wild West shows, especially in South Africa . Omohundro was inducted into the Hall of Great Western Performers in 1994 . In 1980 the Texas Jack Association was established in his honor , which endeavors to preserve and convey his work.

Web links

Commons : Texas Jack Omohundro  - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files