MASON, TX — Joseph Graves Olney, a notorious outlaw whose exploits drew the attention of lawman Wyatt Earp, met his end on this day, Dec. 3, 1884—not by gunfire, but when his horse fatally fell on him in Arizona.
Olney, once a key figure in Texas’ violent Mason County War, lived a life defined by cattle disputes, gunfights, and evading justice.
Born in 1849 in Burleson County, Olney became infamous after killing a man in Llano County and playing a central role in the Hoodoo War, a bloody feud over cattle rustling in Mason County. His reputation for violence forced him to flee Texas in 1876 after killing a deputy. He lived under the alias Joe Hill in Arizona, where he established a ranch.
Despite suspicions from Wyatt Earp that Olney was involved in cattle theft and stagecoach robberies, no evidence ever linked him to the crimes. Olney’s accidental death marked a quiet end to a life that had terrorized communities across the Southwest.
The Mason County War, often referred to as the “Hoodoo War,” resulted in the deaths of more than a dozen men.
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