The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 48, July 1944 - April, 1945 Page: 329
617 p. : ill., maps, ports. ; 24 cm.View a full description of this periodical.
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The Unsolved Murder of Ben Thompson
was perfunctory. A careful study of all the testimony in the
case suggests that this account may likely be the true one.
The part of the mystery still unexplained concerns King
Fisher's r1le. Was Fisher, acting the part of Ben's friend,
actually luring him into a trap ? It is certainly true that against
his better judgment, Ben was persuaded to visit San Antonio
and was later talked into going to the Vaudeville Theatre. It
is significant also that when drinking with Simms, Coy, and
Thompson, Fisher had remarked impatiently to Ben: "I thought
we were going to have some fun, but don't talk about the
past times." This remark was obviously intended to goad Thomp-
son into action.
If King Fisher acted as a decoy, it is puzzling that he himself
was murdered and received thirteen wounds, whereas Ben had
nine. It is hardly logical to say that Fisher was killed because
of his proximity to Thompson when Coy, who was struggling
with Thompson, was not hurt by the assassins. These facts
hint that Fisher, possibly a double-crosser in the transaction,
was himself double-crossed. But speculation, however interesting,
is inconclusive. Now, more than sixty years after San Antonio's
most sensational double murder, the question: "Why was King
Fisher killed ?" will probably remain forever unanswered.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
BooKS
Bushick, Frank H., Glamorous Days.
Cunningham, Eugene, Triggernometry.
Proceedings of the 34th Annual Session of the Texas Bar Association, 1915.
Raymond, Dora Neill, Captain Lee Hall of Texas.
Raine, William MacLeod, Guns of the Frontier.
Sabin, Edwin L., Wild Men of the Wild West.
Walton, W. M., Life and Adventures of Ben Thompson, the Famous Texan
(Austin, 1884). First edition.
White, Owen P., Lead and Likker.
Williams, Harry, Legends of the Great Southwest.
ARTICLES
"Ben Thompson, Slain Fifty Years Ago, Still Talked About," in the San
Antonio Express. Reprinted in Frontier Times, September, 1934.
Gillett, J. B., "Ben Thompson and Billy Sims," Frontier Times, October,
1934.
Hunter, J. Marvin, "Ben Thompson: Killer of Men," Frontier Times,
May, 1939.
Lunsford, John R., "How Ben Thompson Died with His Boots On," in the
San Antonio Express. Reprinted in Frontier Times, November, 1931.
UNPUBLISHED SOURCES
Court records in the trial of Ben Thompson for the killing of Jack Harris.
Personal interviews with J. K. Beretta and John Wheeler of San Antonio,
and Frank M. Edwards of Pleasure Hill, Kerr County, Texas.329
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Texas State Historical Association. The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 48, July 1944 - April, 1945, periodical, 1945; Austin, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth146055/m1/369/: accessed April 26, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Texas State Historical Association.