Chris Madsen (February 25, 1851 – January 9, 1944) was a lawman of the

Old West The American frontier, also known as the Old West or the Wild West, encompasses the geography, history, folklore, and culture associated with the forward wave of American expansion in mainland North America that began with European colonial ...

who is best known as being one of The

Three Guardsmen The Three Guardsmen is the name popularized in Old West literature describing three lawmen who became legendary in their pursuit of many outlaws of the late 19th century. Deputy U.S. Marshals Bill Tilghman (1854–1924), Chris Madsen (1851–194 ...

, the name given to Madsen and two other Deputy US Marshals who were responsible for the apprehension and/or killing of several

outlaw An outlaw, in its original and legal meaning, is a person declared as outside the protection of the law. In pre-modern societies, all legal protection was withdrawn from the criminal, so that anyone was legally empowered to persecute or kill the ...

s of that era. The Three Guardsmen consisted of Madsen, Bill Tilghman, and

Heck Thomas Andrew "Heck" Thomas (January 3, 1850 – August 14, 1912) was a lawman on the American frontier, most notably in Indian Territory. He was known for helping bring law and order to the region. In 1889 as a deputy in Fort Smith, Arkansas, he trie ...

Background

Chris Madsen was born Christen Madsen Rørmose in

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark ...

. After his graduation from Kauslunde Agricultural School, the bright young man started a criminal career, resulting in several convictions for fraud and forgery. Upon emigrating to the United States in 1876, he dropped the last name, Rørmose. He later claimed to have been a soldier in the

Danish Army The Royal Danish Army ( da, Hæren, fo, Herurin, kl, Sakkutuut) is the land-based branch of the Danish Defence, together with the Danish Home Guard. For the last decade, the Royal Danish Army has undergone a massive transformation of structur ...

and the

French Foreign Legion The French Foreign Legion (french: Légion étrangère) is a corps of the French Army which comprises several specialties: infantry, Armoured Cavalry Arm, cavalry, Military engineering, engineers, Airborne forces, airborne troops. It was created ...

. Arriving in New York City, Madsen enlisted in the U.S. Army on January 21, 1876, and served fifteen years in the Fifth Cavalry. He was quartermaster sergeant of the Fifth Cavalry and fought in many major Indian campaigns. Later, in 1883, he became President Chester A. Arthur's guide to

Yellowstone Yellowstone National Park is an American national park located in the western United States, largely in the northwest corner of Wyoming and extending into Montana and Idaho. It was established by the 42nd U.S. Congress with the Yellowstone ...

Law career

Discharged on January 10, 1891, Madsen became a deputy U.S. marshal under Marshal William Grimes in Oklahoma Territory. He had joined the US Marshals as a Deputy Marshal with the priority of policing the vast

Oklahoma Territory The Territory of Oklahoma was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from May 2, 1890, until November 16, 1907, when it was joined with the Indian Territory under a new constitution and admitted to the Union as ...

. Over 300 outlaws were either apprehended or killed by Madsen, Thomas and Tilghman, thus leading to their nickname, The Three Guardsmen. The three lawmen were largely responsible for bringing down outlaw

Bill Doolin Bill(s) may refer to: Common meanings * Banknote, paper cash (especially in the United States) * Bill (law), a proposed law put before a legislature * Invoice, commercial document issued by a seller to a buyer * Bill, a bird or animal's beak Plac ...

and his Doolin Dalton gang. Madsen was personally responsible for the killings of Doolin gang members Dan "Dynamite Dick" Clifton, George "Red Buck" Waightman, and

Richard "Little Dick" West Richard "Little Dick" West (December 31, 1860 – April 13, 1898) was an American outlaw of the Old West, and a member of Bill Doolin's gang. Early life and background West was born in Texas, supposedly in 1860. He was working as a cowboy on t ...

. In 1898, he joined

Theodore Roosevelt Theodore Roosevelt Jr. ( ; October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919), often referred to as Teddy or by his initials, T. R., was an American politician, statesman, soldier, conservationist, naturalist, historian, and writer who served as the 26t ...

Rough Riders The Rough Riders was a nickname given to the 1st United States Volunteer Cavalry, one of three such regiments raised in 1898 for the Spanish–American War and the only one to see combat. The United States Army was small, understaffed, and diso ...

, serving as Quartermaster Sergeant. After the

Spanish–American War , partof = the Philippine Revolution, the decolonization of the Americas, and the Cuban War of Independence , image = Collage infobox for Spanish-American War.jpg , image_size = 300px , caption = (clo ...

, Madsen returned to

Indian Territory The Indian Territory and the Indian Territories are terms that generally described an evolving land area set aside by the United States Government for the relocation of Native Americans who held aboriginal title to their land as a sovereign i ...

and served as deputy U.S. marshal. In 1911 he was appointed U.S. Marshal for the entire

state of Oklahoma Oklahoma (; Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a state in the South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the north, Missouri on the northeast, Arkansas on the east, New M ...

. While in his sixties he was appointed

Chief of Police Chief may refer to: Title or rank Military and law enforcement * Chief master sergeant, the ninth, and highest, enlisted rank in the U.S. Air Force and U.S. Space Force * Chief of police, the head of a police department * Chief of the bo ...

for

Oklahoma City Oklahoma City (), officially the City of Oklahoma City, and often shortened to OKC, is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The county seat of Oklahoma County, it ranks 20th among United States cities in population, an ...

. From 1918 to 1922 he served as a special investigator for the

governor of Oklahoma The governor of Oklahoma is the head of government of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. Under the Oklahoma Constitution, the governor serves as the head of the Oklahoma executive branch, of the government of Oklahoma. The governor is the ''ex offici ...

. He eventually settled in

Guthrie, Oklahoma Guthrie is a city and county seat in Logan County, Oklahoma, United States, and a part of the Oklahoma City Metroplex. The population was 10,191 at the 2010 census, a 2.7 percent increase from the figure of 9,925 in the 2000 census. First kn ...

, and at the outset of World War I he tried to enlist in the

U.S. Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, ...

but was rejected due to his age.

Personal life

He was married to Margaret Bell Morris (1871-1898). They were the parents of Marion (1889) and Christian (1890). Chris Madsen died at the age of ninety-two in Guthrie, Oklahoma and was buried in the Frisco Cemetery in

Yukon, Oklahoma Yukon is a city in eastern Canadian County, Oklahoma, United States. It is part of the Oklahoma City Metropolitan Area. The population was 22,709 at the 2010 census. Founded in the 1890s, the town was named in reference to a gold rush in Yukon ...

References

Additional Sources

*Croy, Homer (1958) ''Trigger Marshal: The Story of Chris Madsen'' (New York: Duell, Sloan and Pearce) *Samuelson, Nancy B. (1998) ''Shoot From The Lip: The Lives, Legends, and Lies of the Three Guardsmen of Oklahoma and U.S. Marshal Nix'' (Eastford, Conn.: Shooting Star Press) *Reasoner, James (2003) ''Draw: The Greatest Gunfighters of the American West'' (Penguin Putnam Inc; Berkley Trade) *Andersen, Frans Ørsted (2018) ''Et liv på kanten. En biografisk fortælling om Chris Madsens utrolige liv'' (Denmark, Mellemgaard Publisher) *Andersen, Frans Ørsted (2019) "Chris Madsen: 1876 A Transformative Year''. In: Wild West History Association Journal. Number 2, June 2019.

External links