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44-518: The museum was built after the Museum of New Mexico's collection of historic artifacts had outgrown its previous home at the 400-year-old Palace of the Governors . The new US$ 44 million museum opened to the public on May 24, 2009, holdings around 20,000 artifacts, and receiving more than 10,000 visitors on its first day. The New Mexico History Museum. has 3½ floors of exhibitions telling the stories that made

88-557: A Dolan man, was wounded by rifle fire by George Coe. By allegedly shooting at government troops, the Regulators gained a new set of enemies. On May 15, the Regulators tracked down and captured the Jesse Evans gang member Manuel Segovia, who is believed to have shot McNab. They shot him during an alleged escape. Around the time of Segovia's death, the Regulator "iron clad" gained a new member,

132-596: A cattle ranch, store, and bank in partnership with the young attorney Alexander McSween and cattleman John Chisum. At the time Lincoln County was dominated both economically and politically by Lawrence Murphy and James Dolan, the proprietors of LG Murphy and Co., later James J. Dolan and Co., the only store in the county. The factions were divided along ethnic and sectarian lines, with the Murphy faction being mostly Irish Catholic, while Tunstall and his allies were mostly English Protestant. LG Murphy and Co. lent thousands of dollars to

176-494: A debt and McSween suspected that the executor of the estate would give the money to them. McSween also knew how badly needy for cash The House was and as a business competitor was likely loath to have the money go to them, whether their claim was legitimate or not. During February 1878, in a court case that was eventually dismissed, they obtained a court order to seize all of McSween's assets, but mistakenly included all of Tunstall's assets with those of McSween. Sheriff Brady formed

220-617: A posse to attach Tunstall's remaining assets at his ranch 70 miles from Lincoln. Dolan also enlisted the John Kinney Gang , Seven Rivers Warriors and the Jesse Evans Gang , and their job was mainly to harass and rustle cattle from Tunstall's and Chisum's ranches, as well as being the faction's hired gunmen. On February 18, 1878, members of the Sheriff's posse caught up to Tunstall while he and his ranch-hands, Richard "Dick" Brewer, Billy

264-465: A prior arrest. A surviving deputy, Billy Matthews, wounded both men with one bullet that passed through both of them. French's wound was so severe that he had to be temporarily harbored by Sam Corbet in a crawlspace in Corbet's house. Widenmann was also in the corral, but whether he participated was never ascertained: he claimed he was feeding Tunstall's dog. Three days after the murders of Brady and Hindman,

308-573: A way to escape by using pistol fire as cover and escaping. Jim French went out first, followed by Billy the Kid, O'Folliard, and Jose Chavez y Chavez. The Dolan men saw them running and began shooting, killing Harvey Morris, McSween's law partner. Some troopers moved into the back yard to take those left into custody when a close-quarters gunfight erupted. Alexander McSween and the Seven Rivers cowboy Bob Beckwith both died. Three other Mexican Regulators got away in

352-743: A young Texas cowboy named Tom O'Folliard , who soon became McCarty's best friend. A large confrontation between the two forces occurred on the afternoon of July 15, 1878, when the Regulators were surrounded in Lincoln in two different positions; the McSween house and the Ellis store. Opposing them were the Dolan/Murphy/Seven Rivers cowboys. In the Ellis store were Scurlock, Bowdre, Middleton, Frank Coe, and several others. About 20 Mexican Regulators, commanded by Josefita Chavez, were also positioned around town. In

396-640: The Mexican War of Independence , the Mexican province of Santa Fe de Nuevo México was administered from the Palace of the Governors. When New Mexico was annexed as a U.S. territory, the Palace became New Mexico's first territorial capitol. Lew Wallace wrote the final parts of his book Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ in this building while serving as territorial governor in the late 1870s. He remembered later in life that it

440-603: The Rio Peñasco . Morton surrendered after a five-mile (8 km) running gunfight on the condition that he and his fellow deputy sheriff, Frank Baker – who had no part in the Tunstall murder but was riding with Morton and Lloyd – would be returned alive to Lincoln. The Regulators' captain Dick Brewer assured them they would be taken to Lincoln, but other Regulators insisted on killing the prisoners. One Regulator, William McCloskey, who

484-532: The "Kid". The three men were buried at Fort Sumner, New Mexico . The Posse Comitatus Act , signed into law June 18, 1878, would have prevented the use of federal troops for domestic law enforcement, but President Hayes invoked the Insurrection Act of 1807 on October 7. Murphy died of cancer on October 20, 1878, about the age of 47. Susan McSween hired attorney Huston Chapman to pursue charges against Dolan and others, in addition to working for amnesty for

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528-838: The American West, from the early lives of Native people to Spanish colonists. The museum has a section for the Fray Angélico Chávez History Library and Photo Archives. It also has the Palace Print Shop & Bindery, and the Native American Artisans Program. 501 New Mexicans were killed in the First World War . On 11 November 2018, the 100th anniversary of the Armistice , New Mexico History Museum opened "The First World War" exhibit. In addition to

572-483: The Evans Gang. In revenge for this, the Regulators killed Sheriff Brady and others in a series of incidents. Further killings continued unabated for several months, climaxing in the battle of Lincoln , a five-day gunfight and siege that resulted in the death of McSween and the scattering of the Regulators. Pat Garrett was named County Sheriff in 1880, and he hunted down Billy the Kid, killing two other former Regulators in

616-725: The Governors The Palace of the Governors ( Spanish : Palacio de los Gobernadores ) is an adobe structure built in the Territorial Style of Pueblo architecture on Palace Avenue in Santa Fe, New Mexico . Located within the Santa Fe Historic District along the Santa Fe Plaza between Lincoln and Washington avenues, it served as the seat of government for New Mexico for centuries, having been established as

660-612: The Justice of the Peace, had been appointed illegally by the Lincoln County Commissioners. Wilson had deputized the Regulators and issued the warrants for Tunstall's murderers. Axtell's decree meant that the Regulators' actions, formerly considered legal, were now illegal. Axtell also was able to revoke Widenmann's status as a Deputy US marshal, making Sheriff Brady and his men the only law officers of Lincoln County. On April 1, 1878,

704-529: The Kid, John Middleton , Henry Newton Brown , Robert A. Widenmann, and Fred Waite , were herding his last nine horses back to Lincoln. Frank Warner Angel, a special investigator for the Secretary of the Interior , later determined that Tunstall was shot in "cold blood" by Jesse Evans, William Morton, and Tom Hill. Tunstall's murder was witnessed from a distance by several of his men, including Richard Brewer and Billy

748-803: The Kid. Tunstall's murder began the Lincoln County War. Tunstall's cowhands and other local citizens formed a group known as the Regulators to avenge his murder, since the territorial criminal justice system was controlled by allies of Murphy and Dolan. While the Regulators at various times consisted of dozens of American and Mexican cowboys, the main dozen or so members were known as the "iron clad", including McCarty, Richard "Dick" Brewer, Frank McNab , Doc Scurlock , Jim French , John Middleton, George Coe , Frank Coe , Jose Chavez y Chavez , Charlie Bowdre , Tom O'Folliard , Fred Waite (a Chickasaw ), and Henry Newton Brown. The Regulators set out to apprehend

792-509: The McSween house to their fate. On the afternoon of July 19, the Murphy-Dolan faction set the house afire. As the flames spread and night began, Susan McSween and the other woman and five children were granted safe passage out of the house, while the men inside continued to fight the fire. By 9 pm, those left inside got set to flee out the back door of the burning house. Billy the Kid and Jim French assessed their situation, and figured out

836-413: The McSween house were Alex McSween and his wife Susan, Billy the Kid, Henry Brown, Jim French, Tom O'Folliard, Jose Chavez y Chavez, George Coe, and a dozen Mexican vaqueros. During the next three days, the men exchanged shots and shouts. Tom Cullens, one of the McSween house defenders, was killed by a stray bullet. Around this time, Henry Brown, George Coe, and Joe Smith left the McSween house and went to

880-565: The Palace of the Governors served as the site of the state history museum. In 2009 the New Mexico History Museum was opened adjacent to the Palace, which is now one of eight museums overseen by the New Mexico Department of Cultural Affairs . It was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1960. The United States Postal Service issued a turquoise 1 + 1 ⁄ 4 -cent stamp on June 17, 1960, featuring an image of

924-568: The Palace. According to Steven J. Rod, "This was in coincidence with the opening day of Santa Fe's 350th anniversary celebration. The Palace is shown on the stamp from a front angle, a design which was taken from a photograph by Tyler Dingee of Santa Fe. The Governor's Palace stamp was the eighth 'national shrine' honored by this series." Lincoln County War The Lincoln County War was an Old West conflict between rival factions which began in 1878 in Lincoln County , New Mexico Territory ,

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968-572: The Regulators French, McNab, Middleton, Waite, Brown and McCarty (Billy the Kid) made ready in the corral behind Tunstall's store before attacking Brady and his deputies on the main street of Lincoln. Brady died of at least a dozen gunshot wounds; Deputy George W. Hindman was also wounded fatally. McCarty and French broke cover and dashed to Brady's body, possibly to get his arrest warrant for McSween or to recover McCarty's rifle, which Brady had kept from

1012-725: The Regulators elected McNab as their captain. On April 29, 1878, Sheriff Peppin was directing a posse that included the Jesse Evans Gang and the Seven Rivers Warriors . They engaged in a shootout with the Regulators McNab, Saunders, and Frank Coe at the Fritz Ranch. McNab died in the gunfire, Saunders was badly wounded, and Frank Coe was captured. The next day, the Seven Rivers members Tom Green, Charles Marshall, Jim Patterson and John Galvin were killed in Lincoln, and although

1056-493: The Regulators headed southwest from the area around Lincoln, reaching Blazer's Mill, a sawmill and trading post that supplied beef to the Mescalero Apaches . They came upon the rancher Buckshot Roberts , listed on their arrest warrant as one of Tunstall's murderers. In the ensuing shootout the Regulators mortally wounded Roberts, but he killed Brewer and wounded Middleton, Scurlock, Coe, and McCarty. After Brewer's death,

1100-470: The Regulators were blamed, this was never proven. Frank Coe escaped custody some time after his capture, allegedly with the assistance of Deputy Sheriff Wallace Olinger , who gave him a pistol. The day after McNab's death the Regulators known as the "iron clad" assumed defensive positions in the town of Lincoln, trading shots with Dolan men and, allegedly, members of the US Army cavalry. "Dutch Charley" Kruling,

1144-417: The Regulators. On February 18, 1879, one year to the day after Tunstall was murdered, Evans and Billy Campbell killed Chapman, then fled the territory. That murder also was attributed to Dolan, though his involvement was never proven. Dolan was indicted for the murder of Tunstall, but was acquitted. He later acquired all of Tunstall's property before dying on his ranch in 1898, aged 49. Susan McSween took over

1188-690: The Territorial Governor, and the Territorial Attorney General eventually held the mortgage on the company. Tunstall learned that Murphy and Dolan, who bought many of their cattle from rustlers , had lucrative beef contracts from the United States government to supply forts and Indian agencies. The government contracts, along with their monopoly on merchandise and financing for farms and ranches, allowed Murphy, Dolan and their partner Riley to become wealthy. The main event that resulted in

1232-426: The Tunstall store, where they chased two Dolan men into an outhouse with rifle fire and forced them to dive into the bottom to escape. The impasse continued until the arrival of US Army troops commanded by Colonel Nathan Dudley . When these troops pointed cannons at the Ellis store and other positions, Billy the Kid, Doc Scurlock and his men fled from their positions, as did Chavez's cowboys, leaving those remaining in

1276-414: The beginning of the Lincoln County War was controversy over the disbursement of Emil Fritz's insurance policy. Emil Fritz was a partner of L. G. Murphy. When he died in 1874, the executors of the estate hired Alexander McSween to collect his insurance policy. After collecting the policy, McSween refused to give the money to the executor of the estate because The House claimed that the money was owed to them as

1320-407: The capitol building of Nuevo México in 1610. It was New Mexico's seat of government until 1901. In 1610, Pedro de Peralta , the newly appointed governor of Santa Fe de Nuevo México covering most of the modern American Southwest , began construction on the Palace of the Governors, though some recent historical research has suggested that construction began midway through his term in 1618. In

1364-599: The confusion, to rendezvous with the "iron clad" members yards away. The Lincoln County War accomplished little other than to foster distrust and animosity in the area. The surviving Regulators, most notably Billy the Kid, continued as fugitives. Gradually, his fellow gunmen scattered to their various fates. Billy rode with Bowdre, O'Folliard, Dave Rudabaugh , and a few other friends, with whom he rustled cattle and committed other crimes. Eventually sheriff Pat Garrett and his posse tracked and killed O'Folliard, Bowdre, and, in July 1881,

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1408-452: The county. The older, established faction was dominated by James Dolan, who operated a dry goods monopoly through a general store referred to locally as "The House". English-born John Tunstall and his business partner Alexander McSween opened a competing store in 1876, with backing from established cattleman John Chisum. The two sides gathered lawmen, businessmen, Tunstall's ranch hands, and criminal gangs to their assistance. The Dolan faction

1452-585: The following years, the Palace changed hands as the territory of New Mexico did, seeing the Pueblo Revolt of 1680, the Spanish return from 1693 to 1694, Mexican independence in 1821, American territorial status in 1848, and US statehood in 1912. The Palace originally served as the seat of government of the Spanish colony of Nuevo Mexico , which at one time comprised the present-day states of Texas , Arizona , Utah , Colorado , Nevada , and New Mexico . After

1496-429: The group. As the bodies of Morton and Baker each bore eleven bullet holes, one for each Regulator, Utley believes that the Regulators murdered them and killed McCloskey for opposing them. Nolan writes that Morton took ten bullets, and Baker was shot five times. That same day, Tunstall's other two killers, Tom Hill and Jesse Evans, were shot while trying to rob a sheep drover near Tularosa, New Mexico . Hill died and Evans

1540-502: The importance of melding the Palace architecture with the environment, noting that "the Palace was begun with an adaptation to climate and atmosphere and had been fitted into the color of earth and sky.", a view he later applied again as Superintendent of Mesa Verde National Park . Between 1909, when the New Mexico territorial legislature established the Museum of New Mexico , and Summer 2009

1584-430: The main building, the museum campus includes the following facilities: 6. https://www.newmexicoculture.org/museums/history-museum/ https://www.santafenewmexican.com/pasatiempo/art/exhibitionism/the-first-world-war-at-the-new-mexico-history-museum/article_c381f5ba-576f-11ec-a332-974f8ac58338.html This New Mexico museum-related article is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Palace of

1628-445: The predecessor of the state of New Mexico , and continued until 1881. The feud became famous because of the participation of William H. Bonney (" Billy the Kid "). Other notable participants included Sheriff William J. Brady , cattle rancher John Chisum , lawyer and businessmen Alexander McSween , James Dolan and Lawrence Murphy . The conflict began between two factions competing for profits from dry goods and cattle interests in

1672-454: The process. The war was fictionalized by several Hollywood movies, including The Left Handed Gun in 1958, John Wayne ’s Chisum in 1970, Sam Peckinpah ’s Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid in 1973 and Young Guns in 1988. Ron Hansen ’s novel The Kid (2016) is also inspired by the Lincoln County War. During November 1876, a wealthy Englishman named John Tunstall arrived in Lincoln County, New Mexico , where he intended to develop

1716-523: The sheriff's posse members who had murdered Tunstall. After the Regulators were deputized by the Lincoln County justice of the peace , together with Constable Martinez, they attempted to serve the legally issued warrants to Tunstall's murderers. Sheriff Brady arrested and jailed Martinez and his deputies in defiance of their deputized status. They gained release and searched for Tunstall's murderers. They found Buck Morton, Dick Lloyd, and Frank Baker near

1760-626: The young archeologist Jesse L. Nusbaum to oversee the restoration of the Palace of the Governors that had fallen into disrepair. For this assignment, which was completed in the Fall of 1913, Jesse L. Nusbaum was hired as the first employee of the Dr. Edgar Lee Hewett led School of American Archaeology , later the School of American Research, and Museum of New Mexico in Santa Fe, New Mexico. In his journal, Nusbaum stressed

1804-544: Was a friend of Morton's, resisted such action. On March 9, 1878, the third day of the journey back to Lincoln, the Regulators killed McCloskey, Morton, and Baker in the Capitan foothills along the Blackwater Creek. They claimed that Morton murdered McCloskey and tried to escape with Baker, forcing them to kill the two prisoners. Few believed the story, as they thought it unlikely that Morton would have killed his only friend in

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1848-479: Was allied with Lincoln County Sheriff Brady and aided by the Jesse Evans Gang . The Tunstall-McSween faction organized their own posse of armed men, known as the Lincoln County Regulators , and had their own lawmen consisting of town constable Richard M. Brewer and Deputy US Marshal Robert A. Widenmann . The conflict was marked by revenge killings, starting with the murder of Tunstall by members of

1892-488: Was at night, during a severe thunderstorm in the spring of 1879, after returning from a tense meeting with Billy the Kid in Lincoln County, when he wrote the climactic Crucifixion scenes of the novel. Wallace worked by the light of a shaded lamp in the shuttered governor's study, fearing a bullet from outside over the tensions surrounding the Lincoln County War . In 1909 anthropologist Dr. Edgar Lee Hewett invited

1936-471: Was severely wounded. While Evans was at Fort Stanton for medical treatment, he was arrested on an old federal warrant for stealing stock from an Indian reservation. Sheriff Brady asked for assistance from the Territorial Attorney General, Thomas Benton Catron, to end this "anarchy". Catron referred the topic to the Territorial Governor Samuel B. Axtell . The governor decreed that John Wilson,

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