The Forest Republican. [volume] (Tionesta, Pa.) 1869-1952, 1902-03-12
WHY NOT GEORGE COyLE9
Friends Of the Oil Region Character
Would Like His Biography.

Johnny" ave both written book, IN,
friends and admirers of George Covl,
are clamoring that some historian writ,
some Of tic stirring incidents of his life
and they were numerous enough to iil
tho demands of the most sensational. In
the paradoxical language of Il e early
days of the oil country an especially bad
man of the district, in which most interes-
ted OF the oil men of the country was
centered, was a"good man," George Coyle
was the best of "gOod" men. At any rate
that il the reputation that has followed
him since his death in 1888 in Ware n
comfy. No oil region "Reminiscences from
the late COS to the earlier SOS is complete
without some reference 10 Coyle and his
'doings."
Nature endowed Coyle with the phys.
ique ofa giant, and until he was 20 years
Of ago, the neart of a coward. The first
fight he was engag' d in was forced upon
him, and for tue next 10 years, if half the
stories told of him approximate the truth,
he did little but try aud make up for lost
time by beating men singly and in com
panies.
Making due allowance for exaggerA-
| tion, Coyle wa- known time after time To
engage in the iiercest of rough and lum-
ble fights with whole bar room or dance
house filled with men as rough and care
less of human life and limb as himself,
aud generally came out victor. The Is
years of his fighting lie were marked by
almost daily engagements of this kind un-
til men were afraid of his very name.
His penchant was the rough and tumble,
bite, kick and gouge style of fighting,
where his immense strength gave him ev-
cry advantage, and although attacked by
as many as dozen men at time, he
generally emerged ready Tor fight again
the next day, but most of his antagonists
in fit condition for attention in hospital.
Coyle was native of Canada and came
to the oil country about 1868 and secured
wo.k as tool dresser. He was raw
boned and as strong AS an OK, nearly, some
reports say more, six feet and half in
height and weighed $50 pounds. One of
his most remarkable features was the i'm
mense size of his head, which was COW
cred with coal black hair. His first work
in drilling Tor oil was in Butler county
with Lynn Campbell, who Is now resi-
dent of Cranberry township this county,
near Salina. There was lusty young
fellow who worked on the opposite tour
with Coyle, who made the latter the butt
OF many OF the rough, practical jokes that
were in vogue among the hardy men OF |
the country at that time, and these fail |
ing to arouse the ire CT the young Cana
dian they verged on personal abuse. The |
men advised COyle to resent the treat |
ment, and it became either case ofquit- |
ting his job in the oil country or fighting, |
Coyle fought. The result was that the |
practical joker had several broken bones |
and dislocations distributed about his
anatomy that kept him in bed for several
weeks.
Later Coye distinguished himself by
badly beating prize fighter that had
been imported Ia take some OF the con.
ceit out of him. and then the avera
man became afraid of him, and he was
to be the "best" man in
the Butler oil fields. Tie driited into Elk
City with the trend Of the developments
there and would amuse himself 10y turn
ing over heavily loaded produce wagons.
diminutiye German from Clarion
county, whose wagon was so treated,
went alter the festive George with a neck
yoke, and after laying him stiff in the
road until he was picked up for dead, re-
turned home. This, it is said, is the first
time that any one man ever bested Coyle
in his fighting career. From the oil
country in this immediate neighborhood,
he moved on to Bradford, carrying fear
and broken noses and bones in his wake,
md, although repeatC dly assaulted by
lumbers of men, would lay in bed until
le recovered from bcatings that would
iave caused he death of a dozen ordinary
men, and then continue his mission of
beating the fighting spirit of any man
who had local reputation az pugilist
In all ofihese visits his carear was ac-
'ompanicd by the most startling of per-
onal encounters, and nearly every man
Who was in the oil country at that tirno
las different tale TO toll of his com bats.
from Bradford he went to Clarendon,
'ut the people there knew him 10y repu.
alton and when Ge 'rge "declarei him $
elf' they would go at him with the I
eavy binding poles they used in fasten- II
ny oil well supplies and lumber on waG-
ms.
AT Fransworth he jocos9ly stepped into
hotel and finding "Enelsh Bill" q
nan who weighed 200 pounds and "had |
eputati"n,' he grabbed William bv the
ars aud lifted him bodily from the floor.
William at once went TO a hardware store
nd bought for himself hugh carving |
nife and returned to continue the con. i
let, but George had left the place.
The practical ending of his career-and a
fe-was in Forest City, Warren coun Y. ~
man named Green had Il tent there and
oyle, instead of gaining admitiance in the !
sual way, attempted to cut way
trough the canvas The proprietor, see f
~ Coyle's foot protruding underneath
he coanvas, fired a shot into it, which v
nierel at the instep. The missile could be
lainly seen, but Coyle declared he had
often his death blow and wrote to that
fleet to his mother in Canada. This was a
a 1883. There was young doctor there II
Tho started 10 take out the bullet after it =
ad been imbeded in the loot for ten DAYS, +
ut while he WIS examining the wound g
Q hurt Cnyle's foot aud the latter swung ~
at his head which, If il had o
luded, wo ID have ended the Young l
ledicO's career then and there lie re- u
Used to do any more surgical work If '