The Beaver herald. [volume] (Beaver, O.T. [Okla.]) 1895-1923, 1909-08-19
An Old Gang of Horse Thieves


One day the first of the week Lyman
Savage was telling about some of the
pioneer days of Texas county. Into
his recollection came the remembrance
of one of the old time horse thief gangs
that infested the old territory of "No
Nj ans l. md" about 1885. The gagn's
headquarters were at Sod Town, an
old stopping place, long since disap-
peared and forgotten, except in the
memory of the real old timers of the
country. Sod Town was located in the
southeastern part of what is now
Beaver county. The real rendezvous
of the thieves was couple miles from
town. The gang was composed of
something like fifteen members, five
of which were brothers. named Chit
wood, and who we're in reality the
leaders of the band. These brothers
we're outlaws from Kansas, somewhere
up in the Medicine Lodge neighbor-
hood and we're familiar with practi-
cally all the sections within a radius
of five hundred or a thousand miles
At times they had as high as fifty
and seventy five horses, some of them
as fine specimens as you ever saw. One
evening vigllence committee from
Kansas slipped into the Chitwood
home, which was a couple of miles
from Sod Town and in the absence of
male members of the Chitwood family
ordered the mother of the boys to pre-
pare supper. They had arms of all de-
scriptions and while waiting for the
meal stacked their tools of warfare in
a corner A young brother happened
to be at home and sneaking out, rode
of to warn the brothers. The leader
of the gang Immediately started for
home and upon his arrival found the
committee at supper. He used the
but end of rifle and put the whole
bunch out of commission in short or
der, sending them home minus their
firearms. He afterwards called at Mr.
Savage's place of business and offered
him any kind of fire arm he might de
sire in styles manufactured since the
war. Later on bad luck seemed to get
in its work on the gang Kit Chit
wick, the leader, was overtaken in 1
storm and his feet frozen, which after
wards left him cripple. One day he
and his father and two others of thu
gang we're jerked by the authorities
The evidence against, the Chitwood
and one member was insufficient tc
convict in the opinion of those prose
cutting, but in the case of the fourtl
member it was different. They hauled
him up to the scatfold, the boards o
which was cracker box, and after al
lowing him to say his last good bye
kicked the box from under him, and h
was left to die by strangulation. Tn
team. wagon and effects of the Chit
woods were confiscated on genera
principles and they we're ordered T.
leave forthwith, which they did. Thi
was one of the mean gangs of the will
DAYS of !'No Mans Land" and its pass
ing was noted with considerable graft
fcation by all who knew of it. Thi
was the only hanging that ever occur
red in mo Mans Land" according t
the best OF Mr.. Savaee's recollections
The name of the man hanged has es
capped his memory in the lapse of sub
sequent years, although he is of tn
opinion that Fred Tracy of Beaver wi
remember it.. When the irdignan
citizens ran the last of the gang out {
the country Mr. Tracy was among tn
number.who helped rid the communit
OF the members and the pleasure
afforded the citizens has not likel
been entirely forgotten. .-Guymo
Herald.