Albert Jennings Fountain Albert Jennings Fountain ( October 23 , 1838 – disappeared February 1 , 1896 ) was a lawyer , Indian fighter , and Republican politician in Texas and New Mexico . Biography . Fountain was born on Staten Island , New York , on October 23 , 1838 , to Solomon Jennings and his wife Catherine de la Fontaine . He went to California as a young man and began calling himself by an Anglicised version of his mother ' s family name . ( Accounts differ as to why he did so . ) He studied law in California , and was admitted to the bar in 1860 . Working as a reporter for the " Sacramento Union " , Fountain travelled to Nicaragua in 1860 to cover the filibustering expedition of filibuster . Angering Walker by his reports , Fountain was arrested and sentenced to be shot . However , he escaped and returned to California . In August 1861 , during the American Civil War , Fountain enlisted in the Company E of the 1st California Infantry Regiment of the Union Army and was elected first sergeant of his company . He took part in the 1862 Union recapture of the New Mexico Territory as member of the California Column . In October 1862 he married Mariana Perez of Mesilla . They would become the parents of 4 sons and 2 daughters . Later commissioned a 2nd lieutenant , he was discharged on August 31 , 1864 . Fountain almost immediately joined the New Mexico volunteers because of the ongoing Indian wars . In June 1865 , he was seriously wounded while pursuing hostile Apaches . He spent a night trapped under his dead horse , with a bullet in his thigh , an arrow in his forearm , and another arrow in his shoulder . On his recovery , he was discharged as a brevet captain . Fountain settled in El Paso , Texas , working for the United States Property Commission , which investigated and disposed of former Confederate property . He was then made the Customs Collector for the El Paso region . He was next appointed an election judge , and finally became the Assessor and Collector of Internal Revenue for the Western District of Texas . In November 1869 Fountain won a seat as a Republican in the Texas Senate , serving in the Twelfth and Thirteenth Texas Legislature s . He was elected as president " pro tempore " during the second session of the Twelfth Legislature and served as Lieutenant Governor " ex officio " at the same time , as the office was vacant . His most notable accomplishment was pushing through the bill that reestablished the Texas Rangers , which had been abolished after the Civil War . Fountain ' s Radical Republican views angered Texas Democrats , and he was challenged to several duels , killing at least one man , Frank Williams . These views may have also lead to his disappearance and presumed murder nearly 30 years later . At the time of Fountain ' s disappearance , he was prosecuting suspected cattle rustlers specifically Oliver M . Lee , and he found himself at odds with Lee ' s associate , the attorney Albert Fall . In 1873 Fountain decided to move back to his wife ' s home of Mesilla , New Mexico . He became a lawyer in Mesilla , using his fluent Spanish to good advantage in jury trials . He was appointed assistant district attorney and also served as probate judge and a deputy court clerk . In 1877 he founded a newspaper , the " Mesilla Valley Independent " , which was issued in both English and Spanish . Fountain practiced law in Mesilla and his most famous client was Billy the Kid . Fountain lost the 1881 case , and Billy the Kid was convicted of murder despite the evidence , though he escaped from jail . Fountain was a leading figure in the Republican Party in New Mexico , serving a term in the state legislature . Unfortunately , he acquired numerous political enemies , which was the most likely reason for his death . In 1888 Fountain was elected to the New Mexico Territory Legislature , defeating Albert Bacon Fall . Two years later , however , he was defeated for reelection by Fall . Disappearance and probable murder . On February 1 , 1896 , Fountain and his eight - year - old son Henry disappeared near White Sands on the way to their home in Mesilla . They were returning from Lincoln , New Mexico , where Fountain had been assisting the prosecution in bringing charges against Oliver M . Lee and William McNew . All that was found at the site of the disappearance were Fountain ' s buckboard wagon , several empty cartridge cases , his cravat and papers , and two pools of blood . The only sign of Henry Fountain was a blood - soaked handkerchief with two powder - blackened coins , the handkerchief still carefully knotted in one corner . Missing were the victims ' bodies , a blanket , a quilt , and Fountain ' s Winchester rifle . Some speculated that outlaw " Black Jack " Ketchum and his gang were involved . Most , however , were convinced the disappearances could be attributed to Lee , a noted ranch er , land developer and a part - time Deputy U . S . Marshal . Lee ' s employees Jim Gililland and William McNew were also suspected of involvement . Lee and Gililland were pursued by lawman Pat Garrett and a posse , which engaged them in gunfight near Alamogordo . After Deputy Sheriff Kent Kearney was killed , however , Garrett and his posse fled . Lee and Gililland would later surrender to others . They were defended by Albert Bacon Fall , who years later would become the first United States presidential cabinet member sentenced to prison . The accused were acquitted of participation in the Albert Jennings Fountain case because of lack of evidence . Fountain was a powerful rival to land owners Oliver Lee and Albert Fall . Fall was also known to hate Fountain as a political rival , just as Fountain hated Fall . Fall ' s association with Lee began when he had defended Lee in a criminal case . He had repeatedly challenged Fall and his men in the courts and the political arena . As the bodies of Fountain and his son were never found , the prosecution was greatly hampered . No one was ever charged with the murder of Albert Fountain . Lee and his employees , McNew and Gilliland , were tried for the murder of Henry Fountain . Charges also were never filed for the death of Deputy Sheriff Kearney . The charges against McNew were dismissed , while Lee and Gililland were both acquitted . Memorials to both Albert Jennings Fountain and his son are in the Masonic Cemetery in Las Cruces , though their actual burial site remains a mystery . The Fountain Family in Las Cruces , New Mexico . The Fountain family ran the Mesilla Valley Opera House and built the Fountain Theatre in Old Mesilla near Las Cruces , New Mexico , The theater was rebuilt in 1905 for stageplays and musical concerts , and is the oldest motion picture theater in New Mexico . The Fountain Theatre is currently operated by the Mesilla Valley Film Society . The interior decoration includes murals of Albert Jennings Fountain painted by his son Albert , Jr .