Samuel Jones

Desert Rider

**Samuel T. Jones** or **Wanageeska** was a former United States Army Captain turned city Marshal turned outlaw who engaged in numerous hijinks during the Wild West era. He is the father of James Jones and grandfather to Hank and Damon Jones. His father, Jebediah Jones, was killed during the North-American Civil War.

Samuel would be tracked down by the last of the Pierce gang and gunned down for killing their leader decades earlier, in the year of 1922 in Junction City.

## Biography

### Early Life

Born in 1862 during the height of American Civil War. His father, Jebediah J. Jones was a Sergeant for the Union and an avid opposer to slavery despite being originally from the South. He died in battle during the Seven Days Battle against Robert E. Lee. Samuel’s mother would also die in 1864 to a fever. Samuel would thus grow up in an orphanage in Chicago until the age of 8 when a Native-American Chief named White Eagle would run into him. Jebediah saved White Eagle years before and he was indebted to him. The two were good friends as well and after White Eagle heard that both Samuel’s parents were dead, he decided to take the boy in and raise him in his tribe. Welcomed in their tribe without prejudice, Samuel would spend the rest of his childhood and adolescence a member of White Eagle’s tribe in the wilderness of the American mid-west. He would be given a Native-American name, “Wanageeska”, meaning White Spirit. Learning valuable skills and life lessons from White Eagle, Samuel would come to look at White Eagle as a father figure and his sons as brothers.

### **Service Years**

After turning 18, Samuel recieved an invitation from President Rutherford B. Hayes US Army to join their ranks as he knew his father, Jebediah when the two of them served together for the Union in the Civil War. Samuel accepted the offer after being strongly urged by White Eagle to do so as he believed this was Samuel’s opportunity at a life and more then he could give him.

Serving for a total of four years, Samuel achieved the rank of Captain quicker and younger than most due to his association with President Hayes and the General, Eustece M. Harris.

### Town Marshal

In 1884, Samuel would get yet another opportunity, this time as a town Marshal in the town Stone Ridge. He accepted it and for a year filled that position with valor. All of this without spending a day of public education in his life.

His duties and exploits as town Marshal would be known and echoed throughout the American West as an honorable and capable man as well as gunslinger with what some considered to be one of the quickest draws in the country. From arresting high caliber outlaws, to destroying a band of bandits with his posse, Samuel would carve a name for himself at only the age of 23.

### Mistakes and alternative roads

In 1885, all Sheriff’s and Marshal’s in the county were ordered to join a US Army raid on a Native-American settlement. The group consisted of US Army soldiers, county Sheriff‘s, town Marshals and lawmen led by General Harris. The order came from the Governor and they were instructed to exterminate the settlement and leave no survivors as this particular tribe was causing the Military troubles as they wished to use their land as a staging area, but the Native-Americans were against it thus instigating a clash between the two parties. Conflicted on whether to join or not, since Samuel grew up in a tribe himself, but he felt that disobeying a direct order from the military would bring dishonor to his father’s legacy since he fought and died for the union and integrity of his country. So Samuel went through with it, but not without moral conflictions.

On the day of the raid, Sam was having second thoughts about it and even wanted to back out. But he went along, hesitantly with persuasion from General Harris. They arrived to the settlement by midday and caught the Natives by surprise. A massacre, the entire tribe was completely wiped out. The group only suffered four casualties with Samuel coming out unscathed. After the dust settled and the screams died down, Samuel was mortified and sick at the act that was committed, and the fact he partook in it disgusted him. But when he recognized two of the Natives that were killed as sons of White Eagle and his brothers, only then did his psyche take a turn.

In the aftermath of the massacre, disillusioned with the government and country he served and protected, Samuel resigned from his position as town Marshal in Stone Ridge and became an outlaw in the desert plains of the wild west, working as a bounty hunter and mercenary for hire. Months after resigning and turning to a life of lawlessness, Samuel met with White Eagle to inform him of what happened. White Eagle rebuked him and cast him out of his tent, disowning him. Ashamed and disgraced with himself, Samuel would embark on a quest of vengeance and redemption against those who he found to be guilty of the deed in order to find forgiveness and regain acceptance from White Eagle and God. A lifelong battle with alcohol would also ensue due to his actions. Even though he would accomplish everything he set out to do, Samuel would always be haunted for his participation in the horrid act.

### **Retribution and other Sins**

As an outlaw, Samuel lived a life of isolation and mostly spent time alone in his own camp across multiple states. Other than the bounties he took up, Samuel would not come into contact with others for a myriad of years.