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Buckskin Frank Leslie
Buckskin Franklyn Leslie (March 18, 1842 – after 1920) was a U.S. Army scout, gambler, bartender, rancher, miner, gunfighter, and con-man. He was known for his fringed buckskin jacket. He became well-known in Tombstone, Arizona, for killing two men in self-defense. He married the widow of one of his victims eight days after killing her husband. Following their divorce, Leslie later shot and killed a woman he lived with at his ranch while drunk and in a fit of jealousy. He was sentenced to life in prison, but only served six years before he was pardoned. He was last listed in the U.S. Federal Census on January 27, 1920, in Sausalito, California. No public records of him have been found after this date, and it is not known when he died.
Leslie was born as "Nashville Franklyn Leslie" near San Antonio, Texas. Conflicting accounts of his early life exist. In 1913, Leslie wrote on his marriage certificate that he was the son of Bernard Leslie from Virginia, and Martha Leslie of Kentucky. The Tombstone Daily Prospector reported on July 15, 1889 that Leslie was born in Galveston, Texas in 1842 where he supposedly grew up. They stated that his father was Thomas Kennedy and his mother was Martha Leslie. The story reports that he took his mother's last name after a falling out with his father, though they did not provide any sources. In terms of his height, which is an important historical aspect for some, as stated above, he grew to 5’7”, a relatively robust height (N.B. Average height of this era is based on data which is largely unsubstantiated from an evidentiary perspective) for this era.
Nothing has been documented concerning Leslie's first 36 years, although he told some colorful and improbable stories concerning those missing years. On two separate occasions, Leslie told writers his version of incidents from his early life. In 1880, Leslie said, "in 1861 I joined the Southern Army, and continued with it till April 9th 1865, when I was attached to General Gordon's division as a First Lieutenant, in the 10th Cavalry." He claimed he "was Deputy Sheriff of Abilene... under the notorious lawman J.B. Hickok or 'Wild Bill,' "and that he was a "rough rider in Australia," and a [ship] pilot in the Fiji Islands and that he "has exhibited, as a fancy rifle shootist in different parts of the world."
In 1893, he related another story to W.H. Cameron of the San Francisco Chronicle, in which he claimed that the story of his life was a romance. Born in Virginia [sic] in 1842 of a good family, he went to Heidelberg to study medicine. At the same time, his brother attended West Point for a military education. When the Civil War broke out in 1861, Frank returned to his old home in Virginia [sic] and entered the Confederate Army as a bugler while his brother joined the Union forces.
Leslie also claimed that he served as a scout for the U.S. Army in Texas, Oklahoma, and the Dakotas during the 1870s, but no documentation has been found.
Leslie was first recorded in San Francisco in 1878 where he was employed as a barkeeper in Thomas Boland's saloon at 311 Pine Street. He lived in San Francisco at 732 Howard Street. In 1879 he was a "bookkeeper," which may have been a typo for "barkeeper," since he worked at Kerr & Jurado's Saloon & Billiard Room. The next year he was again listed as a barkeeper in the same establishment and was living at 746 Folsom Street. In mid-1880, he moved to Tombstone, Arizona.
Leslie arrived in Tombstone, in July 1880 dressed in the buckskin attire of a scout. He was 5 feet 7 inches (1.70 m) tall and weighed about 135 pounds (61 kg). When he arrived in Tombstone, he traded his frontier clothing for gentleman's attire like that worn in San Francisco. He complemented his city dress with a fringed buckskin vest that furthered his reputation as "Buckskin Frank" Leslie. In Tombstone, he entered a partnership with William H. Knapp, and opened the Cosmopolitan Saloon next door to the Cosmopolitan Hotel at 409 Allen Street.
Leslie was attracted to a chambermaid at the Cosmopolitan Hotel named Mary Jane "May" Killeen. He attended her wedding to Mike Killeen on April 13, 1880, in Tombstone, and was one of the two witnesses listed on the marriage record. Mike Killeen was jealous of the relationship between May and Leslie.
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Buckskin Frank Leslie
Buckskin Franklyn Leslie (March 18, 1842 – after 1920) was a U.S. Army scout, gambler, bartender, rancher, miner, gunfighter, and con-man. He was known for his fringed buckskin jacket. He became well-known in Tombstone, Arizona, for killing two men in self-defense. He married the widow of one of his victims eight days after killing her husband. Following their divorce, Leslie later shot and killed a woman he lived with at his ranch while drunk and in a fit of jealousy. He was sentenced to life in prison, but only served six years before he was pardoned. He was last listed in the U.S. Federal Census on January 27, 1920, in Sausalito, California. No public records of him have been found after this date, and it is not known when he died.
Leslie was born as "Nashville Franklyn Leslie" near San Antonio, Texas. Conflicting accounts of his early life exist. In 1913, Leslie wrote on his marriage certificate that he was the son of Bernard Leslie from Virginia, and Martha Leslie of Kentucky. The Tombstone Daily Prospector reported on July 15, 1889 that Leslie was born in Galveston, Texas in 1842 where he supposedly grew up. They stated that his father was Thomas Kennedy and his mother was Martha Leslie. The story reports that he took his mother's last name after a falling out with his father, though they did not provide any sources. In terms of his height, which is an important historical aspect for some, as stated above, he grew to 5’7”, a relatively robust height (N.B. Average height of this era is based on data which is largely unsubstantiated from an evidentiary perspective) for this era.
Nothing has been documented concerning Leslie's first 36 years, although he told some colorful and improbable stories concerning those missing years. On two separate occasions, Leslie told writers his version of incidents from his early life. In 1880, Leslie said, "in 1861 I joined the Southern Army, and continued with it till April 9th 1865, when I was attached to General Gordon's division as a First Lieutenant, in the 10th Cavalry." He claimed he "was Deputy Sheriff of Abilene... under the notorious lawman J.B. Hickok or 'Wild Bill,' "and that he was a "rough rider in Australia," and a [ship] pilot in the Fiji Islands and that he "has exhibited, as a fancy rifle shootist in different parts of the world."
In 1893, he related another story to W.H. Cameron of the San Francisco Chronicle, in which he claimed that the story of his life was a romance. Born in Virginia [sic] in 1842 of a good family, he went to Heidelberg to study medicine. At the same time, his brother attended West Point for a military education. When the Civil War broke out in 1861, Frank returned to his old home in Virginia [sic] and entered the Confederate Army as a bugler while his brother joined the Union forces.
Leslie also claimed that he served as a scout for the U.S. Army in Texas, Oklahoma, and the Dakotas during the 1870s, but no documentation has been found.
Leslie was first recorded in San Francisco in 1878 where he was employed as a barkeeper in Thomas Boland's saloon at 311 Pine Street. He lived in San Francisco at 732 Howard Street. In 1879 he was a "bookkeeper," which may have been a typo for "barkeeper," since he worked at Kerr & Jurado's Saloon & Billiard Room. The next year he was again listed as a barkeeper in the same establishment and was living at 746 Folsom Street. In mid-1880, he moved to Tombstone, Arizona.
Leslie arrived in Tombstone, in July 1880 dressed in the buckskin attire of a scout. He was 5 feet 7 inches (1.70 m) tall and weighed about 135 pounds (61 kg). When he arrived in Tombstone, he traded his frontier clothing for gentleman's attire like that worn in San Francisco. He complemented his city dress with a fringed buckskin vest that furthered his reputation as "Buckskin Frank" Leslie. In Tombstone, he entered a partnership with William H. Knapp, and opened the Cosmopolitan Saloon next door to the Cosmopolitan Hotel at 409 Allen Street.
Leslie was attracted to a chambermaid at the Cosmopolitan Hotel named Mary Jane "May" Killeen. He attended her wedding to Mike Killeen on April 13, 1880, in Tombstone, and was one of the two witnesses listed on the marriage record. Mike Killeen was jealous of the relationship between May and Leslie.
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