36. The Deadly Deacon
Jim Hardin could be seen as a representative of the early era of Wild West outlaws. Bookending the close of that era are the likes of James Brown Miller (1861 – 1909), also known as “Deacon Jim” because he neither smoked nor drank, and regularly attended the Methodist Church. Another of his nicknames was “Killer Miller“, because, well… for a seemingly straitlaced teetotaler, Miller sure killed a lot of people.
Deacon Jim put on an air of respectability, and liked to go about impeccably dressed. However, he was a wolf in sheep’s clothing, having killed a dozen people in gunfights. He reportedly gunned down many more during a violent career in which he was an outlaw, a lawman, a Texas Ranger, and a killer for hire.