Lawman and gambler Bat Masterson became a leading sports writer and columnist

Bat Masterson was another lawman in the West who also hunted buffalo and served as an army scout in the plains. He took part in a number of shootouts, both as a private citizen as a deputy sheriff in Dodge City, Kansas, about various issues. He was elected sheriff of Ford County, Kansas, in 1877. A well-known gunslinger and one of the most feared men in the west, Bat built a solid reputation for himself.

Bat, whose real name was Bartholomew, traveled around the West and made a name for himself there. He established Denver as his base of operations by the middle of the 1880s, working as a gambler and theater proprietor. He became a reputable authority on the sport of boxing due to his interest in it. He relocated to New York City in 1895 to work as a hired gun for George Gould, the infamous Jay Gould's son. The New York Morning Telegraph's sports column by Masterson was started there.

In the end, Masterson's column covered local and federal politics in addition to sports. He was selected by Theodore Roosevelt to serve as the deputy US marshal for Southern New York. For the remainder of his life, Masterson continued to write a column that ran three days per week. A newspaperman to the end, he passed away in 1921 while seated at his desk at the Morning Telegraph.

Born: November 26, 1853Henryville, Quebec, Canada East
Died: October 25, 1921 (aged 67)New York City, U.S.