October 14, 1862 is the birthday of Jim Miller, known as “The Deacon” a fervent prayer-meeting type who killed for hire. The “Deacon” dressed in a black scissor-tailed coat and a bullet-proof vest. Reputed to have killed 51 people, including Sheriff Pat Garrett and Stephenville attorney and land developer, James Jarrott. Jarrott had arranged for 25 mostly Erath County families to settle land west of Lubbock. Large ranchers had been trying to keep farmers and small ranchers out of the area. A rancher hired professional gunman, the “Deacon” to hide behind a water tank and ambush Jarrott as he approached. A few settlers returned to Erath County, but most stayed on their land. The “Deacon” took a break from his line of work to sell real estate out of Fort Worth that was located in the Gulf of Mexico.

Mr. and Mrs. M. G. Abernathy, Oral History Interview, June 7, 1956, Southwest Collection, Texas Tech University, Lubbock, Texas; and Joseph Carroll McConnell, The West Texas Frontier: Or, A Descriptive History of Early Times in Western Texas, Jacksboro: Gazette Print, 1933.