The Wild, Wild West, Part II

Ed McLaughlin as a boy

Although while we were growing up we did not hear much about the past history of our father's family, I do remember a few stories. Many years ago I wrote down what I remembered hearing, but, remember, I was a child when I heard them.

From Granddad Ed McLaughlin himself I heard the "Fat Boy" story:

When Ed McLaughlin was a boy, he was out riding his pony alone one day. He saw some Indians approaching and was afraid that they would steal his pony from him. I don't remember if they had actually made any threatening move toward him, or if it was just his boyish fears. He rode away as quickly as he could and felt like he'd made a great escape. A few days later he was in town and passed an Indian on the street. The man smiled and commented, "Fat boy ride fast."

Another story also involved an escape--this time a jail break. We heard this from our Dad, but it is also one of the stories he wrote down in his correspondence with his cousin Pat Childs. He tells it there better than I would remember it from my childhood:

Ed McLaughlin as a young man

Boyhood photo of Mack

About Uncle Mack--he was just a boy working on a railroad grade gang. A guy robbed a jewelry story and hid the loot under Mack's bed, so they locked him [Mack] up. He was shackled to a bull ring in the jail. Dad [Ed McLaughlin] and another guy chopped through the roof, cut the chain with an ax, then took him to a blacksmith shop and cut the shackles off. Dad gave him a horse and saddle, $40.00 and a .45. That's the last time they were ever together. [In another letter, Daddy said this jail they broke Mack out of was Pat Garrett's jail.]

(It is nice to know that Mack settled in Idaho in 1910, raised a family there, held responsible jobs for the City, and died a respected citizen in 1956 at age 72.)

More wild west stories will be told later!