A murderer to most, a folk hero to some, but one of the true legends of the Old West was the violent gunslinger John Wesley Hardin. Over the past centuries, Hardin made many appearances in literature and film, from Larry McMurty’s Streets of Laredo to numerous appearances on television where he has been loosely portrayed.
Heck, his business card was even featured in Pawn Stars.
And those of a certain age may remember Hardin from old Time-Life book commercials which prominently featured the cold-blooded gunslinger for shooting a man just for snoring.
Let’s take a look at eight interesting facts about one of the Old West’s most infamous outlaws.
1. John Wesley Hardin’s dad wanted him to be a preacher.
It may come as a surprise, but one of the most prolific killers of the Old West was named after a man of the cloth.
John Wesley Hardin was born in Bonham, Texas in 1853. His father, Reverend John Gibson Hardin, and mother, Mary Elizabeth Dixon, had high hopes for their second son, whom they named after John Wesley, the founder of the Methodist branch of Protestantism.
