St. Louis Police Chief William Desmond dubbed Ben Kilpatrick “The Tall Texan” when the Wild Bunch rider was arrested in 1901. Why? It’s not clear.
But he wasn’t really that tall.
Inn 1906, prison authorities measured Ben at 5’11 and 3/8”. That was taller than Butch Cassidy, who topped out at 5’9”, or Kid Curry who was about 5’7”. But Kilpatrick was no where near guys like Pat Garrett (6’4”) or Arizona lawman Bob Paul (6’7”).
But by 1902, many sources were calling Kilpatrick “The Tall Texan.” And so the name stuck.
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