Canton, Frank M.

Publication: Unknown Photographer, Circa 1900-1910, NP

Photograph Postcard 5.5"x3.5". Frank Canton is standing at the head of his horse, holding the bridle. Canton is in a hat with an overcoat. His horse is saddled, with rifle in the scabbard. F. M. Canton imprinted at bottom edge of image. Lawman Frank Canton was born Josiah W. "Joe" Horner in Virginia in 1849.His family moved to Texas and as a teenager Horner became a cowboy, trailing cattle to Kansas for Texas cattleman, Burke Burnett. From 1871 to 1878 Horner engaged in a variety of illegal activities, becoming a fugitive from justice. Jailed in 1877 for robbing a Comanche, Texas bank, he soon escaped and helped drive a cattle herd to Nebraska. Deciding to join the side of law and order, Horner changed his name to Frank M. Canton and accepted a position with the powerful Wyoming Stock Growers Association. In 1882 he was elected sheriff of Johnson County, Wyoming, serving 4 years before again accepting employment with the Wyoming Stock Growers Association. He was a major figure in the Johnson County Range War of 1892. Canton moved to Oklahoma Territory in 1894 and served as undersheriff in Pawnee County and deputy U.S. marshal under the famous Judge Isaac Parker. In 1897 Canton joined the Gold Rush to Alaska, eventually returning to Oklahoma where he lived-out a career in various law enforcement capacities. Frank M. Canton died on September 27, 1927.