Historical Marker
Black Jack Ketchum
Clayton, Union County · New Mexico
Tom Ketchum was the only person ever hanged in Union County and the only one executed under the territory's law against felonious assault upon a railway train. Clayton had never conducted a hanging. The rope was set too long for a man who had put on weight in jail, and the drop decapitated him. He was buried in the old Boot Hill and moved in the 1930s to the town cemetery, where the grave still draws visitors. The nickname may first have belonged to another outlaw, Will Christian.
What the plaque says
Official Scenic Historic Marker Black Jack Ketchum Thomas "Black Jack" Ketchum, leader of a notorious band of train robbers, was wounded in August 1899 while trying to rob a train near Folsom. He surrendered the next day. He was tried and convicted under a law making train robbery a capital offense, and hanged at Clayton on April 26, 1901.
Where it stands
36.44134, -103.17794 · Directions
More markers nearby
- Clayton Dinosaur Trackway — steps away
- Santa Fe Trail — 1.1 mi
- Santa Fe Trail Cimarron Cutoff / Clayton — 1.2 mi
- Clayton — 1.6 mi