Note: Tom killed a man named Winters over a dice game in the Milford Hotel i
n 1874. A few days later, during a court hearing in Janesville he esca
ped by horseback and fled to Nevada. After spending a few hours wit
h a sheepherder in Nevada, Tom pressed on and eventually arrived and s
ettled near Pike´s Peak in Bolder, Colorado. After a short time, he se
nt for his bride of only a few months. Tom´s wife, Elizabeth or Libb
y for short, had no one to take her to Tom, so her brother, John, wh
o was only 10* at the time, took her to him by horse and buggy. This t
rip was about 900 miles long and it took them several weeks to make th
e jaunt. The Harris´ oldest child was born in Boulder.
A few years later, Tom and Libby moved onto Fort Collins where their t
wo middle children were born. They stayed in Fort Collins until abou
t 1881. At this time Tom and Libby were notified that if they returne
d home to Honey Lake Valley, Tom would in all probably be exonerated f
or the killing of Winters because it could be proven that the Grand Ju
ry which Indited him was prejudiced.
While living in Fort Collins, Tom had a armed man come into a bar he o
wned. The man pulled a pistol on Tom and it is said that Tom grabbed t
he pistol by the barrel, jumped over the bar and disarmed the man with
out incident.
Tom and Libby did return to Honey Lake Valley where Tom was exonerate
d for the killing of Winters. They moved and settled for a short tim
e in Reno, where their youngest child was born. A few years later, the
y again moved to Elko, Nevada where Tom first ranched and raised cattl
e. Several years later, he bought a hotel and bar in Elko, which he ra
n until retirement.
The escape itself is an interesting story. After a day long hearing, T
om was placed under arrest and was leaving the courtroom in the compan
y of a deputy sheriff named Parks. Joseph C. Wemple got a couple of ne
ighbors to feign a fight and during the fracas, Tom ran and jumped o
n Joseph´s favorite horse, named Bally. Bally was an excellent horse a
nd the pursuing officers couldn´t keep up with him. Tom simply outra
n his pursuers and made a clean escape.
*As hard as it might be to believe that a 10 year old boy would make s
uch a long trip with his 17 year old sister, this fact was verified b
y two completely different sources. First, the compilers brother, Dona
ld, related this. He said that he had heard it from N´s family. A fe
w years later, Murray Wemple, grandson of John, told the compiler th
e same thing. Murray said that his other grandfather, David Raker, ha
d told him the story of John taking Libby to Tom in Colorado when he w
as only 10. DRW
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HARRIS Thomas Thumb 
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