Richard M. Brewer - The Lincoln County War

The Lincoln County War

On February 18, 1878, a turning point in the rivalry happened when Tunstall was murdered. After Tunstall's murder, a posse was deputized to serve arrest warrants on his killers, with Brewer chosen to lead the posse. The Regulators originated from that posse, and included Billy the Kid and Jose Chavez y Chavez. The forty-five gunmen who were chosen were, according to legend, among the best killers in the west. Brewer allegedly formed the group, and was himself a member.

Dick Brewer established a bond of friendship with Billy the Kid, Chavez and the rest of Billy the Kid's gang, and he was often accompanied by gang members. Being one of the founders of the Regulators, Brewer sometimes assumed a leadership role when around Billy, Chavez and the rest of their company, and was the first leader of the Regulators during the early stages of the Lincoln County War. The pair remained friends until Brewer's death, and evidently he followed Brewer's lead. Brewer was the most mature of the group, by all accounts, and the rest of the Regulators accepted him in that role.

The confirmed killings claimed to have been carried out by the Regulators during Brewer's period as leader were those of Sheriff William Brady, William Morton, deputy George W. Hindman, lawman/outlaw Frank Baker, Buckshot Roberts, and fellow Regulator William McCloskey, whom the Regulators believed to have betrayed them. Brewer did not agree with the killing of Sheriff Brady and Deputy Hindman, but supported and participated in the other murders.

Although most of those killed by the Regulators throughout their existence were publicly credited to Billy the Kid, most historians agree that there are doubts as to whether he was the actual killer in most cases, and agree that often their victims were killed during a shootout, with many members of the Regulators firing at the same time, including Brewer. It was, however, Billy the Kid that became best known, and through whose notoriety, the fame of the Regulators spread. Brewer was killed by an old buffalo hunter, Buckshot Roberts, during the Gunfight of Blazer's Mills, on April 4, 1878, during which five other Regulators were wounded. Buckshot Roberts was also killed during the gunfight, either by a shot fired by George Coe, whose finger was shot off by Roberts, or Charlie Bowdre.