Hickok stood here.

Stand Where a Man Was Killed by Wild Bill Hickok

Springfield, Missouri

America's first Wild West shootout took place in Springfield's Park Central Square, late in the afternoon of July 21, 1865. Davis "Little Dave" Tutt and James "Wild Bill" Hickok faced off and, frankly, neither should have hit each other firing heavy 1865 revolvers from a distance of 225 feet. Tutt missed, but Hickok steadied his right wrist with his left hand and shot Tutt straight through, killing him almost instantly.

Tutt's crime? He was showing off the pocket watch that Hickok had given him earlier that day to pay off a gambling debt.

In modern times, Springfield has embedded two brass disks in the Square; one marks where Hickok fired, one where Tutt fell. Both are scraped clean by countless feet. A plaque on the southwest corner of the square gives details of the duel.

Tourists who stand on Tutt and Hickok's spots in Park Central Square should still be on the lookout -- not for gunslingers, but for traffic.

Also see: Wild Bill Hickok's Death Chair

Stand Where a Man Was Killed by Wild Bill Hickok

Address:: Park Central Square, Springfield, MO
Directions:: The engraved disks are set into the pavement of Park Central Square (the street that circles the city square). Tutt's disk is on the northwest side of the square, toward the outer edge of the roadway, just below the "A" of letters inset into the pavement that spell "FIRE LANE." Hickok's disk is on the southeast side of the square, on the inner edge of the roadway, just east of South Ave. and the brick pedestrian walkway across Park Central Square.
RA Rates:: Worth a Detour

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