Hank Vaughan, Oregon Rustler
On December 21, 1881, showed up at Graham's saloon in Prineville, Oregon. He had heard vigilante committees were making things tough on rustlers. He talked to Charlie Long, who was rumored to work for Colonel Thompson, leader of the committee. They played cards for awhile before the game began to get rough. Graham broke it up before it got out of hand. Long and Vaughan met again at Til Glaze's saloon. Vaughan was insulted when Long refused to drink when he bought a round. Words escalated into gunplay. Long shot first but just grazed his head. Vaughan hit Long four times. Before he collapsed, Long hit Vaughan in the chest. Both men survived. After his recovery, Vaughn was tried at The Dalles and was acquitted since he proved Long fired first.
Afterward, he moved to Wood River, near Hailey, Idaho. There he met up with Martha Robie, a widow. She had finances inherited from her husband. She was also eligible for reservation land at Umatilla because her mother was a Nez Perce. He set up a farm on Martha's property on the Umatilla Reservation, on Wildhorse Creek about halfway between Walla Walla and Pendleton.
Vaughan soon got a reputation for foiling train robbers. One time three men got on the train and started collecting valuables from the passengers. What they got from Hank was lead. They changed their plans and ran off the train. The railroad awarded him for his deeds with a lifetime pass. He was also known for his skill and daring in driving a horse and buggy. But he did have some mishaps, which wrecked his buggy and amused the townspeople.
He still rustled from time to time. He branded new cattle not yet branded with the owner's own mark. He also started driving the herds at night. He used his family members and those of his ex-wife Lois McCarty to keep an eye out for the law and to provide way stations along his route. In 1886, Bill Falwell shot Vaughan and seriously injured his right arm, because Vaughan had earlier humiliated him at a saloon. He also got into trouble when he beat up a man he caught cheating at cards. Before the case came to trial, he bribed the principal witness to stay away from court.
Later that year Vaughan sold his ranch on the reservation for a tidy profit. They lived in Centerville, where he continued
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