Tom Ketchum

Biography

Tom Ketchum lived a brief but dramatic life that became part of the lore of the American West. Born in 1863, his name later became tied to outlawry and the dangers of the frontier, yet his story also reminds us that many young men of that era were swept into circumstances they could not easily control.

He died in 1901, and while his choices led him to an unhappy end, the memory of his struggles is part of the complex tapestry of the United States’ past. His burial in the United States reflects both the notoriety and the tragedy of a life caught between lawlessness and the longing for belonging.