The Hanging of Diamond L Slim Clifton

The Hanging of Diamond L Slim Clifton. Wyoming. In the 1890s, William C. Clifton, a well known cowboy nicknamed "Diamond L Slim," had a homestead near Gillette, Wyoming. While visiting his family and friends in Council Bluffs, Iowa he met a young couple, John and Luella Church. A friendship immediately developed. Clifton convinced the Churches to move to Wyoming and homestead next to him., Initially, Clifton and the Churches were good neighbors. But, in late 1902, their friendship quickly soured over a monetary debt Clifton owed to his neighbors. Shortly thereafter, nothing more was heard from or about the couple. In the spring of 1903, an inquisitive neighbor found Clifton rummaging through the Church's house and possessions. Because Clifton's behavior and explanations for his actions seemed suspicious, and because the Churches could not be located, authorities were notified. On April 17, 1903, Clifton was arrested for the murder of Luella and John Church. A long interrogation followed. Slim denied any wrong doing, but after numerous pleadings from county officials and Luella's parents, Slim confessed and drew a map to their common grave., Local people were incensed by the deaths of the well-liked couple, and talk of lynching was rampant. For Clifton's safety, officials moved him from Gillette to Newcastle to await trial, but this protective measure proved of no avail. Sometime past midnight on May 27, 1903, vigilantes stormed the jail, took Clifton from Sheriff Billy Miller at gun point, and dragged Clifton to a bridge on the main track to the Cambria Mining Company. Masked men slipped the noose around Clifton's neck and dropped him from the bridge, neatly decapitating him in the process. Clifton was later buried in a pauper's grave, in Newcastle.