Murder on the White Sands: The Disappearance of Albert and Henry Fountain

by Corey Recko

Overview

On a cold February evening in 1896, prominent attorney Col. Albert Jennings Fountain and his eight-year-old son Henry disappeared near the White Sands of New Mexico. The governor called in both the Pinkerton Agency and Pat Garrett, killer of Billy the Kid, to investigate. The evidence pointed at three men, former deputies William McNew, James Gililland, and Oliver Lee. These three men, however, were very close to powerful ex-judge, lawyer, and politician Albert B. Fall, said by some to be the mastermind behind the plot to kill Fountain.

During the trial, Albert Fall defended the accused men. Missing witnesses plagued the prosecution, and armed supporters of the defendants packed the courtroom, intimidating others. The verdict: not guilty. The bodies of Albert Fountain and his young son Henry still lie in an unmarked grave, the location of which remains a mystery. Corey Recko tells for the first time the complete story of the Fountains and, through extensive research, reconstructs what really happened to them and who the likely killers were.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781574412543
Publisher:	University of North Texas Press
Publication date:	06/30/2008
Series:	A.C. Greene Series , #5
Pages:	256
Sales rank:	1,013,146
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 10.88(h) x 0.73(d)

About the Author

Corey Recko is an avid reader of history with an extensive knowledge of late nineteenth-century New Mexico. His interest in the Fountain case led to six years of research and writing. He lives in Lakewood, Ohio. 

Table of Contents

List of Illustrations and Maps     vi
Acknowledgments     vii
Introduction     1
Albert Jennings Fountain     3
Enter Albert B. Fall and Other Men of Note     11
The Disappearance     20
Pat Garrett Summoned     30
Bring in the Pinkertons     36
Assistance from Fall     53
Decision in the Sheriff's Contest     67
Exit John Fraser     75
William B. Sayers     82
Ed Brown     87
Indictments     101
Shootout at Wildy Well     108
The Trial     117
Jack Maxwell Testifies     130
Garrett Takes the Stand     139
The Prosecution Closes     154
The Defense and Rebuttal     160
Closing Arguments and the Verdict     172
In Conclusion     188
Epilogues     199
Notes     205
Sources     226
Index     232

What People are Saying About This

Frederick Nolan

This is the most comprehensive examination of all the evidence I've ever seen. (Frederick Nolan, author of The Lincoln County War)

Leon Metz

I have never seen such a beautifully researched piece. This is the kind of book I wish I had written. (Leon Metz, author of Pat Garrett)

Editorial Reviews

"This is the ‘ultimate’ Pat Garrett/A.J. Fountain, West Texas/Southern New Mexico book. I have never seen such a beautifully researched piece. This is the kind of book I wish I had written."—Leon Metz, author of Pat Garrett and John Wesley Hardin

"This is the most comprehensive examination of all the evidence I've ever seen."—Frederick Nolan, author of The Lincoln County War and The West of Billy the Kid

"Recko is to be commended for drawing his information almost entirely from primary sources, using secondary sources sparingly. He brings together for the first time all the available information on the subject, and in a final chapter provides his conclusions with regard to the affair."—Robert K. DeArment, author of Bat Masterson and editor of Life of the Marlows

"The story moves along like detective fiction, with chapters on the various aspects of the murders, investigation and trial . . . [T]his is the most comprehensive treatment of the disappearance of the Fountains, still a topic of speculation to this day."—New Mexico Magazine

From the Publisher