For nearly thirty years, Wiley G. Haines held a commission as a U.S. deputy marshal in the Twin Territories. One of the most challenging posts in the nation. Haines protected the territories' people and also the land from exploitation. He was fluent in the Osage language and a trusted friend of the tribe, known as the "Peacemaker of the Osage." Unlike legendary lawmen Wyatt Earp, Bat Masterson, and Wild Bill Hickok, Haines was a career lawman. He was one of the most successful criminal officers in Oklahoma.
lt is difficult for us to imagine today the routine hardships and challenges Haines faced on a daily basis. Whether riding on horseback through the snow in bitter cold in pursuit of an outlaw, or facing the deadly gunfire of desperados. Haines had to be prepared for anything. He was one of the last iron men, whose epitaph reads, "An Honest Man's the Noblest Work of God," The Wiley Haines story is an exciting page from the history of Oklahoma's wild and woolly days.
