Joe "Whitey" Wilson was the alias of Albert G. Sundquist (also spelled "Sunquist"), who was born in February 1878 in Galva, Illinois, the third of nine children of Swedish immigrants Eric and Karin "Carrie" (Wexell) Sundquist.
He was living in Wyoming by Oct 1898, working as a livery hand and as a teamster. By 1900 he was going by the name "Joe Wilson," which - along with his nickname, "Whitey" (due to his towhead hair) - he went by until his death. On July 14, 1906 he was sentenced to 2 years in the Wyoming State Penitentiary for robbery after pleading guilty to stealing $12 from the Rhinoceros Restaurant in Casper, and was released four months early for good behavior on March 14, 1908.
By 1910 (and likely earlier) he was living and working as a ranch hand for "Uncle" George Smith on Smith's ranch about 10 miles north of Pinedale, Wyoming, a place identified as "Olson" on censuses and more closely connected with Cora, WY. (All were in Fremont County at the time). On the night of April 29, 1911, he was shot eight times by local rancher Burleigh Binning in Binning's ranch house. While many details differ and conflict about the circumstances and motive of the shooting, it's agreed that Binning shot him after returning home unexpectedly to find "Joe" there with his wife and her married woman friend, and despite being gravely wounded, "Joe" rode his horse to Smith's ranch about 2.5 miles away. Eventually, Dr. Frank M. Alexander was able to arrive from Pinedale and seeing the gravity of his injuries sent for a Dr. Montrose to assist with the removal of the bullets. By all accounts he fought desperately to live, and for a time was expected to (he was able to give his sworn statement of his version of events to an official the day after the shooting). But he succumbed to his wounds (or more likely their infection) on the night of May 2, 1911 and was buried in the Pinedale Cemetery on May 5, his burial arranged and paid for by "Uncle" George Smith.
Word of his death was sent to his widowed mother, Carrie Sundquist in Galva, and Albert's brother Frank Victor Sundquist and brother-in-law Henry Trout traveled from Galva to Pinedale to learn more about his shooting and death and to bring his body home for burial (changing their minds when assured he'd been properly buried). Henry, along with Albert's mother and sister Anna (Henry's wife) made the trip to Lander, Wyoming the following month for Binning's trial, at which the jury found Binning not guilty of either charge of 2nd degree murder or manslaughter after deliberating less than 20 minutes. It was, apparently, a divisive and controversial case and outcome, with wildly differing and changing accounts, inaccuracies both major and minor, and often blatant bias in the newspaper accounts in both Galva and Wyoming. It's probable that many of the facts will never be known.
Interestingly, the Illinois papers never mention Albert's alias and the Wyoming papers never mention his real name nor those of most of his family members, except one article that identifies his brother Frank V. Sundquist as Frank V. Wilson.
Unfortunately, as of March 2022 no inquest nor death certificate for Albert/"Joe" has been found. Wyoming began recording death certificates by 1909/1910 and they are still being archived. The fact that he was attended by physicians and that his death necessitated a trial strongly suggest one or both such records exist but are yet to be found. Likewise, there is no birth record for him, as per the Henry County (Illinois) Clerk's office births before 1916 were not required to be recorded with the county & they couldn't find one for Albert. But his 1906 prison record gives his birthdate as February 1878, putting him between his siblings Anna and Frank in the birth order, and making him 33 years old when he died. Records indicate he never married.
He was living in Wyoming by Oct 1898, working as a livery hand and as a teamster. By 1900 he was going by the name "Joe Wilson," which - along with his nickname, "Whitey" (due to his towhead hair) - he went by until his death. On July 14, 1906 he was sentenced to 2 years in the Wyoming State Penitentiary for robbery after pleading guilty to stealing $12 from the Rhinoceros Restaurant in Casper, and was released four months early for good behavior on March 14, 1908.
By 1910 (and likely earlier) he was living and working as a ranch hand for "Uncle" George Smith on Smith's ranch about 10 miles north of Pinedale, Wyoming, a place identified as "Olson" on censuses and more closely connected with Cora, WY. (All were in Fremont County at the time). On the night of April 29, 1911, he was shot eight times by local rancher Burleigh Binning in Binning's ranch house. While many details differ and conflict about the circumstances and motive of the shooting, it's agreed that Binning shot him after returning home unexpectedly to find "Joe" there with his wife and her married woman friend, and despite being gravely wounded, "Joe" rode his horse to Smith's ranch about 2.5 miles away. Eventually, Dr. Frank M. Alexander was able to arrive from Pinedale and seeing the gravity of his injuries sent for a Dr. Montrose to assist with the removal of the bullets. By all accounts he fought desperately to live, and for a time was expected to (he was able to give his sworn statement of his version of events to an official the day after the shooting). But he succumbed to his wounds (or more likely their infection) on the night of May 2, 1911 and was buried in the Pinedale Cemetery on May 5, his burial arranged and paid for by "Uncle" George Smith.
Word of his death was sent to his widowed mother, Carrie Sundquist in Galva, and Albert's brother Frank Victor Sundquist and brother-in-law Henry Trout traveled from Galva to Pinedale to learn more about his shooting and death and to bring his body home for burial (changing their minds when assured he'd been properly buried). Henry, along with Albert's mother and sister Anna (Henry's wife) made the trip to Lander, Wyoming the following month for Binning's trial, at which the jury found Binning not guilty of either charge of 2nd degree murder or manslaughter after deliberating less than 20 minutes. It was, apparently, a divisive and controversial case and outcome, with wildly differing and changing accounts, inaccuracies both major and minor, and often blatant bias in the newspaper accounts in both Galva and Wyoming. It's probable that many of the facts will never be known.
Interestingly, the Illinois papers never mention Albert's alias and the Wyoming papers never mention his real name nor those of most of his family members, except one article that identifies his brother Frank V. Sundquist as Frank V. Wilson.
Unfortunately, as of March 2022 no inquest nor death certificate for Albert/"Joe" has been found. Wyoming began recording death certificates by 1909/1910 and they are still being archived. The fact that he was attended by physicians and that his death necessitated a trial strongly suggest one or both such records exist but are yet to be found. Likewise, there is no birth record for him, as per the Henry County (Illinois) Clerk's office births before 1916 were not required to be recorded with the county & they couldn't find one for Albert. But his 1906 prison record gives his birthdate as February 1878, putting him between his siblings Anna and Frank in the birth order, and making him 33 years old when he died. Records indicate he never married.
Joe "Whitey" Wilson was the alias of Albert G. Sundquist (also spelled "Sunquist"), who was born in February 1878 in Galva, Illinois, the third of nine children of Swedish immigrants Eric and Karin "Carrie" (Wexell) Sundquist.
He was living in Wyoming by Oct 1898, working as a livery hand and as a teamster. By 1900 he was going by the name "Joe Wilson," which - along with his nickname, "Whitey" (due to his towhead hair) - he went by until his death. On July 14, 1906 he was sentenced to 2 years in the Wyoming State Penitentiary for robbery after pleading guilty to stealing $12 from the Rhinoceros Restaurant in Casper, and was released four months early for good behavior on March 14, 1908.
By 1910 (and likely earlier) he was living and working as a ranch hand for "Uncle" George Smith on Smith's ranch about 10 miles north of Pinedale, Wyoming, a place identified as "Olson" on censuses and more closely connected with Cora, WY. (All were in Fremont County at the time). On the night of April 29, 1911, he was shot eight times by local rancher Burleigh Binning in Binning's ranch house. While many details differ and conflict about the circumstances and motive of the shooting, it's agreed that Binning shot him after returning home unexpectedly to find "Joe" there with his wife and her married woman friend, and despite being gravely wounded, "Joe" rode his horse to Smith's ranch about 2.5 miles away. Eventually, Dr. Frank M. Alexander was able to arrive from Pinedale and seeing the gravity of his injuries sent for a Dr. Montrose to assist with the removal of the bullets. By all accounts he fought desperately to live, and for a time was expected to (he was able to give his sworn statement of his version of events to an official the day after the shooting). But he succumbed to his wounds (or more likely their infection) on the night of May 2, 1911 and was buried in the Pinedale Cemetery on May 5, his burial arranged and paid for by "Uncle" George Smith.
Word of his death was sent to his widowed mother, Carrie Sundquist in Galva, and Albert's brother Frank Victor Sundquist and brother-in-law Henry Trout traveled from Galva to Pinedale to learn more about his shooting and death and to bring his body home for burial (changing their minds when assured he'd been properly buried). Henry, along with Albert's mother and sister Anna (Henry's wife) made the trip to Lander, Wyoming the following month for Binning's trial, at which the jury found Binning not guilty of either charge of 2nd degree murder or manslaughter after deliberating less than 20 minutes. It was, apparently, a divisive and controversial case and outcome, with wildly differing and changing accounts, inaccuracies both major and minor, and often blatant bias in the newspaper accounts in both Galva and Wyoming. It's probable that many of the facts will never be known.
Interestingly, the Illinois papers never mention Albert's alias and the Wyoming papers never mention his real name nor those of most of his family members, except one article that identifies his brother Frank V. Sundquist as Frank V. Wilson.
Unfortunately, as of March 2022 no inquest nor death certificate for Albert/"Joe" has been found. Wyoming began recording death certificates by 1909/1910 and they are still being archived. The fact that he was attended by physicians and that his death necessitated a trial strongly suggest one or both such records exist but are yet to be found. Likewise, there is no birth record for him, as per the Henry County (Illinois) Clerk's office births before 1916 were not required to be recorded with the county & they couldn't find one for Albert. But his 1906 prison record gives his birthdate as February 1878, putting him between his siblings Anna and Frank in the birth order, and making him 33 years old when he died. Records indicate he never married.
He was living in Wyoming by Oct 1898, working as a livery hand and as a teamster. By 1900 he was going by the name "Joe Wilson," which - along with his nickname, "Whitey" (due to his towhead hair) - he went by until his death. On July 14, 1906 he was sentenced to 2 years in the Wyoming State Penitentiary for robbery after pleading guilty to stealing $12 from the Rhinoceros Restaurant in Casper, and was released four months early for good behavior on March 14, 1908.
By 1910 (and likely earlier) he was living and working as a ranch hand for "Uncle" George Smith on Smith's ranch about 10 miles north of Pinedale, Wyoming, a place identified as "Olson" on censuses and more closely connected with Cora, WY. (All were in Fremont County at the time). On the night of April 29, 1911, he was shot eight times by local rancher Burleigh Binning in Binning's ranch house. While many details differ and conflict about the circumstances and motive of the shooting, it's agreed that Binning shot him after returning home unexpectedly to find "Joe" there with his wife and her married woman friend, and despite being gravely wounded, "Joe" rode his horse to Smith's ranch about 2.5 miles away. Eventually, Dr. Frank M. Alexander was able to arrive from Pinedale and seeing the gravity of his injuries sent for a Dr. Montrose to assist with the removal of the bullets. By all accounts he fought desperately to live, and for a time was expected to (he was able to give his sworn statement of his version of events to an official the day after the shooting). But he succumbed to his wounds (or more likely their infection) on the night of May 2, 1911 and was buried in the Pinedale Cemetery on May 5, his burial arranged and paid for by "Uncle" George Smith.
Word of his death was sent to his widowed mother, Carrie Sundquist in Galva, and Albert's brother Frank Victor Sundquist and brother-in-law Henry Trout traveled from Galva to Pinedale to learn more about his shooting and death and to bring his body home for burial (changing their minds when assured he'd been properly buried). Henry, along with Albert's mother and sister Anna (Henry's wife) made the trip to Lander, Wyoming the following month for Binning's trial, at which the jury found Binning not guilty of either charge of 2nd degree murder or manslaughter after deliberating less than 20 minutes. It was, apparently, a divisive and controversial case and outcome, with wildly differing and changing accounts, inaccuracies both major and minor, and often blatant bias in the newspaper accounts in both Galva and Wyoming. It's probable that many of the facts will never be known.
Interestingly, the Illinois papers never mention Albert's alias and the Wyoming papers never mention his real name nor those of most of his family members, except one article that identifies his brother Frank V. Sundquist as Frank V. Wilson.
Unfortunately, as of March 2022 no inquest nor death certificate for Albert/"Joe" has been found. Wyoming began recording death certificates by 1909/1910 and they are still being archived. The fact that he was attended by physicians and that his death necessitated a trial strongly suggest one or both such records exist but are yet to be found. Likewise, there is no birth record for him, as per the Henry County (Illinois) Clerk's office births before 1916 were not required to be recorded with the county & they couldn't find one for Albert. But his 1906 prison record gives his birthdate as February 1878, putting him between his siblings Anna and Frank in the birth order, and making him 33 years old when he died. Records indicate he never married.
