James W. Harris (1863-1897) & Judge George Bruce Gerald (1836-1914) duel site

James W. Harris (1863-1897) & Judge George Bruce Gerald (1836-1914) duel site


Waco, Texas (TX), US
Marker Text:
(November 19, 1897)
James W. Harris (1863-1897), editor of Waco's "Time -Herald" and Judge George Bruce Gerald (1836-1914) argued over an article the Judge wrote. It supported William Cowper Brann's controversial magazine, "The Iconoclast", which denounced, among other things, Baptists and Baylor University. After a fist fight which Harris won, the Judge distributed a handbill branding Harris "a liar, coward and cur" and challenged him to a duel. Harris and his brother met Judge Gerald near this intersection in a pistol battle. The Harrises were killed and the Judge wounded. Judge Gerald won reelection in 1900.

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There is some confusion regarding Judge Gerald's birth year. The year on the Texas historical marker and the Find A Grave page is 1836, but the image of the headstone the year is 1835 for Judge Gerald and 1836 for his wife, Omega, is 1836. See links below.
Marker Text:
(November 19, 1897)
James W. Harris (1863-1897), editor of Waco's "Time -Herald" and Judge George Bruce Gerald (1836-1914) argued over an article the Judge wrote. It supported William Cowper Brann's controversial magazine, "The Iconoclast", which denounced, among other things, Baptists and Baylor University. After a fist fight which Harris won, the Judge distributed a handbill branding Harris "a liar, coward and cur" and challenged him to a duel. Harris and his brother met Judge Gerald near this intersection in a pistol battle. The Harrises were killed and the Judge wounded. Judge Gerald won reelection in 1900.

There is some confusion regarding Judge Gerald's birth year. The year on the Texas historical marker and the Find A Grave page is 1836, but the image of the headstone the year is 1835 for Judge Gerald and 1836 for his wife, Omega, is 1836. See links below.
View in Google Earth Events - Historical
Links: www.waymarking.com, www.findagrave.com, images.findagrave.com
By: WacoKidd110

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Anonymous
@ 2018-10-15 22:13:54
Judge Gerald was one of my relatives. His headstone says he was born in 1935. This page shows the year as 1936.

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