Killings of Ben Thompson and King Fisher at the Vaudeville Theater

Background

King Fisher and Ben Thompson were well-known gunmen in the American Old West. By 1884, Thompson had been involved in several killings, including the 1882 fatal shooting of San Antonio theater owner Jack Harris, which was ruled self-defense following his acquittal on January 30, 1883. Thompson had served as Chief of Police in Austin, Texas, resigning after being cleared in the Harris case. Fisher, also a noted gunman, had recently left the office of sheriff for Uvalde County and had settled into ranching near Leakey, Texas. He was a close friend of Thompson's.

Jack Harris had built the Vaudeville Variety Theater into the most popular establishment in San Antonio's "Sporting District," the city's red-light district. Tension between Thompson and Harris arose after a 1880 gambling dispute at the Vaudeville led to Harris and his partner, Joe Foster, barring Thompson from the establishment. On July 11, 1882, Thompson returned to the Vaudeville despite the warning. After a tense exchange in which Harris was found holding a shotgun, Thompson shot and killed him. Thompson was indicted on September 6, 1882, tried in San Antonio, and acquitted in January 1883, a verdict that divided public opinion and left lasting animosity among Harris's associates, including Joe Foster.

The Ambush

On March 11, 1884, Fisher and Thompson, both in San Antonio on business, attended a play together and later went to the Vaudeville Variety Theater around 10:30 p.m., accompanied by local lawman Jacob Coy. Thompson sought to speak with Joe Foster, who was now the theater's owner. Foster refused to speak with Thompson, and shortly afterward, gunfire erupted from another theater box. Thompson and Fisher were shot; Thompson was reportedly shot again in the head after falling, and Fisher was shot thirteen times. Both men died. Coy was seriously wounded and left permanently disabled. Foster, in trying to draw his own weapon during the initial gunfire, accidentally shot himself in the leg; the leg was later amputated, and he died from blood loss during the procedure.

Accounts of the shooting were contradictory and came largely from those opposed to Thompson or from the attackers themselves. Early claims that Thompson had drawn on Foster first were later disputed, and it was established that Thompson and Fisher had no advance knowledge of the attack.

Aftermath

Despite public calls—both within San Antonio and from other parts of Texas—for a grand jury indictment, no legal action was taken against those involved in the ambush. Fisher was initially buried on his ranch and later reinterred at Pioneer Cemetery in Uvalde, Texas. Thompson's body was returned to Austin, where his funeral drew a large crowd, and he was buried at Oakwood Cemetery.