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A WESTERN SHOOT- OUT
in ARCADIA, FLORIDA 
This Pistol was used by Great Grandfather James Madison Williams in a shoot out that ended on the streets in the town of Arcadia, FL.
He was the first Marshall of Fort Ogden. The gun fight involved Claude Jones-Mayor of town Arcadia and both survived the gun fight which started over a closing a saloon in town.
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The Pioneer Shoot-Out on Oak Street, Recalled
 
Carrie Parler-Gibson and Claude L. Jones
The hatchet has finally been buried. Descendants of two Desoto County's pioneers who staged a real-life gunfight on Arcadia's Main Street met at last to confirm
that hard feelings concerning the incident have not survived the years. Carrie C. Gibson headed immediately for Arcadia to meet with Claude Jones when she heard of the incident.
It was during the late 1800's when Jones' g-grandfather, John L. Jones, was mayor of a very young Arcadia. This growing cow town and its county was in the midst of important changes; as it was in
1887 that Desoto County came to be when it was sliced from old Manatee county. It was also around this time that the county seat was moved from Pine Level to Arcadia, which happened in 1889.
Jones was a member of the statewide Anti-Saloon League, an organization that had succeeded in closing the doors of every such establishment in Arcadia except one. This saloon belonged to and was
run by James Madison Williams, g-grandfather of Mrs. Gibson. He simply refused to close shop.
Arcadia was not unlike the boisterous cow towns of the wild west, as pony races down Main Street and cowboys waving pistols were not uncommon sights. The county also had its share of rustling and
hangings. A recent revival at the local Baptist Church no doubt had the community 100 percent behind Jones and his cause. Well aware of Williams' stubbornness, the mayor knew it was time to
take drastic measures.
The lone saloon was located approximately where the Arcadia Stationers store stands today, featuring a wide, garage-type door on its Southside that opened onto Main Street. Jones entered the
hardware store directly across the street from the saloon and purchased a few sticks of dynamite. Swinging into the saddle, he reined his horse back across Main Street, up onto the wooden sidewalk
and into Williams' establishment. Brandishing a Colt 44 Russian Officer's revolver, the saloon owner backed the mayor and his horse out of the building, and wounded him with a shot in the left wrist.
Jones took refuge in the hardware store as the street cleared of passerby, and the standoff began. The exchange of lead between the two men lasted anywhere from 15 minutes to an hour, depending
upon who tells it. Jones answered the roar of Williams' 44 with shots from his own .32 single shot derringer. The mayor's aim was truer, and a hit to the saloon owner's elbow followed by one
to his jaw ended the gunfight.
The saga continued when Williams' brothers caught wind of the incident. These men, members of a prominent Lee County family, boarded a train with vengeance on their minds. Converging
at the home of their wounded brother, they made plans to confront Jones and settle the matter. James Madison Williams persuaded his brothers to let sleeping dogs lie, informing them that it would
not be just Jones that they would be facing, but the entire town.
Meanwhile, the mayor was waiting at his courthouse office with a 30/30 rifle for a confrontation that never happened. The saloon doors were closed and Williams left town. Many locals thought that
the heroic Jones should campaign for the position of governor, but he was content with the country life, and the quiet surroundings it generally afforded.
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