In Wyoming in the 1880s, the open range was controlled by cattle kings. Some powerful stockgrowers saw rustling as a problem, while others were equally concerned about the influx of small operators using government land grants that threatened the open range. In late November 1891, John A. Tisdale, one of the small operators, was dry-gulched in a gully just north and east of this spot as he returned home from a shopping trip to Buffalo. Locals were outraged by the killing of this respected family man. Frank Canton, a former Johnson County sheriff, was accused of the murder but was never brought to trial. Stock detectives such as Canton were hired by the Wyoming Stock Growers Association to protect large herds and intimidate would-be ranchers. This incident, coupled with the murder of Orley E. Jones a few days earlier, set the stage for the infamous invasion of Johnson County in April 1892.