Victor B. Walker

Victor B. Walker (born 1864) was an American soldier, political activist, lawyer, civil rights activist, police officer, saloon owner, journalist, and gangster in the Old West, particularly in Omaha, Nebraska, and in Denver, Colorado, at the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th century. Before coming to Omaha, he was a Buffalo soldier on the frontier, and when he first arrived in the city, he worked as a police officer. For a short time, he owned the Omaha saloon, The Midway, a center of gambling and criminal activity in the city. As well as a working as defense lawyer, he worked for civil rights and was a member of the Omaha Afro-American League, a civil rights organization in the city.

In 1902, he had a dispute with Omaha political and criminal boss, Tom Dennison, which resulted in Walker's beating at the hands of an Omaha police and an end to his political ambitions in Omaha. He moved to Denver, Colorado, where he ran a club, "The Rocky Mountain Athletic Club". He was appointed deputy sheriff in that city and briefly ran a weekly newspaper, ''New American Weekly''. He was heavily involved in criminal activity in Omaha and Denver, particularly voting fraud and gambling, and in Denver was known as the "King of the colored underworld". Provided by Wikipedia