𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐍𝐨𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐨𝐮𝐬 𝐓𝐰𝐨-𝐆𝐮𝐧 𝐁𝐮𝐜𝐤 𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐫
𝐁𝐚𝐝𝐠𝐞, 𝐁𝐨𝐭𝐭𝐥𝐞 𝐑𝐚𝐢𝐝𝐬, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐇𝐚𝐫𝐝 𝐄𝐝𝐠𝐞𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐡𝐢𝐛𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧

Henry Ben “Buck” Starr was born March 9, 1884, and married Mamie Bruner on October 27, 1915. Starr was Native American, believed to have been Cherokee, and his family’s ties to Indian Territory ran deep. Two of his children, Gibson and Josephine, attended the Chilocco Indian School, one of the federal Indian boarding schools that operated in the region and profoundly—and often painfully—shaped generations of Native families.

Starr’s own life would take him into another defining chapter of Oklahoma history.
During the rough-and-tumble years of the 1920s and early 1930s, Osage County lawmen operated in a world where oil money flowed freely, liquor flowed illegally, and violence often followed both. Few deputies embodied that era more fully than Buck Starr—a county deputy who would later become a federal officer and spend much of his career on the front lines of Prohibition enforcement.

Starr was appointed an Osage County Deputy Sheriff in October 1925, entering service at a time when the Osage Hills were crowded with bootleggers, car thieves, fugitives, and desperate men willing to shoot their way out of an arrest.

The job offered little comfort and even less certainty. Deputies worked long hours across one of Oklahoma’s largest counties, often traveling on isolated roads and confronting armed suspects with limited backup or communication. The danger was considerable, while the pay was modest. Records from 1926 and 1927 show Starr earning approximately $140 per month as a deputy.

For Buck Starr, however, the badge was only the beginning.

His career would soon carry him beyond the Osage County Sheriff’s Office and into federal service, placing him directly in the violent struggle between lawmen and the bootleggers who made illegal whiskey a thriving business during Prohibition.

𝗔 𝗗𝗲𝗽𝘂𝘁𝘆 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗟𝗶𝗻𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝗙𝗶𝗿𝗲

Almost from the beginning, Buck Starr’s job placed him squarely in harm’s way. On January 1, 1925, before his official appointment had even fully settled, Starr was among the jailer’s taken hostage when five inmates overpowered guards at gunpoint. The escapees forced Starr and other jail staff into the jail bull pens and fled—an early reminder of how thin the line was between keeper and captive in that era.

By July 1926, Starr was trusted with some of the most serious duties a deputy could perform, transporting convicted prisoners to the Oklahoma State Penitentiary at McAlester—long trips across open country with dangerous men in custody and little margin for error.

𝗖𝗵𝗮𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗧𝗵𝗶𝗲𝘃𝗲𝘀, 𝗞𝗶𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗿𝘀, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗕𝗼𝗼𝘁𝗹𝗲𝗴𝗴𝗲𝗿𝘀

Starr quickly developed a reputation as a determined and aggressive officer. In January 1927, he played a key role in recovering a stolen Buick Coach belonging to Dr. Roscoe Walker, apprehending suspects believed to be tied to the notorious Tecumseh jailbreak. The arrest unfolded at night after officers noticed suspicious movement on a back road. When suspects fled, shots were fired to halt the escape—typical of how quickly routine patrols could turn violent.

That same year, Starr transported Jep Whitehead, arrested on charges of wife desertion after abandoning his wife and twelve children near Wynona—another reminder that deputies handled everything from hardened criminals to deeply personal family tragedies.

By March 1928, Starr’s name appeared again in serious cases. He arrested Sephia Peters near Bartlesville on liquor charges, allegedly seizing six gallons of whiskey, five gallons of keg beer, eighty pints of homebrew, and sixty gallons of mash, the kind of haul that defined Prohibition enforcement in Osage County.

Only days later, on March 21, 1928, Starr arrested John J. Bruser and James Brunner on murder charges, demonstrating the wide range of crimes county deputies were expected to confront.

𝗕𝗮𝗻𝗸 𝗥𝗼𝗯𝗯𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗥𝗲𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗱 𝗠𝗼𝗻𝗲𝘆

One of Starr’s most publicized cases came with the capture of the Havana, Kansas bank robbers, tracked to northern Osage County near Pearsonia. Acting on a tip, deputies—including Starr—closed in on the wounded fugitives, recovered stolen money, and lodged them in the Osage County Jail before returning them to Kansas authorities. The case underscored Osage County’s reputation as both refuge and trap for criminals on the run.

Starr’s effectiveness did not go unnoticed. He and fellow officers later received reward checks from the Governor for the capture of a hijacker—money that came only after dangerous, patient work carried out far from the public eye.

𝗙𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗖𝗼𝘂𝗻𝘁𝘆 𝗕𝗮𝗱𝗴𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗙𝗲𝗱𝗲𝗿𝗮𝗹 𝗦𝗵𝗶𝗲𝗹𝗱

In March 1929, Buck Starr transitioned from county service to the federal level, becoming a federal prohibition officer and deputy marshal. The move placed him squarely in the center of liquor enforcement across northeastern Oklahoma. He frequently transported federal prisoners to Leavenworth Penitentiary, often moving large groups of repeat offenders—many facing years behind bars.

Federal service brought new dangers. In June 1929, Starr was seriously injured near Bartlesville, struck in the head with a full beer bottle while attempting an arrest. Knocked unconscious, cut by broken glass, and robbed of his revolver, Starr survived. Suspects were later arrested—still in possession of his weapon.

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗖𝗮𝘀𝗲 𝗧𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗲𝗱 𝗘𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴

Starr’s career reached its turning point in 1933, during a raid on a liquor still along Rattlesnake Creek between Pawhuska and Bigheart. When Bryan Fletcher fled the scene, Starr fired after repeated commands to halt. Fletcher was mortally wounded and later died at the hospital.

The shooting ignited public controversy. Manslaughter charges were filed against Starr by the county attorney following complaints from Fletcher’s family. Starr reported that he fired only after issuing multiple warnings, but the case followed him relentlessly, appearing in headlines and court filings alike.

Then, abruptly, Buck Starr vanished.

By May 1933, his position as Special Indian Officer was filled by another appointee. Court records show no resolution. No burial has ever been located. No confirmed record of his life—or death—has surfaced after the charges were filed.

𝗔 𝗟𝗶𝗳𝗲, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗮𝗻 𝗘𝗻𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴, 𝗟𝗲𝗳𝘁 𝗨𝗻𝘄𝗿𝗶𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗻

Outside the courtroom and the raids, Buck Starr was deeply involved in his community. He served as a Legion leader and Sergeant-at-Arms with the Pawhuska American Legion, and his wife was equally active in Legion affairs. Like many lawmen of the era, he balanced civic duty with dangerous public service.
But unlike most, his story ends in silence.

No grave.

No obituary.

No confirmed trail beyond 1933. … See MoreSee Less

𝐎𝐂𝐒𝐎 𝐀𝐍𝐍𝐎𝐔𝐍𝐂𝐄𝐒 𝐒𝐄𝐑𝐆𝐄𝐀𝐍𝐓 𝐏𝐑𝐎𝐌𝐎𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍𝐒

Over the past few months, the Osage County Sheriff’s Office has been proud to promote four deputies to the rank of Sergeant, recognizing their experience, leadership, and commitment to serving the citizens of Osage County.

Please join us in congratulating:

⭐ Sgt. Korey Pettigrew
⭐ Sgt. Justin Caffey
⭐ Sgt. Jeff Jones
⭐ Sgt. Pat Dean

Sgt. Pettigrew, Sgt. Caffey, and Sgt. Jones have advanced to Patrol Sergeant positions. Patrol Sergeants carry significant responsibility within our organization, leading deputies in the field, overseeing daily patrol operations, responding to critical incidents, and helping ensure professional and dependable law enforcement services are available throughout Osage County around the clock.

Sgt. Pat Dean was promoted to Sergeant and assigned to oversee the Sheriff’s Office School Resource Officer (SRO) Program. Sgt. Dean assumed the position previously held by Rocky Davis, who transferred to the Courthouse Security Division.

We are proud to promote leaders from within our ranks and recognize employees who are willing to accept greater responsibility, invest in their careers, and help lead the next generation of the Osage County Sheriff’s Office.

Congratulations to Sgt. Korey Pettigrew, Sgt. Justin Caffey, Sgt. Jeff Jones, and Sgt. Pat Dean on their well-earned promotions. We look forward to their continued leadership and service to the citizens of Osage County.

Congratulations, Sergeants!

#OsageCountySheriffsOffice #OCSO #Leadership #Promotion #Patrol #SRO #OsageCounty … See MoreSee Less