Jim French

Who is Jim French?

Jim French was a New Mexican cowboy.

Out of all Regulators, French remains the most mysterious. Not much is known about him, such as where he came from or how he came to work for John Tunstall. He was known to be a large, powerful man, variously reported to be either half-Indian or half-black. Called either "Big Jim" or "Frenchy", he was a key participant in the Lincoln County War.

French was present at all the key events of the Regulators during the war, including the Blackwater killings of William Morton, Frank Baker, and William McCloskey on March 9, 1878. After the shooting of Sheriff William Brady on April 1, 1878 in Lincoln, he and Billy the Kid broke from cover and ran to Brady's body, ostensibly to get his arrest warrant for Alexander McSween. A deputy who survived the shooting, Billy Matthews, opened fire. His shot wounded both men, French so seriously he couldn't travel, hiding out under a friend's floor for a day until the Regulators smuggled him out of town. Just three days later, Jim French was present with his pals at Blazer's Mills for the gunfight against Buckshot Roberts, when Regulator captain Richard M. Brewer was killed.