Charles H. Nichols
Agency patch
Deputy Sheriff

Charles H. Nichols

Veteran → Felonious
End of Watch January 20, 1871
Age 30
The Vigil Panel 4 ›
Gender Male

Incident

Deputies Charles Nichols and James McMahan were shot and killed while attempting to arrest a suspect. When the officers attempted to handcuff the suspect, he produced a handgun and shot both of them. The suspect was one of two brothers known as the James-Younger Gang who shot and killed Deputy Edwin Daniels, of the St. Clair County, Missouri, Sheriff's Department, on March 17, 1874. The brother who murdered Deputy Nichols and Deputy McMahan was also shot and killed in the shootout. The James-Younger Gang was also connected to the death of Bureau of Indian Affairs Police Officer Frank West in 1886 by the husband of Bell Starr, an accomplice of the gang. Deputy Nichols had served as a Confederate Officer in Civil War and is buried in Pioneer Cemetery, Dallas, Texas.

In Our Keeping

Permanent identifier
BO-US-TX-81E327BB
Stewardship
Maintained by NeuraWeb Global Inc.
Added to badge.nw
August 2, 2026
Last updated
August 2, 2026

Honored here by 1 tribute.

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Tributes

I served 1985 to 1993. You served too, before the badge - different uniform, same idea. You go where you are sent and you do not get to pick the call.
Deputy Sheriff Nichols served with the Dallas County Sheriff's Department.
Thank you for your service to the Dallas community, and for your service before it. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, brother.

— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993

Agency

Type Sheriff's Office
Location Dallas, Dallas County, TX
Platform Identity dcso.dallas.tx.us.gov.nw

Service Record

End of Watch January 20, 1871
Age 30
Gender Male

Incident Details

Cause Felonious
Weapon Handgun

Military Service

Charles H. Nichols served in the the United States military before joining law enforcement.

View full service record on salute.nw →

Deputy Sheriff Charles H. Nichols is one of 1 officers killed feloniously — deliberately targeted and murdered in the line of duty across the full record of this memorial — 0% of all 97,759 officers honored here.

In TX, 1,460 of 2,421 officers were killed feloniously — deliberately targeted and murdered in the line of duty — 60.3% of this state's fallen. That is 60.3 percentage points above the national rate of 0%.

At Dallas County Sheriff's Department, 14 of 20 officers on record were killed feloniously — deliberately targeted and murdered in the line of duty — 70% of this agency's fallen.

Dallas County Sheriff's Department
14
of 20 officers
70% Felonious
TX — Statewide
1,460
of 2,421 officers
60.3% Felonious
Nationwide
1
of 97,759 officers
0% Felonious

National Cause Distribution

How Felonious compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. Charles H. Nichols's cause is highlighted.

Felonious
1 (0%)
Accident
1 (0%)
Illness
1 (0%)
Cardiac
1 (0%)
Undetermined
1 (0%)
Suicide
1 (0%)

How Charles H. Nichols Compares

Age at Death
30
This officer
Avg for Felonious: 39.0 years

When Felonious Deaths Occur

Monthly distribution of Felonious deaths across the full memorial record. Charles H. Nichols is highlighted in Jan.

Jan
1,392
Feb
1,295
Mar
1,373
Apr
1,516
May
1,504
Jun
1,442
Jul
1,587
Aug
1,517
Sep
1,491
Oct
1,371
Nov
1,447
Dec
1,624

Weapons Used Against Officers

Most common weapons in felonious officer deaths. Charles H. Nichols was killed by handgun.

Handgun
3,684
Gun
3,592
Gun; Unknown type
1,492
Shotgun
1,109
Rifle
935
Officer's handgun
909

Military Service

Charles H. Nichols served in the United States military before joining law enforcement.

Visit Charles H. Nichols’s page on salute.nw →

His full service record — units, decorations, where he served — is kept on salute.nw.