Roll of Honor
George E. Thornton
Incident
Deputy Marshal George Thornton was shot and killed in the Sac and Fox Nation while trying to arrest two men on warrants, one for horse theft and another for murder. Marshal Thornton and a posse man went to the house of the horse thief and didn't locate them. They then went to search the house of another outlaw. As they approached the house, they were fired upon. They were fired upon from three locations and returned fire at every opportunity. Marshal Thornton was hit, told his partner "I'm sick," fired one more shot, and fell over dead. The horse thief was captured two days short of a year afterward but later escaped. At the time of the organization of the Oklahoma Territory, he was a leading candidate for the appointment of United States Marshal. He had previously served in New Mexico and Texas. Marshal Thornton was survived by his father and brother. He was buried in Peoria, Illinois.
Survivors
Marshal Thornton was survived by his father and brother.
In Our Keeping
- Permanent identifier
BO-US-FED-9F30EAFF- Stewardship
- Maintained by NeuraWeb Global Inc.
- Added to badge.nw
- April 2, 2026
- Last updated
- July 23, 2026
Honored here by 1 sentinel - 1 tribute.
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Tributes
135 years is a long time for a name to go unread. Not today.
Deputy U.S. Marshal Thornton gave the United States Department of Justice 4 years.
Thank you for your service. Gone but never to be forgotten.
— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993
Agency
Service Record
Incident Details
Deputy U.S. Marshal George E. Thornton is one of 17,623 officers killed feloniously — deliberately targeted and murdered in the line of duty across the full record of this memorial — 54.2% of all 32,508 officers honored here.
In DC, 754 of 1,419 officers were killed feloniously — deliberately targeted and murdered in the line of duty — 53.1% of this state's fallen. That is 1.1 percentage points below the national rate of 54.2%.
At United States Department of Justice - United States Marshals Service, 251 of 313 officers on record were killed feloniously — deliberately targeted and murdered in the line of duty — 80.2% of this agency's fallen.
National Cause Distribution
How Felonious compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. George E. Thornton's cause is highlighted.
How George E. Thornton Compares
Offender Outcome
Captured and later escaped
When Felonious Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Felonious deaths across the full memorial record. George E. Thornton is highlighted in Oct.
Weapons Used Against Officers
Most common weapons in felonious officer deaths. George E. Thornton was killed by rifle; .45 caliber.
Incident Location
Others Who Wore This Badge
312 officers from United States Department of Justice - United States Marshals Service are honored on badge.nw. Showing the 16 most recent.
