Roll of Honor
Incident
Sheriff Hardin Vickery was shot and killed as he attempted to arrest the former sheriff of Douglas County for a murder he had committed in Arkansas in 1872.
A warrant had been issued for the former sheriff almost two years earlier, but it could not be enforced while he was still in office. When the former sheriff was defeated in his bid for re-election by Hardin Vickery in 1878 Arkansas authorities began pushing for the warrant to be served.
Sheriff Vickery and a posse of twelve men went to the former sheriff's home in the Fox Creek area approximately 15 miles outside of Ava to arrest him. Seeing their approach, the man barricaded himself in his house and claimed that he would have to be taken by force. Sheriff Vickery, foreseeing that the situation would become violent, urged the man's wife to remove herself and her children from the home. The woman refused and the former sheriff opened fire on the posse. The posse returned fire but stopped when they realized that the house might be too durable for their bullets to penetrate it.
Sheriff Vickery decided to approach the house to get a closer look at its construction and, as he was examining the structure, the man suddenly fired at him from inside the home. Sheriff Vickery was struck in the chest and killed instantly.
The posse immediately returned fire and killed the subject. The man's young child was also killed in the exchange.
Sheriff Vickery was a Union Army veteran of the Civil War and had served with the Douglas County Sheriff's Office for just only four months.
Survivors
He was survived by his wife and three children.
In Our Keeping
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BO-US-MO-22C7E586- Stewardship
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- Added to badge.nw
- April 2, 2026
- Last updated
- July 23, 2026
Honored here by 1 sentinel - 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.
Sheriff Vickery served with the Douglas County Sheriff's Office.
Thank you for your service to the Ava community. Thank you for your service before it. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, brother.
— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993
Agency
Service Record
Incident Details
Military Service
Hardin Harvey Vickery, Sr. served in the United States military before joining law enforcement. Full service record available on salute.nw.
Sheriff Hardin Harvey Vickery, Sr. 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 MO, 516 of 813 officers were killed feloniously — deliberately targeted and murdered in the line of duty — 63.5% of this state's fallen. That is 9.3 percentage points above the national rate of 54.2%.
National Cause Distribution
How Felonious compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. Hardin Harvey Vickery, Sr.'s cause is highlighted.
How Hardin Harvey Vickery, Sr. Compares
Offender Outcome
Shot and Killed
When Felonious Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Felonious deaths across the full memorial record. Hardin Harvey Vickery, Sr. is highlighted in Mar.
Weapons Used Against Officers
Most common weapons in felonious officer deaths. Hardin Harvey Vickery, Sr. was killed by gun; unknown type.