Private

William M. Bohanon

Texas Rangers — Austin, TX
Illness
End of Watch July 2, 1885
Age 29
Tour of Duty 1 yrs 8 mo
The Vigil Panel 8 ›
Gender Male

Incident

Private William M. Bohanon enlisted in Company C of the Frontier Battalion of the Texas Rangers on November 11, 1883 under the command of Captain George Schmitt. The rangers were troubled with fever and illness during the summer of 1885, which resulted from high water caused by heavy rains. On May 13, 1885, Private J. G. Wood, a new recruit, died from illness. Captain Schmitt received a very terse letter from Captain John O. Johnson of the Adjutant General’s office in Austin regarding expenses incurred by the company while on recent duty in Fredericksburg; in his reply, which gives some indication of conditions, Schmitt related that several men were sick with fever from “exposure and swimming the rivers” and that one man was not expected to live.

Private Bohanon became ill from typhoid fever on June 22 and died on July 2. He was reportedly buried in Pearsall, Frio County, and had no relations in Texas.

In Our Keeping

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August 2, 2026
Last updated
September 9, 2026

Honored here by 1 tribute.

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Tributes

141 years is a long time for a name to go unread. Not today.
Private Bohanon gave the Texas Rangers 1 year.
Thank you for your service to the Austin community. Gone but never to be forgotten.

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

Agency

Department Texas Rangers
Type Other
Location Austin, Travis County, TX
Platform Identity tr.travis.tx.us.gov.nw

Service Record

End of Watch July 2, 1885
Tour of Duty 1 yrs 8 mo
Age 29
Gender Male

Incident Details

Cause Illness

The Sacrifice · Illness

William is one of 2,028 officers lost to illness in the United States, 7.4% of the 27,551 remembered there.

33,917 officers are remembered on this memorial. Each number below is one of them.

  1. See the roll
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Compare against
I

Time

In 1885, 2 officers in the United States were lost to illness, the 46th heaviest of 108 years on record. The heaviest was 2021, with 564.

Every year on record · United States
II

Who

William was 29. Of the 1,996 lost to illness in the United States whose age is recorded, half were between 42 and 58; the middle age was 51. William had served 1.7 years; the middle length of service was 20 years.

Age at death
Where he stood among them
Age by years of service
III

When

July holds 7% of these deaths in the United States; October holds the most, 14.9%. Thursdays: 15.7%.

By month
By day of the week
IV

How

Illness deaths account for 7.4% of all 27,551 deaths in the United States, the 3rd most common cause.

Every cause
Weapons recorded
V

His people

Texas Rangers has at least 120 officers remembered here, William among them.

Across the years

Private William M. Bohanon

Texas Rangers · End of Watch July 2, 1885

Where the Name Is Cut

National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial · Panel 31-E

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