Andrew “Andy” W. Balfour (or Belfour) was a Deputy Sheriff in Kiowa County, Kansas, in the 1890s.

Originally from Quincy, Illinois, Andrew Balfour was born on May 12, 1851. He grew up to marry Perina Price, who was also from Illinois, and they would have six children. Somewhere along the line, the family moved to Kansas, where Andrew became a law officer.

In July 1892, Officer Balfour was tracking the notorious outlaw Zip Wyatt, who had shot up the town of Mulhall, Oklahoma, on June 3, 1891, wounding two citizens. Afterward, he fled north to the Cherokee Outlet before making his way to Kansas.

With an arrest warrant out, Zip made his way to Kiowa County, Kansas, where he stole some riding gear in Greensburg. Officer Balfour soon learned that Wyatt would be present at a Fourth of July picnic held at Pryor’s Grove in southeast Edwards County about ten miles north of Greensburg.

Making his way there on July 4, Deputy Sheriff Balfour located Zip Wyatt, talked with him for a few minutes, and then informed him of the warrant and that he would need to be taken into custody. However, Balfour was distracted by the arrival of another man. When he turned his attention to the other man, Wyatt drew a gun and shot Balfour in the abdomen, the bullet striking the officer in the spine. Falling to the ground, Balfour courageously drew his gun and returned fire, wounding his assailant in the hand. Balfour died at the scene 30 minutes later. He was just 41 years old and left a wife and six children. He was buried at Fairview Cemetery in Greensburg, Kansas.

In the meantime, Zip Wyatt escaped. With yet another warrant on his head and a $1,000 reward for his capture, Zip fled to his native Indiana, where he hid with relatives. Several months later, however, he was apprehended, and after a lengthy extradition proceeding, Zip was returned to Guthrie, Oklahoma, to face charges on his spree in Mulhall, Oklahoma. However, he escaped in December 1892, formed a gang with Ike Black, and continued his outlaw ways, committing numerous robberies and murders. The gang was soon blamed for almost every crime committed in the territory, and a $5,000 reward was placed on Wyatt’s head for his capture.

During a shootout on August 1, 1895, lawmen killed Ike Black. Zip Wyatt, although wounded, slipped away again. Three days later, a posse cornered him at Skeleton Creek, where both sides exchanged gunfire. Wyatt went down with a gut-shot and a shattered pelvis. He died in jail in Enid, Oklahoma, on September 7, at age 32. He was buried in a pauper’s grave south of Enid, Oklahoma.

©Kathy Alexander/Legends of America, updated March 2025.

Also See:

Adventures of the American West

Lawmen of the Old West

Outlaws of the American West

Zip Wyatt – Notorious Oklahoma Hombre

Sources:

Facebook – Officer Down
Officer Down Kansas
Find a Grave
Officer Down Memorial
Tom Rizzo
Zip Wyatt – Legends of America