Editing United States Marshals Service (section)

===19th century===
During the settlement of the [[American frontier]], marshals served as the main source of day-to-day law enforcement in areas that had no local government of their own.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Ball |first1=Larry D. |title=The United States Marshals of New Mexico and Arizona Territories, 1846-1912 |date=1978 |publisher=University of New Mexico Press |location=Albuquerque |isbn=9780826306173}}</ref> U.S. Marshals were instrumental in keeping law and order in the "[[American West|Old West]]" era. They were involved in apprehending desperadoes such as [[Bill Doolin]], [[Ned Christie]], and in 1893, the infamous [[Dalton Gang]] after a shoot-out that left dead Deputy Marshals Ham Hueston and Lafe Shadley, and posse member Dick Speed. Individual deputy marshals have been seen as legendary heroes in the face of rampant lawlessness (see [[#Notable marshals and deputy marshals|Notable marshals]] below) with [[Wyatt Earp]], [[Bat Masterson]], [[Dallas Stoudenmire]], and [[Bass Reeves]] as examples of well-known marshals. [[Bill Tilghman]], [[Heck Thomas]], and [[Chris Madsen]] formed a legendary law enforcement trio known as "[[Three Guardsmen]]" when they worked together policing the vast, lawless [[Oklahoma Territory|Oklahoma]] and [[Indian Territory|Indian Territories]].

Until its repeal in 1864, the [[Fugitive Slave Act of 1850]] tasked marshals to accept an affidavit on its face to recover a fugitive slave.

On October 26, 1881, Deputy U.S. Marshal [[Virgil Earp]], his brothers, Special Deputy U.S. Marshals [[Morgan Earp|Morgan]] and [[Wyatt Earp]], and Special Deputy U.S. Marshal [[Doc Holliday|John "Doc" H. Holliday]] gunned down [[Frank McLaury|Frank]] and [[Tom McLaury]] and [[Billy Clanton]] in the legendary [[gunfight at the O.K. Corral]] in [[Tombstone, Arizona]]. In 1894, U.S. Marshals helped suppress the [[Pullman Strike]].

====Marshals of the Consular Court====
During the 19th century, the United States government appointed marshals to be attached to the courts of American consulates in [[Qing dynasty|China]], the [[Ottoman Empire]], and [[Rattanakosin Kingdom (1782–1932)|Siam]]. The duties of these marshals included settling shipboard disputes and mutinies aboard American vessels, the apprehension of runaway sailors and American crews engaged in the illegal slave trade, adjusting claims for damages caused by American sailors to natives, and the rescue of natives kidnapped for slavery by Americans.<ref>{{cite report |author= |author-link= |date=1863 |title=Reports of Committees: 30th Congress, 1st Session - 48th Congress, 2nd Session, Volume 1  |publisher=United States Senate |page= |docket= |quote=}}</ref>