Editing Lone Ranger (section)

==Possible inspirations==

===John R. Hughes===
The character was originally believed to be inspired by Texas Ranger Captain [[John Hughes (lawman)|John R. Hughes]], to whom the book ''[[The Lone Star Ranger]]'' by [[Zane Grey]] was dedicated in 1915.<ref>"Lone Ranger Research Connects the Dots to Cambridge", Mike Clark, CommunityCasts.com</ref> John R. Hughes was born on February 11, 1855, in [[Henry County, Illinois]]. At 14 years old, he made his way into [[Indian Territory]] and lived among the [[Choctaw]], [[Osage Nation|Osage]], and [[Comanche]].<ref>{{cite web|title=John Reynolds Hughes Papers|url=https://legacy.lib.utexas.edu/taro/aushc/00710/00710-P.html|access-date=November 11, 2020|website=Austin History Center}}</ref> In 1886, at 31 years old, Hughes killed a number of men for [[Horse theft|stealing his and a neighbor's horses]], and for a number of months, trailed the ones whom he did not kill. This would mark his first time actively participating in [[bounty hunter]]-like activities. Not long after that in 1887, Hughes assisted Texas Ranger [[Ira Aten]] in tracking and killing an [[Fugitive|escaped murderer]]. A month after, he was persuaded to join the ranks of the Rangers and served along the southwest borders of [[Texas]], and at 38 years old, Hughes became the captain of [[Texas Ranger Division|Company D. Frontier Battalion]]. He went on to retire in 1915, after serving 28 years as a Ranger. He was dying and chose to [[Suicide|end his own life]] at 92 years old on June 3, 1947, and was buried in [[Austin, Texas]].<ref>{{cite web|title=John R. Hughes|url=https://www.texasranger.org/texas-ranger-museum/hall-of-fame/john-r-hughes/|access-date=November 11, 2020|website=Texas Ranger Hall of Fame and Museum|archive-date=April 24, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210424134801/https://www.texasranger.org/texas-ranger-museum/hall-of-fame/john-r-hughes/|url-status=dead}}</ref>
Many could relate John Hughes to being the Lone Ranger due to his career as an actual Texas Ranger, and because he actually lived in Texas, unlike others who have been cited as possibilities.  He learned the [[Native American languages|languages of the Native American tribes]] that he lived among for some time, which could make him a more competent ranger when traveling familiar territory to track down criminals and give him the ability to communicate with other native people. He went on to capture and kill many criminals without ever being injured in his 28 years as a Ranger.<ref>{{cite web|last=Weiser-Alexander|first=Kathy|date=July 2019|title=John Reynolds Hughes&nbsp;– Texas Ranger|url=https://www.legendsofamerica.com/john-hughes-texas-ranger/|access-date=November 11, 2020|website=Legends of America}}</ref>

===Bass Reeves===
In his 2006 Reeves biography ''Black Gun, Silver Star'', historian Art T. Burton suggests one possible historical inspiration was [[Bass Reeves]], the first Black [[United States Marshals Service|deputy U.S. Marshal]] west of the [[Mississippi River]].<ref name=":0">{{cite book |last1=Burton |first1=Art T. |title=Black Gun, Silver Star The Life and Legend of Frontier Marshal Bass Reeves |date=2008 |publisher=[[University of Nebraska Press]] |isbn=978-0-8032-1747-8 |location=Lincoln, NE}}</ref> After escaping slavery during the Civil War, Bass Reeves spent the remainder of the war in [[Indian Territory in the American Civil War|Indian Territory]], in what would become Oklahoma.<ref>{{cite web |author=<!--Not stated; The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica--> |date=January 8, 2020 |title=Bass Reeves |url=https://www.britannica.com/biography/Bass-Reeves |access-date=November 11, 2020 |website=[[Encyclopædia Britannica]]}}</ref> After the Civil War, Reeves was appointed as a U.S. Marshal in Indian Territory, and then worked as a Marshal for 32 years.  Burton suggests that Reeves's career as a lawman was widely known in his time and cites similarities with the Lone Ranger, including wearing disguises, having a Native American partner, riding a white or grey horse, giving out silver keepsakes, and possessing legendary marksmanship and horsemanship skills.<ref>{{cite web |date=August 6, 2013 |title=Was an African American Cop the Real Lone Ranger? |url=https://edition.cnn.com/2013/08/06/sport/lone-ranger-african-american-reeves/index.html |access-date=October 13, 2018 |publisher=CNN}}</ref><ref name="Grdn2024Burton">{{cite news |last1=Hunt |first1=Maria C. |title='A history that's been suppressed': the Black cowboy story is 200 years old |url=https://www.theguardian.com/culture/ng-interactive/2024/may/19/black-cowboys-cowgirls-rodeos |access-date=12 June 2024 |work=The Guardian |date=19 May 2024}}</ref> Burton's theory is disputed for a number of reasons.  Reeves was never a Ranger nor did he ever live in Texas,<ref>{{cite web |author=Sheena McKenzie |date=August 6, 2013 |title=Was this African American cop the inspiration for the Lone Ranger? |url=https://edition.cnn.com/2013/08/06/sport/lone-ranger-african-american-reeves/ |access-date=September 22, 2017 |publisher=CNN}}</ref>  and it was a common practice of U.S. Marshals working in Indian territories to have Indian assistants and to use silver dollars as payments or tributes. Critics of the Bass theory also point out that it was common for pulp fiction writers to portray heroes as masked individuals.<ref>{{cite web |last=LaCapria |first=Kim |date=February 13, 2019 |title=Was the Original 'Lone Ranger' a Black Man? |url=https://www.truthorfiction.com/original-lone-ranger-a-black-man-and-freed-slave-named-bass-reeves/ |access-date=May 27, 2020 |website=[[TruthOrFiction.com]] |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=Grams |first=Martin Jr. |author-link=Martin Grams Jr. |title=Bass Reeves and The Lone Ranger: Debunking the Myth, Part 1 |url=https://www.westernmagazinedigest.com/2019/07/bass-reeves-and-lone-ranger-debunking.html |access-date=May 27, 2020 |language=en}}</ref> Ultimately, Burton notes that it is not possible "to prove conclusively that Reeves was the inspiration for the Lone Ranger", but he is "the closest real person to resemble [him]".<ref name=":0" />

===Others===
Other suggested inspirations were [[Zorro]] and [[Robin Hood]].<ref>{{cite web |title=The Secret History of the Lone Ranger |url=https://www.yahoo.com/movies/bp/secret-history-lone-ranger-185818908.html |access-date=September 22, 2017 |publisher=Yahoo!|date=July 3, 2013 }}</ref>