first at the Illinois Industrial University (Champaign, Illinois), for education in European-American ways. He moved to St. Louis, Missouri, where he graduated from Mound City Commercial College in 1874. After his father's death, Waite returned to the Fort Arbuckle to manage the family store. He also managed a crew of thirty ranch hands who were looking after about a thousand head of cattle. Life in New Mexico As Fred grew older, he decided to become a cowboy. He left home in 1875, intending to go to Colorado. He wound up in Lincoln County, New Mexico, where he got a job as a ranch hand with John Chisum in 1877. Waite later worked for John Tunstall, a rancher who was later to be one of the leaders of the Tunstall-McSween vs. Dolan war, better known as the Lincoln County War. Waite worked as a farmer for Tunstall. On February 18, 1878, after Tunstall was killed, Waite became a member of the Regulators. They originally collected as a posse led by Dick Brewer to serve arrest warrants on Tunstall's killers. Through the posse, Waite met Billy Bonney, Jose Chavez y Chavez (American Indian), Henry Brown, Jim French, and Charlie Bowdre. They later formed what became known as Billy the Kid's gang, led by Bonney. The gang came into conflict with law enforcement and also attacked a suspect in Tunstall's murder. Waite was allegedly behind a wall with the gang when they killed William J. Brady, sheriff of Lincoln County, New Mexico. He was also present when the gang killed Buckshot Roberts, a suspect in the murder of Tunstall. Return to Indian Territory Waite was said to have stayed with the Regulators long enough to become the subject of one county and two federal arrest warrants. The gang split up, and Waite headed back to Indian Territory. He settled in the Washita Valley. He married Mary E. Thompson on December 1, 1881, moved to the Chickasaw Nation, and started a family. Serving the Chickasaw Determined to turn his life around, Waite tried several different occupations. First, he began ranching, then he worked as a lawman for the U.S. Indian Police. They had jurisdiction for certain crimes under federal law. Waite became involved in tribal politics. He became a delegate to an inter-tribal conference. He was elected as a representative from his home district, and then as a senator in the Chickasaw government. It