George Peppin (1841-14 September 1904) was a corrupt sheriff in Lincoln County, New Mexico during the Lincoln County War.
Biography[]
George Peppin was born in Vermont in 1841, and he later moved to California and served in the US Army during the American Civil War. He worked as a mason in Lincoln, New Mexico before becoming associated with James Dolan in 1874. Peppin became a deputy sheriff for William J. Brady, and, following Brady's death, Dolan and Lawrence Murphy had Peppin elected Sheriff. He then led a campaign against the Lincoln County Regulators, and he led a posse into Lincoln on 15 July 1878 to wipe out the Regulators. The battle ended in a draw, with several men on both sides being killed. He resigned as sheriff after the Regulators fled town, and he worked as a butcher at Fort Stanton, fearing for his life. He died in solitude in 1904.