Mary Gillis Linton (born 1867) was an American companion and romantic partner of famed outlaw Arthur Morgan.
Biography[]
Mary Gillis was born in New Orleans, Louisiana in 1867, the daughter of Robert Gillis, and, while she was a young waitress, she fell in love with young outlaw Arthur Morgan and became engaged to marry him. However, her family disapproved of him due to his criminal lifestyle, and she was forced to call off the engagement. She later married Barry Linton and adopted his surname, but his death from pneumonia left her a widow; at the same time, her father became an abusive and financially-irresponsible drunkard, while her brother Jamie Gillis joined the fanatical Chelonians. In 1899, she stayed at Myra Chadwick's farm in Oklahoma and wrote to Arthur, hoping to see him again. When Arthur arrived, Mary briefly caught up with him before asking for help with saving her brother from the cult; while Arthur was initially reluctant due to her family's disdain for him, he agreed after she begged him. He succeeded in rescuing Jamie, but, later that year, Linton again contacted him and asked for help with stealing back a family brooch that her father had sold. Morgan again succeeded, but Linton was unhappy with her deteriorating family situation. Morgan took her to the theatre to cheer her up, spending time as friends, but warming up to each other. Morgan promised Linton that he would leave the gang and run away with her as soon as he saved up enough money, and they then parted ways, although nobody knew that it would be the last time. Not long after, Linton sent Morgan a letter carrying her old engagement ring, apologizing for how their relationship turned out, and saying that Morgan would probably never be able to leave his life. She expressed her hope that the ring could be passed down to another young couple, and it ultimately went to John Marston. After Morgan's death of tuberculosis later that year, Linton visited his grave in Colorado and quietly wept for him.
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