William King Hale | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Hale in 1922 | |
| Born | December 24, 1874 |
| Died | August 15, 1962 (aged 87) |
| Burial place | Wichita, Kansas |
| Occupation | Cattleman |
| Known for | Being a major perpetrator of the Osage Indian murders |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Criminal status | Paroled (1947) |
| Relatives | Ernest Burkhart (nephew) |
| Conviction(s) | First degree murder (18 U.S.C. § 452) |
| Criminal penalty | Life imprisonment (1929) |
William King Hale (December 24, 1874 – August 15, 1962) was an American political and crime boss in Osage County, Oklahoma, who was responsible for the most infamous of the Osage Indian murders. He made a fortune through cattle ranching, contract killings, and insurance fraud before his arrest and conviction for murder.
Born in Hunt County, Texas, Hale worked as a cowboy in Texas and Indian Territory before settling in what would become Osage County around 1900. By the 1920s, he had amassed substantial influence in the county when he ordered the contract killings of Osage woman Mollie Kyle's family in a criminal conspiracy to gain control of their headrights. He was convicted in federal court for ordering the murder of Henry Roan in October 1929, sentenced to life in prison, and released on parole in July 1947. Hale died in Arizona in 1962.
His role in the killings is a major focus of David Grann's 2017 book Killers of the Flower Moon. Robert De Niro portrayed him in Martin Scorsese's 2023 film adaptation of the book.
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