Texas Rangers, Texas
End of Watch: Saturday, June 17, 1893
Age: 26
Tour of Duty: 7 years
Badge Number: Not available
Cause of Death: Gunfire
Date of Incident: August 16, 1889
Weapon Used: Gun; Unknown type
Suspect Info: Not available
Private Frank Schmid succumbed to gunshot wounds sustained four years earlier in Fort Bend County.
He and several other rangers from Company D had been sent there to attempt to quell political unrest between two political parties that involved several assassinations and other violence. The sheriff of the county was the leader of one of the political parties, and on August 16, 1889, he lead a group of men in a shootout with the other party.
Private Schmid and two other rangers attempted to intervene and got caught in the crossfire. Private Schmid was shot in the leg and was also struck in the abdomen, but the abdomen shot did not penetrate his skin. Fort Bend County Sheriff Tom Garvey, his uncle, the former sheriff, a political rival, as well as an innocent bystander were killed. Private Schmid was rescued from the scene and put under a doctor's care, where he remained seriously ill. He recovered enough to return to a clerical position in 1892 but died the following year.
At the time Private Schmind was wounded, he had only been with the Texas Rangers for three years.
He was buried in the Bellefontaine Cemetery in St. Louis, MO.