Walter Edward Perry Scott (September 20, 1872 â€" January 5, 1954),
also known as Death Valley Scotty, was a prospector, performer, and
con man who was made famous by his many scams involving gold mining
and the iconic mansion in Death Valley, known as Scotty's Castle.Scott
was born in Cynthiana in Harrison County in northern Kentucky, to
George E. Scott (or George A. Scott according to his IGI record) and
wife, the former Anna Calhoun (or Elizabeth Perry according to his IGI
record). He spent the early years of his childhood traveling with his
family around the harness racing circuit, and at age 11 he left home
to join his two brothers at a ranch near Wells, Nevada. In 1884, he
made his first visit to Death Valley, as part of a crew surveying the
California-Nevada border. At age 16, he joined Buffalo Bill Cody's
Wild West Show as a stunt rider. For the next 12 years, he toured the
United States and Europe with the show.Scott's involvement with the
show ended in 1900, when he married Ella Josephine Milius (whom he
called "Jack") in New York City. The couple moved to Cripple Creek,
Colorado, where Scott unsuccessfully tried to start a gold mining
operation. After he was not allowed to rejoin the Wild West Show, he
conned a wealthy New York City businessman into backing a fictitious
gold mining operation. For two years, he continuously informed his
patron about the state of the mine, but he never shipped any ore.
After his patron had invested more than $5000 in the mine, Scott
boarded a train bound for New York with a bag supposedly containing
more than $12,000 in gold dust. After he claimed that the bag had been
stolen before he reached his destination, the newspapers eagerly
picked up the story, starting Scott on a spree of self-promotion
ventures. In 1904, he abandoned his previous patron in favor of Edward
A. Shedd and Albert M. Johnson. They poured more than $4000 into his
scam over a period of several months, before pulling out of the
deal.In 1905, Scott made another attempt to increase his publicity by
claiming that he would break the cross-country train speed record. For
$5500, he contracted with the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe to provide a
special train. On July 9, he left Los Angeles for Chicago in the
train, called the "Scott Special", consisting of an engine, a baggage
car, a sleeper, and a dining car. The only passengers were Scott and
his wife Jack, F. N. Holman, and Charles E. Van Loan, a writer for the
Los Angeles Examiner. The trip was completed in 44 hours and 54
minutes, breaking the previous record of just under 53 hours. This
stunt once again catapulted Scott to the front pages of newspapers the
nation over, and inspired Buffalo Bill Cody to hire an impersonator of
Scott for his show. Walter E. Scott Biography, NetWorth, Height, Age, Weight, Family, Married, Son, Daughter