this violent encounter was an early contributor to hickok's reputation as a legendary gunman, as reported years later in "harper's monthly", where the story was wildly sensationalized. according to the story, hickok single-handedly killed the nine "desperadoes, horse-thieves, murderers, and regular cutthroats" known as the mccanles gang "in the greatest one man gunfight in history." during the battle, hickok (armed with a pistol, a rifle, and a bowie knife), purportedly suffered 11 bullet wounds.