Samuel Fields was a figure of the American Wild West and an active participant in the African-American community of Deadwood, South Dakota.

[1] In Deadwood, African Americans were even more of a minority than the Chinese, and Fields was quick to speak out at the many "Colored Citizens Meetings," as well as city political gatherings.

Reporting on his statement, the Deadwood Times snidely referred to it as a "Sly-Coon," which added that nickname to Samuel's already growing list of monikers.

Gay, who was a leading citizen in Deadwood and after whom the adjacent camp of Gayville was named, defended himself on the basis that the killing was an accident.

In July, the "General" was arrested for stealing from "Lola's Place", and his bad luck continued when Deadwood's first public school teacher was murdered in her sleep in August.

In 1879, Fields' name was submitted for the position of Justice in Deadwood and by November he was once again practicing his "Shakespearian" oratory skills on soap boxes.

By 1889, he had moved on to Omaha, Nebraska, but a year later, he was again back in South Dakota, working as a bellhop in Rapid City.