Deadwood: Comparing The Lead Characters And Their Real World Counterparts
5. E.B. Farnum
The E.B. Farnum seen on screen was very different from the real life man. First off, E.B. in the name of the character played by William Sanderson stands for Eustace Bailey while the real life E.B.'s name was Ethan Bennett. Much like the character, the real Farnum accomplished many firsts in the town of Deadwood.
The real life Farnum owned one of the first general stores in town, not the hotel. Farnum was the first mayor of Deadwood, as is depicted in the series, which also appears to have included performing the duties of School Board President and Justice of the Peace. The real life Farnum was a family man, unlike in the series, and was clearly not the idiotic stooge of Al Swearengen that he's characterized to be in the show.
When Deadwood got the telegraph, Farnum sent the first message to the mayor of Cheyenne, Wyoming. When the town of Deadwood separated the responsibilities of the mayor into several positions, Farnum ran for Justice of the Peace and lost. After that he and his family relocated to Chicago.