He was a black man named Morris Slater, who lived in the area of Teaspoon, Florida, which is today known as Century, Florida, located about forty miles north of Pensacola. Not much is known about his early life. He acquired the nickname "Railroad Bill" from co-workers when he worked in the turpentine business. Bill would talk of having worked for the railroad. In addition to having worked for the railroad, he claimed to have worked in the circus, performing magic tricks. He was also known as "Wild Bill" McCoy.

Gathering pine sap for the purpose of making turpentine was a very tiring job. It was made more tiring for Bill because he kept a rifle stuck down one pants leg, causing him to limp from tree to tree in a stiff-legged fashion.

It was only a matter of time that the rifle caught the attention of law enforcement officers in the area. Keeping a rifle on one's person, or just carrying it, required a permit issued by the state.

Escambia County deputy Allen Brewton was the first lawman to ever approach Bill about the rifle and suggested he get a permit in order to be legal. Bill just simply walked away from the deputy, telling him that he had no intention of getting a permit.

In time, Deputy Brewton returned with assistance from other law officers. This time, he planned to either sell Bill a permit or take his rifle. Again, Bill refused and walked away. As he walked away, the lawmen opened fire on Bill - missing him completely. Bill spun around and opened fire, taking an ear off one of the lawmen!

Needless to say, Bill didn't return to that job. To have done so would have been an invitation for more lawmen to show up and try to arrest him. But now, he was a real outlaw for shooting the ear off a lawman.

So, being an outlaw already, Bill decided to try robbing trains. Occasionally, he would rob a store or business establishment, but trains were where he made the big hauls. He was looked upon as a Robin Hood by many, selling the booty from the robberies at pennies on the dollar and in many cases, just giving it away to the poor people of the area, black and white. In time, Bill became a very popular bad man.

Bill would allow superstitious beliefs about him to be circulated, in fact, he encouraged it! These misconceptions made life a bit easier in Bill's line of work. There was even a superstition that only a silver bullet could ever reach him and in the most severe situations, he could turn into a dog and escape!

Bill was a busy man, robbing every train he could get to and planning several that he probably never got to. Between the jobs he actually pulled and the ones attributed to him erroneously by the newspapers, his reputation grew wildly. Law enforcement, the L&N railroad detectives and several private detective agencies were all hot on his trail. Each knew that his organization was about to bring him down! Well, Bill didn't know that.

In July of 1895, an informant told Escambia County Sheriff E.S. McMillan the location of Bill's hideout in Bluff Springs. The informant also told the sheriff to be extrememly careful that Bill was always ready for an attack. The sheriff ignored the warning of the informant. He organized a posse and as darkness approached they arrived at the location in Bluff Springs. In the subsequent gunfight, Bill's second shot struck Sheriff McMillan in the heart. The posse then unleashed a barrage of gunfire that dropped Bill dead. Dead?

Working feverishly in the darkness, the posse decided to get the sheriff to medical attention. They would return the following morning, at first light, to get the outlaw's body. Unfortunately, Sheriff E.S. McMillan died in the performance of his duties that evening.

When the posse returned to get Bill's body, they were shocked. There was no body to be found, only blood drops. Bill had survived another gunfight, though wounded, he survived! While this incident added to his reputation, it also diminished his popularity somewhat. Sheriff McMillan was a very popular sheriff and his death brought about a change of heart among the public. It also brought about a one-thousand-two-hundred-fifty dollar reward for the outlaw, a lot of money for the time and location.

On March 7, 1897, a posse stopped to take a break at the Tidmore and Ward store in Atmore, Alabama, located just a few miles from the Florida state line. While they were there, a black man, walking with a limp, came into the place. As he passed the counter and bought some crackers and cheese, the storekeeper recognized him as the infamous Bill McCoy, but he was too afraid to reach for the shotgun he kept behind the counter. All the stories about Bill's invincibility paid off. Meanwhile, one of the posse members, Leonard McGowan, also recognized Bill. Other members of the posse engaged in conversation with each other while ignoring the black man sitting on a barrel, eating crackers and cheese.