Sheriff John Benham was shot and killed while attempting to make an arrest.

Sheriff Benham succeeded Sheriff McMullin when he was himself shot and killed by a drunk 3 months prior to Sheriff Benham's death. Sheriff Benham was survived by his wife, Julia; three sons, Robert, Joseph and Peter; and a daughter, Margaret.

Sheriff Benham served on both sides of the Civil War. He appeared on the muster rolls of the 78th Enrolled Missouri Militia, and appears to have served with the 8th Provisional EMM as a Captain. He also joined Clardy's Battalion as a lieutenant until that Unit was surrendered in Arkansas in late 1864 or early 1865.

Interred: Masonic Cemetery of Farmington South, Farmington, Missouri.