Tilghman gained his first important position as a lawman on April 10, 1884, when he was appointed city marshal of Dodge City. On May 2, 1884, the citizens of Dodge presented Tilghman with a solid gold badge. In her biography of her husband, Tilghman's widow wrote that Tilghman and Assistant Marshal Ben Daniels ran "Mysterious" Dave Mather out of Dodge during late July 1885. Mather's 1992 biographer said the story does not add up for many reasons. The most obvious is that Mather was scheduled to stand trial for murder at the time, which raises the question of why Dodge City's marshal and assistant marshal would run out an indicted man rather than confine him. On March 9, 1886, Tilghman resigned as city marshal to tend to his ranch. The great blizzard of 1886 wiped out the livestock on many ranches in the area, including a ranch that Tilghman owned.