He was a hero to some, a villain to others, and wherever he rode people spoke his name in whispers. 
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In 1838, a man named Woodson Hex and his wife, Virginia "Ginny" Hex, gave birth to their only son – Jonah. Growing up in Woodson's small farmhouse was a tumultuous time for young Jonah. Woodson was known for his excessive drinking and his abusive nature, and often took his violent urges out upon Jonah and Ginny.
One such incident occurred when Jonah was only ten years old. His father had given him a rifle for his birthday, and Jonah hoped that relations might improve between the two, but that same evening, Jonah witnessed Woodson fly into a drunken rage and attack Ginny, whom he falsely believed had been cheating on him. Not long after, Ginny abandoned her husband and child and would not be reunited with Jonah again for many years.
By 1851, Woodson Hex decided to travel out to California in the hopes of mining for gold during the California gold rush. In his travels, he came across a tribe of Apache American Indians and entered into a dialogue with the Apache chief. He sold his thirteen-year-old son to the tribe in exchange for some fur pelts. The Apaches raised Jonah and educated him in the ways of their tribe. Through the chief, Jonah learned how to track and to hunt, as well as fighting and survival skills. Although he was favored by the chief, Jonah was a slave, and never succeeded in fitting in with his Apache brethren.
In 1853, a puma snuck into the camp and attacked the chief. Jonah drove the animal away, saving his life and thus earning the older man's gratitude. As such, the chief granted Jonah his freedom. Even though he now possessed the ability to come and go as he pleased, Jonah had grown accustomed to life among the American Indians, and preferred to stay in the Apache camp.
During this time, Jonah befriended the chief's son, Noh-Tante. Although they were as brothers to one another, they both pined for the affection of a woman named White Fawn. White Fawn clearly preferred Hex over Noh-Tante and the Apache's inherent jealousy soon grew into a deep-seated hatred.
In 1854, the Apache chief decided to test Noh-Tante and Jonah's worthiness as warriors. He instructed the two boys to sneak into a nearby camp and steal horses from a tribe of Kiowa Indians. Noh-Tante believed this would make an excellent opportunity to claim White Fawn for himself. During the raid, Noh-Tante attacked Jonah, knocking him unconscious. Satisfied that the Kiowa would finish him off, he brought the horses back to his father and told the Apaches that the Kiowa had killed Jonah during the raid.
While the Apaches believed Jonah dead, a group of bounty hunters conducted their own raid on the Kiowa camp. During the firefight, a stray bullet struck Jonah's body and he was left bleeding on the ground. Shortly thereafter, a trapper discovered Hex's limp form and nursed him back to health. Betrayed by his own family, Jonah swore to never return to the Apache camp. He relied upon their teachings in order to survive however, and eked out a meager existence as a buffalo hunter.
As Jonah grew into adulthood, he joined the United States Army as a cavalry scout. By 1861, the country was radically divided on issues of slavery and Southern rights. When war erupted between the Northern states and the South, Jonah shifted his loyalties to the newly formed Confederate army and enlisted as a lieutenant in the 4th cavalry. Ironically, Hex, a former slave, now found himself fighting to preserve the very institution that he had been a victim of. During this time, Jonah met a fellow soldier named Jeb Turnbull and the two became close friends.
In September of 1862, President Abraham Lincoln announced his Emancipation Proclamation – a proposed bill that would outlaw slavery in all slave-holding states. Jonah began to realize that he could no longer support a system that elected to hold his fellow man in bondage. He abandoned his post and marched into the Union camp at Fort Charlotte to surrender. The camp's captain pressured Hex into revealing the location of his Confederate unit, but Jonah refused to yield the information. An orderly at Fort Charlotte examined samples of clay from the iron shoes on Hex's horse, and successfully determined where the Rebels were stationed.
The Union soldiers tracked the enemy back to their camp, and took them by surprise. As the Rebels were arrested, the Union captain publicly thanked Jonah for his assistance, marking him as a traitor in the eyes of his former unit. All of the soldiers were brought back to Fort Charlotte.
The Union camp did not possess enough food in order to adequately feed all of its prisoners, so the captain manipulated Hex into staging a breakout. Jonah found a shaft beneath his cell and used it to access the compound where Jeb Turnbull and the other prisoners were being held. He aided them in trying to escape, but the Union captain was prepared for them. In an event that history will know as the "Fort Charlotte Massacre", the Union soldiers shot down every escapee in cold blood, including Jeb Turnbull. Jonah found himself a victim of a Union bullet as well, but managed to survive long enough to kill the camp's captain. Following the Fort Charlotte Massacre, Jonah patched himself up and moved out towards the Western territories.
Hex eventually returned to the Apache camp where he had lived, and discovered that his old rival, Noh-Tante, had since married White Fawn. The Apache chief was shocked to learn that Hex was still alive, and now doubted the honesty of his son's tale concerning the Kiowa raiding party. Jonah openly declared that Noh-Tante had betrayed him.
In order to determine the truth, the Apache chief orchestrated a trial-by-combat between Jonah and Noh-Tante. Noh-Tante feared that Jonah was a more capable fighter, and so he deliberately sabotaged the tomahawk that Jonah was to use during the fight. As the trial commenced, Jonah found himself losing to Noh-Tante's brutal attacks. Unable to rely upon his tomahawk, Jonah used his Bowie knife to bring Noh-Tante down, killing him in the process. By doing so, Jonah broke a sacred law which forbade the murder of an Apache. Jonah appealed to the chief, claiming that he was fighting in self-defense, but the chief would not listen to him. Several braves held Jonah down while the chief ordered him branded with the Mark of the Demon. Jonah's face was hideously burned and he was expelled from the Apache camp never to return.
Some time later, Jonah wandered into a boom town to drown his sorrows. After drunkenly stumbling out of a saloon, he found an outlaw named "Mad Dog" Lucas McGill in the throes of attacking a young woman. In an inebriated haze, Jonah's mind replaced Mad Dog's image with that of his own father. Mad Dog's words echoed violent sentiments that he had heard visited upon his own mother many, many times. Without thinking, Jonah withdrew his colts and shot Mad Dog down in the middle of the street. A deputy ran out and graciously thanked Jonah for bringing the outlaw down. He told Hex that a man could make a lot of money by tracking down and apprehending wanted felons, and inspired Jonah to pursue the bounty hunting trade.
In his prime, Jonah Hex possessed the strength level of a man his age, size and weight who engaged in intense regular exercise.
Jonah once owned a horse named General. After General was killed by stray fire in Weird Western Tales (Volume 1) #22, Jonah made use of whatever horse was available to him at any given time.
Two ivory handled .44 caliber Colt dragoon pistols, one Bowie knife, a .30-.60 lever action rifle, an 1860 Light cavalry sabre and other weapons germane to the 19th century American southwest. In the 21st century, Hex had access to a variety of futuristic firearms.
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