I watched a movie when I was a boy and I would like to see it again but I can't remember the name of the movie. What I do remember is this.

It’s about a string of sheriffs in this little town. It goes through 4 or 5 different sheriffs as the years go buy in the movie. Each sheriff has a different story and to complicate things there is also a murderer who drives around picks up hitchhikers and kills them. The setting is maybe 1900’s 1910’s or 1920’s.

Sheriff one: It starts out at his home where we see his son with a friend talking feeding his horse. The sheriff goes through his duties and in so figures out whom the murderer is. I remember a scene were the murderer catches the sheriff in his yard digging up one of the graves with his hands. As the murderer goes to get him he disappears. Next we the sheriff is called into town to dispel some problem at a store or market and accidentally gets shot. I remember the blow you feel watching the movie as he gets killed just as he figured out who the murderer was.

Not sure of the order of the middle few sheriffs but I do remember one was corrupt. One was a great guy but clueless. Not sure about the other or others. The only other thing I can remember about them was one of the sheriffs was black.

The last sheriff is a young kid who quickly figures out who the murderer is (a murderer who has aged) and deals with it. Then in the ending of the movie the young sheriff goes home to his family and walks out to feed his horse and talk to his friend/neighbor. This is when it dawns on you the current sheriff was the son of the first sheriff in the movie.

Great movie I would like to see again but can’t remember the name of it. Again I was very young so I can’t remember all the detail or be sure I got the ones here exactly right. The movie must have been late 80’s maybe very early 90’s.

Any help figuring out the name of this movie would be very much appreciated. Thank you.

Ok I doubt this is the answer but here goes. I remember years ago seeing a miniseries not a movie called "Chiefs" and it was three or four episodes long and it was the same thing only these guys were chief of police in this little town and each one had to deal with this serial killer.
That and the fact that Wayne Rogers who played Trapper John in M.A.S.H. was in it is the only thing I really remember about it except that it was really good show.