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TEXAS
PEOPLE A Celebration
of People Known and Unknown
"Every man is a volume if you know how to read
him." - William Ellery Channing |
Lizzie
Hay and the Demise of the Lone Highwayman by Mike Cox 2-9-12
Sometimes,
no matter how good the story, a compelling tale gets forgotten. That’s sure the
case with the Texas outlaw known in his day as “the lone highwayman.” Robin
Hood of the Tonkawa by C.
F. Eckhardt 1-27-12
The
original teller of this story, John C. Jacobs, told it in Pioneer magazine
in the teens of the last century...William
F. Drannan told it like it wasn’t
by Clay Coppedge 1-9-12
According
to two books that Drannan wrote he was a contemporary and brother-in-arms of such
icons American icons as Kit Carson, Jim Bridger and General George Crook...Was
Oliver Partridge ‘Brushy Bill’ Roberts really Billy the Kid?
by C. F. Eckhardt
1-7-12
A
recent episode of ‘Brad Metzger’s DECODED,’ shown on the History Channel, delved
into—or appeared to delve into—the long-held myth that Brushy Bill Roberts was
actually Billy the Kid... The
Pitchfork Kid by Mike Cox 11-17-11
A
cowboy’s cowboy, the Kid sat a horse well and had the reputation of being the
best roper in the Panhandle. The
man who killed Lincoln by Bob Bowman 11-7-11
"Painted
inside on one wall in the restaurant is a drawing of John Wilkes Booth. I’ve often
wondered why the drawing was there until I read a book, “Unsolved Mysteries of
the Old West” by W.C. Jameson..."A
Lesson in the Sociology of Galveston Commerce by Bill Cherry
11-6-11
A
story of George and Magnolia Sealy's mansion The Open Gates, and Daniel Serrato's
pushcart of freshly made hot tamales...“The
Great Western” by
Clay Coppedge 11-4-11
Mention
the Great Western to most people and they might think you are trying to start
a discussion about “Lonesome Dove” or “True Grit.” Others will assume you’re referencing
a railroad. Actually, you would be talking about a woman known by many names –
Sarah Bowman being the last – who was better known by her nickname, “The Great
Western.” Royalty
for a Day by Mike
Cox 11-3-11
For
a man who had lost an arm to a rifle bullet during the Mexican Revolution, Alvaro
Obregon seems to have been a bit lax with security matters. That attitude, born
either of bravery or naivety, would prove costly, but it also set the stage for
an experience that Ruth Wilkerson Henderson remembered the rest of her long life... |
| Texas
Empresarios
by Jeffery Robenalt
10-1-11
Thanks
to Stephen F. Austin, "the Father of Texas," and many other dedicated Empresarios,
the population of Texas stood at nearly 20,000 citizens by 1830, most of them
from the United States. |
Three-Legged
Willie by Bob Bowman 10-23-11
Three-legged
Willie limped into Texas in 1827... Born Robert McAlphin Williamson, his reputation
as a judge became legendary in East Texas.... Widows
by Death by Mike Cox 10-13-11
In
the summer of 1915, when it cost just two cents to send a letter anywhere in the
United States or its territorities, the following piece of mail arrived at the
offices of the Cattleman Magazine in Fort Worth...
"A River,
A Town, and Memories" by Murray Montgomery 10-10-11
Remembering
Tillie McGill Bright
"I met her one time and I will always cherish those few
hours that we spent together — talking about the memories of her childhood in
Gonzales, Texas...""Rangering"
in Hamilton County by Mike Cox 10-6-11
The nation was barely
a year away from the beginning of its cataclysmic Civil War, but in the spring
of 1860, folks along Texas’ frontier had a more immediate problem on their minds
– incursions by hostile Indians... Strangers
in a Strange Land by Britt Towery 10-5-11
A
new book on the lives and ministry of a Miles, Texas Sweetheart & A Comanche Co.
Texas Cowboy Bone
Haulers Clay Coppedge
10-3-11
When
bones were worth a lot of money on the open market, people made a lot of money
selling bones on the open market. The bone business thrived from the 1870s, in
the wake of the great buffalo slaughter, until the mid-1930s... |
An
East Texas Psychic by Robert G. Cowser 9-20-11
Before
I ever heard or read the word psychic, I heard of a man with psychic powers. He
lived on a farm near Mt. Vernon during the years of the Great Depression...Harvey
Hughes’ Short Literary Career by Mike Cox 9-8-11
Like
most elected officials, Brewster County Sheriff E.E. Townsend received a fair
amount of correspondence, from postcards bearing descriptions of wanted felons
to legal papers to magazines, but the package that arrived from San Antonio that
day in March 1923 ranked as the most unusual piece of mail he ever received...
Cotton
Gottlob and Coach Red Pierce Were a Heck of a Team by
Bill Cherry 9-7-11Comancheros
by Clay Coppedge 9-4-11
At
a time when few people dared to traverse the forbidding Llano Estacado on the
South Plains of Texas, a group of people known to history as the Comancheros made
quite a living in the region. Hardin’s
East Texas Roots by Bob Bowman 8-22-11
Most
of us associate John Wesley Hardin--the man often called Texas’ most famous gunfighter--with
regions beyond East Texas, but the truth is that Hardin had deep roots in the
pineywoods... |
| Texas
Filibusters by Jeffery Robenalt 9-1-11
Although
the Filibusters were unsuccessful in gaining independence for Texas, reports of
their activities in newspapers and periodicals all across the country brought
the vast land of Texas to the forefront of American thought and encouraged countless
settlers to pull up stakes and journey to the new land of promise, paving the
way for the era of the Texas Empresarios. |
Don
Antonio de Espejo by Byron Browne 7-27-11
He
was only trying to return home, to New Spain, by a short cut. However, Don Antonio
de Espejo’s venture through Texas has warranted his inclusion within the history
books (the Texas ones in particular) alongside other explorers and conquistadors... |
| La
Salle and French Exploration in Early Texas by Jeffery Robenalt
7-1-11
"Although
La Salle's expedition was unsuccessful, the French presence in Texas finally stirred
the Spanish to action. Fearing they would lose the race to claim the Americas,
the Spaniards renewed their exploration of the Gulf Coast and began working diligently
to settle East Texas." |
The
short life of Sam Bass by Bob Bowman 7-17-11
For
more than four years, we have been working on a new book, “Bad to the Bone,” a
collection of outlaws who left their imprint on East Texas. One of the best known
outlaws was Sam Bass...The
Murdered Sheriff by Bob Bowman 7-10-11
Angelina
County Sheriff William Reed (Bill) McMullen was one of the men who was killed
during a feud between the Gilley and Windham families at Homer, the county seat
of Angelina County in the 1860s... Remembering
J. Evetts Haley by Mike Cox 7-7-11
During
his long life, J. Evetts Haley held down some of the best “jobs” a person can
have: Collector of historical documents for a university library, rancher, and
writer. Lizzie
Crosson had true grit by Mike Cox 6-30-11Lives
of two Texas Rangers: Lee Hall and John Barclay Armstrong by Murray Montgomery
6-27-11
There’s
not many times when people are doing research on the history of Texas that they
don’t come across that illustrious group of lawmen known as the Texas Rangers...The
Wonderful Boy by Mike Cox6-9-11
His
father a respected Uvalde County rancher, the quiet, good-looking Guy O. Fenley
seemed like a typical teenager except for one thing – he could see underground
water. Texans
a bit different, and I'm good with that by Delbert Trew
6-7-11
The
change from rural Texas to big-city California spawned many interesting experiences...
Honoring
a bull riding legend by Bob Bowman 6-4-11
Born
in Crockett in 1935, Myrtis Dightman was a legendary bull rider who set all types
of records for riding raging bulls in rodeo arenas across the United States. The
Revenge of 'Devil John' McCoy by Murray Montgomery 6-3-11
John McCoy, called
“Devil John” because of his bravery and daring, wasn’t one to forgive and forget...J.
Frank Dobie by Mike Cox 6-2-11
It’s
not mentioned in any of his biographies, but one of Texas’ best known authors
wrote portions of one of his best-known books while sequestered in a tarpaper-covered
shack in the Chisos Basin. |
| Coronado’s
Search for Cibola by Jeffery Robenalt 6-1-11
Coronado’s expedition, including
250 cavalry, 80 infantry, 1000 Indians, several priests, and thousands of horses,
cattle, and sheep, departed from Culiacan in the spring of 1540. Common
Sense Justice in Marlin by Mike Cox 5-5-11
“Battery
Dan” Finn's renown for putting “equity before the law,” seems to have come to
the judicial notice of Marlin’s mayor, F. S. Heffner. |
| The
Journey of Cabeza de Vaca
by Jeffery Robenalt 5-1-11
Spanish
conquistador Alvar Nunez Cabeza de Vaca was the first European to explore the
interior of Texas, and the narrative he wrote of his experiences in the New World
remains the most valuable source of information we possess today on the Native
American tribes, landforms, plants, and animals of early Texas. |
| Ferdinand
Lindheimer by Clay Coppedge 4-12-11
About
50 species and sub-species of plants are named for Ferdinand Lindheimer, a man
born to the good life in Germany who made his name – and the name of all those
plants – on the Texas frontier. Carnie
Philosophy by Mike Cox
4-28-11
Edgar
Stephens and Robert “Sunshine” Stubblefield spent most of their lives on the road
traveling from town to town in Texas with the Bill Hames carnival. |
|
Fort Davis and
Colonel Benjamin Henry Grierson by Byron Browne 3-23-11
The
assignment to Fort Davis should have been relatively calm. However, the Mescalero
Apache chief Victorio saw to it that Grierson and his soldiers remained active...
|
| | The
Misadventures of Wrong-Way Corrigan by Maggie Van Ostrand 3-9-11
Famed
Douglas Corrigan tried for years to get permission to fly from New York to Dublin.
"No," said aviation officials, "it's not safe..., we give you permission to fly
from New York to California." Corrigan finally took off in heavy fog.... 28 hours
later, he arrived in Dublin. Corrigan claimed it was a "navigational error." Whatever
it was, he got to his dream destination and didn't even mind it when newspapers
dubbed him "Wrong-Way Corrigan"... |
| A
March into Hell: The Mier Expedition by Jeffery Robenalt
3-11-11
The
Mier Expedition and the infamous “Black Bean Episode” Custer
in Texas by Clay Coppedge
2-23-11
It’s not hard to
figure that Gen. George Armstrong Custer’s time in Texas was controversial and
paradoxical. His entire military career was that way... |
| Robert
F. Stockton by Byron Browne
2-1-11
Robert Stockton’s
life was one of those extraordinary events that persuades and affects the lives
of generations that follow.
Bose
Ikard by Clay Coppedge 2-1-11
Bose
Ikard was born into slavery and became rancher Charley Goodnight’s most trusted
and respected cowhand. For Ikard, more than most, the road to the history books
was a long and winding one. |
Fruit
Tree Ramsey by Clay Coppedge
3-22-11
When
Frank T. Ramsey was 16 years old, he quit going to school and became a partner
in his father’s nursery business in Burnet County. His father, Alexander M. Ramsey,
wrote down a list of fruit tree varieties that he had for sale and put his son
and business partner on a horse. Frank traveled all over Texas, taking orders
for trees and collecting native flora along the way... UTMB
Professor “Old Test Tube” Took the First X-Ray Ever Taken in Texas by Bill
Cherry 3-4-11
The
only one of the original 1891 faculty of the University of Texas Medical Branch
who graduated from the University of Texas in Austin was Dr. Seth Morris... Everyone,
students as well as the medical staff, got to calling him “Old Test Tube” ...
Is
Quantrill buried in East Texas? by Bob Bowman 2-28-11
One
of the most intriguing legends in East Texas claims that William Clarke Quantrill,
the guerrilla leader from the Civil War and the mentor of the Younger and James
brothers, is buried in Angelina County. Old
Trail Drivers by Mike Cox 2-24-11
No
matter the old cowpoke’s backstory, in his dotage he could round up words on paper
just about as well as he once rode down and roped strays.
The Battle of the Salado
by Jeffery Robenalt 2-21-11
In March of 1842, Mexican President
Santa Anna retaliated for Texas President Mirabeau Lamar’s ill-fated "Wild Goose"
expeditionAn
Outspoken Man by Bob Bowman
2-20-11
Many towns and
cities in East Texas have in their history individuals who ascended to greatness,
but fell to earth when they opened their mouth at the wrong time. Such was Medford
Bryan Evans, a college professor, author and editor...
A
Story of Two Veterans: They Didn't Take the War Personally by Mike Cox
2-17-11
Nacogdoches’
Oak Grove Cemetery is one of the oldest and most historical graveyards in Texas,
but one of its better stories has hardly been told.
Ida Lee by C. F. Eckhardt
2-11-11
On March 21, 1924,
Mrs. Ida Lee Daughtery of Hall, Texas, died. She was a woman of some reputation—not
as a ‘soiled dove,’ but as a devoted wife.
Davy
Crockett Won by Mike Cox 2-10-11
“Davy
Crockett Won,” reads the small-type headline on a back page of the Jan. 4, 1893
Austin Daily Statesman.
Rev.
Marcus Valenta achieves longest active-duty record in U.S. history by Murray
Montgomery 2-4-11
Of
all the chaplains in the U.S. Armed Forces, one has seen longer continuous combat-theatre
duty than any other... Wild
Bill the Driller by Mike Cox 2-3-11
Not
everyone immediately struck it rich during the West Texas oil booms of the first
couple of decades of the 20th century. Aptly named cable too driller Wiliam Wells
... Daddy
and His Buckeye by Bill Cherry
2-1-11
“There’s only one
thing that brings good luck. It’s the buckeye... And it’s even better if your
buckeye was blessed by a voodoo priestess. Sister Veressa in the Des Ourses swamp
of Louisiana has ‘extree’ power.”The
sculptress and a paper mill by Bob Bowman 1-31-11
We recently learned that Texas historian Light Cummings is writing a book about
sculptress Allie Tennant of Dallas... Post
War Slaton - A Migrant Family's Story by James Villanueva 1-30-11Texas
Pete Photo courtesy William Beachamp 1-28-11The
Great Comanche Raid and the Battle of Plum Creek by Jeffery Robenalt
1-9-11
One
of the most storied events in the historic past of Lockhart, Texas occurred two
miles south of town along the wooded banks of Plum Creek, when a small group of
volunteers defeated more than 600 Comanche and Kiowa warriors who had participated
in the Great Comanche Raid of 1840...What
Happened To Jesse Evans? by C. F. Eckhardt
1-5-11
Jesse Evans is one
of the more enigmatic characters in the annals of West Texas and New Mexico outlawry.
Then he just quietly disappeared sometime around 1879--and nobody knows what happened
to him. Or maybe not... John
Durst Leon Co Photos Barclay Gibson 1-1-11
More
Texas
People |
| Texas
Escapes, in its purpose to preserve historic, endangered and vanishing
Texas, asks that anyone wishing to share their local history and vintage/historic
photos of their town, please contact
us. | | |
