From Hunter’s Frontier Times Magazine, June, 1924

In the spring of 1853 a party of immigrants started from Northeast Texas overland to California. There were ten or twelve men, one lady and two little boys, aged ten and twelve years. The lady, Mrs. Wilson, was a young bride, formerly Miss Jane Howard, born in Missouri but reared in Texas. The little boys, Hugh and _____, were brothers of her husband whose father, Mr. Wilson, Sr., was also in the party.

The only satisfactory account of the trip was recently furnished me by Mr. A. A. Pittuck, a worthy, intelligent and honorable employee of Texas Farm and Ranch, who was on the plains about the same time in a party of about 100 gold hunters. He kindly furnished me the facts in regard to the emigrant party as he gathered them at the time

I wrote Gov. Merriwether, now nearly ninety years old, but with vigorous mind, on the 31st of December for his recollection of the facts. He replied to me on the 18th of January (present 1889) a very full account. From all the sources of information, I condense the more material facts.

The party traveled without serious adventure until they reached the Guadalupe mountains, where, at night, a portion of their horses were stolen by Indians. The men, eight or ten in number, pursued them next morning, were ambushed and all killed except a man named Hart, who escaped slaughter, and reached the camp to inform the young bride that her husband and his father were among the slain. Those left were Mrs. Wilson, the two little boys, a Mexican, a German teamster and Mr. Hart. They proceeded on to El Paso and after a short stay, started back. About fifty miles before reaching Ft. Phantom Hill, considering it safe to do so, Mr. Hart left them and proceeded on to the settlements. On the following day the party consisting of Mrs. Wilson, Hugh Wilson and his brother, the German and the Mexican were suddenly assaulted by fifteen Comanches. The Mexican was killed; the German was scalped and left as dead, but revived, reached Phantom Hill and recovered. The lady, with the boys, and all the portable effects were carried off.

From the letter of Governor Merriwether I am enabled to give a succinct account of the subsequent fate of Mrs. Wilson:

She was treated with great brutality by the brutal savages, who traveled over the plains and finally along a trail for two or three weeks. She was compelled repeatedly to mount wild horses or mules and was often thrown to the ground, greatly to the delight of the wild brutes. Finally, they compelled her to walk until, by continuous ill treatment, she was greatly weakened. On arriving at a spring, on the borders of a desert, they killed wild game in some quantity and compelled her to cook the meat for a three days' trip over the waste before them. The Indians allowed her to prepare some for herself and told her to start ahead on the trail before daylight. In gathering wood not far from the spring she had discovered a stump of a large cottonwood tree seven or eight feet high, and in stripping the bark from it, found that it was hollow. Starting quite early on the trail she traversed about three miles; then coming to a locality covered with tall grass, she determined to make an effort to escape. She entered the grass, made quite a circuit and concealed herself. When deemed safe she sought and found the hollow stump, climbed to its top and entered it retaining the meat she had cooked. The presumption is that the Indians started after daylight, traveled many miles before they realized that she had escaped and probably made no pursuit. 

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She remained in the stump by day and went to the spring at night till her meat was exhausted. Then she found food in the raw flesh of a few frogs about the spring, two or three terrapins, besides a snake, of course without cooking, as she had no means of making a fire. So she remained until weakened by starvation, she found herself unable to get out of the stump. In that hopeless and perishing condition, she remained three days, when she discovered through a hole in her prison, five men at the spring, who proved to be Pueblo Indians. She tried to call to them but her voice was too weak. After a time, one of the men, seeking fuel approached quite near, when she feebly called to him. He fled in terror telling his friends at the spring that the devil was in the stump. The whole party, under arms, surrounded it, and after due consideration, discovered and rescued her. They had to carry her in their arms. Their kind treatment soon revived her. But they remained with her five or six days. They were seeking the Comanches for trade and left her with a small supply of provisions, a gourd of water and a blanket for cover at night, saying they would return in three or four days and take her home with them. But they were gone nine days and on returning found her again in a perishing condition. It was two or three days before they could move her and then she was placed on an Indian "drag litter " made of two poles fastened on either side of a horse at one end while the other ends dragged on the ground. Between the poles behind the horse, an inclined couch was made of buffalo robes, and on that for six days, she was transported until they arrived at their village. Her captors had denuded her of nearly all her clothing and had brutally beaten her with stripes. She was also barefooted.

A detachment of United States dragoons under a Lieutenant whose name is said to have been Adams and whose wife was in the party, passed the village on a hurried march, and being unable to take Mrs. Wilson along, advised the chief to notify Governor Merriwether at Santa Fe. Mrs. Adams gave her a dress and such articles as she could spare. On being informed, Governor Merriwether, (I quote from his letter to me) says:

"I sent my son, Raymond, with two horses, back with the Indian messenger, to convey the white woman (for he did not know her name) to Santa Fe. On her arrival she presented the most pitiful spectacle I had ever seen. She was in rags, emaciated, and her mind somewhat disordered. I sent for Mrs. Smith, the wife of the Baptist missionary, and requested her to go to the store of Webb & Kingsbury and get whatever she needed. After being comfortably clothed and cared for her mind soon resumed its natural brightness and then, at different times, she repeated to me the story of her life and sufferings, as I communicate them to you. Her back and shoulders were still sore from the blows of her savage captors. I expended nearly $300 for her relief and in the spring of 1854 sent her to Texas. The United States at first refused to allow my account, including $50 paid to her rescuers, but finally paid it. Hearing of this refusal Governor Pease sent me a cheek for the amount, but at that time the government had allowed my account and I returned the check to him."

Governor Pease acted under a special act of Feb. 4, 1854, appropriating $5,000 for the rescue of captives among the Indians, specially authorizing the governor to use "so much as might be necessary to restore Mrs. Jane Wilson, now in the town of Santa Fe, to home and friends."

Mrs. Wilson safely arrived in Texas but I am unable to speak of her subsequently. Several years after their capture, little Hugh Wilson and his brother, through what instrumentality I have been unable to learn, were returned to civilization and were among their kindred in Hunt county.

(Editor's Note:—The above sketch was written nearly 50 years ago, but the name of the writer is unknown to us.)

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