Vol 22 No. 09 - June 1945

A Story Of The "Fighting Parson"

By J. Marvin Hunter.

Andrew Jackson Potter was a. reformed gambler and race horse man. He was a native of Kentucky, and had only about three months' schooling as he was growing up. He was orphaned at the age of ten years, and turned to riding race horses to earn a living. At a campmeeting in Bastrop county, Texas, in 1856, Potter was converted, joined the Methodist church, and became one of the most widely known preachers on the frontier, making his circuit, on horseback, through Uvalde, Bandera, Kerr, Kendall, Mason, McCulloch, Menard, Tom Green, and other counties of the frontier, in the late 1860s, 1870s, and 1880s. He died in the pulpit, while preaching near Lockhart in 1895, after almost thirty years in the Master's service. Here is some interesting history of the fiery preacher and courageous Indian fighter.

Mentions: Captain Stoke Holmes' Company of Confederate troops * N. A. Graves * Prairie Lea * Dr. P. C. Woods of San Marcos * Camp Verde, in Kerr county * General Twiggs * Dr. Ship * Mr. Bonnell * Curry's Creek * Among the staunch members over in the Guadalupe Valley were the Reeses, Nichols, Lowrance, Manning, and Powell, and in Bandera were the Langfords, Rugh, and others * Buck Hamilton * Center Point

A Trying Trip Across The Desert

Mrs. Rachel Eads

Account of Mrs Ead's hard and dangerous trip from Denton, Texas to California in schooner wagons drawn oxen in May, 1857.

Mentions: Samuel Hazelton * Fort Davis * Dead Man's Hole * Devil's Hole * Horse Head Crossing * Doubtful Pass * Gipsy Smith * Port Buchanan * the Gila river * the Sulphur Springs * Maricopa Wells * Gila Bend * El Monte * Mr. and Mrs. Adolphe Huffmeyer * Mr. Robert Ross of Rossville, Texas * the S. P. Railroad *

Indian Raid Near Sabinal, 1859

Account of a bloody Indian raid that occurred October 28, 1859, involving a ranchman in Uvalde county, named John Davenport, John Bowles, Doke Bowles and other early settlers of the area.

Mentions: Mr. W. E. Heard * The Bowles' ranch * Blanco creek * the Patterson settlement * ranch on the Leona * Ranchero creek * John Kennedy's ranch on the Sabinal * Lieut. W. B. Hazen * Fort Inge * Frio Canyon * Clabe Davenport * John Davenport * John L. Daugherty, John McCormick, Ben Pulliam, William Thomas, Frank Isabell, Nobe Griner, Arnold, Arnette, Everette and "Bushy Head" Williams * Black creek

The Story Of Julia Long

By Clarice Akin Holloway.

Account of a pioneer Bandera county woman, Julia Long, who was born in 1850, the fourth of seven children. Her father, Samuel Andrew Long, was a San Jacinto veteran. Julia married "Seco" Smith, and settled in Bandera county, just after the last big Indian raid in Texas. Here is her story.

Mentions: Mr. and Mrs. B. H. Mayfield of Medina, Texas * Jane and Dr. James Long, of Point Bolivar fame * Lockhart * a place on the Olmos

A Long Cattle Drive To Montana

By W. C. Cochran

Account of long trail drive involving the author, Captain John Henderson, Jerome Edwards, Joe Powers, John Glenn, Poke Berryhill, Joe and Bill Walton, Tom Wisdom, Adam Rosser, and an old Negro, Fred along with 1500 head of cattle, 1200 four and five-year-old steers and 300 cows. The trail drive began near Strawn, TX and terminated at the Montana border.

Mentions: Wesley Edwards of Midland, Texas * Fort Phantom Hill. * Buffalo Gap * Bill Willburn had a grocery store where Roswell now stands * Grand Falls * Loving Crossing on the Pecos * Good Bend * Captain John Sloan, of San Saba * the Picketwire in Colorado * Fort Sumner * the Raton Mountains * Trinsher Pass * the K. C. R. R. * Adobe Walls, on the Pecos * Captain John Sloan * Fort McKavett * Uncle Frank Cowden

A Haskell County Pioneer

By Mrs. Eileen Therwhanger Lively.

John Thomas Therwhanger came from Kentucky to Texas in 1891 when he was twenty-six years of age. He settled in the Knox-Haskell counties area, which was just being opened up to full settlement and development. There he raised cattle, built a ranch and rose to prominence in the community. This is his story.

Mentions: his young wife, Annie Robbins * the Central Hotel, Abilene * Benjamin, Knox county * the Bar-Z ranch in Haskell and Stonewall counties * George Browder Therwhanger, Phillip Therwhanger, Lucille Therwhanger, Mary Louise Therwhanger, Eileen Therwhanger, and Elsie Therwhanger * Weinert, Haskell county *

The Old Butterfield Stage Line

By J. Marvin Hunter.

The Overland Southern Pacific Mail and Stage Line was the greatest stage-coach line in American history. It covered 2,759 miles, from St. Louis to San Francisco, and was established by the government to solve the need of mail through the Middle States to the Pacific Coast.

Mentions: James Birch, president of the California Stage Co. * John Butterfield of New York * Carrie J. Crouch * Fort Chadbourne * G. Bailey * Postmaster General Brown * Thomas Janes of the Wells Fargo Co * Commodore Vanderbilt * the steamer Orizaba * the Eastern Steam Navigation Co * Captain Harrison *

Not The Dr. Harrell Log Cabin

Mentions: Mr. F. C. Humphrey, vice-president and manager of the Williamson County Old Settlers Association * Dr. Harrell * Liberty Hill, Williamson county *

Triple Hanging In Laramie, Wyo.

By Colonel Harry Young

Account of Laramie, WY deputy U. S. marshal, N. K Boswell and the time that he had strung up to hang, three notorious outlaws, Big Steve, Con Moyer and Ace Moyer. Includes an excellent old photo from an old daguerrotype of the three men hanging. Mentions: the saloon was called the "Bucket of Blood." * Jeff Carr * the notorious Jackson Hole in northwestern Wyoming *

The Mysteries Of Lonesome Land

E. B. Parks

This account provides an excellent description of the flora of the Mexican border country. To the botanist that is a most alluring region, all the way from Brownsville up the Rio Grande to the New Mexico line, a distance of nearly 800 miles. Mr. Parks' cleverly-woven word picture of that fascinating, gripping region, and its plant life is very interesting.

Mentions: the guajillo * the nopal * berries of lote, brazil, and granjeno * The huisache * huisatchella * White brush, guayucan, brazil and mesquite * tasajillo, or turkey cactus * mescal

Vast Public Domain Given Away

By J. Marvin Hunter

When Texas won her independence at the Battle of San Jacinto, April 21, 1836, there was at her command a vast domain of public lands totaling 242,5994,560 acres. Much of this land was given away for educational and industrial purposes. Here is the story.

Hitler's Germany Has Fallen

By J. Marvin Hunter