wild west

[donw]

i certainly enjoy posts like the cowboy 1940 reunion.

many of us share a common history and are not really aware of it. we (speaking for myself, mostly) are not that far removed from that era. i'm only one generation. (two actually) my grandpa's and grandma's were all born in okla IT prior to 1900 and my parents were both born there before 1925. it was still "wild and wooly" when my parents were growing up there and my grandma recalls witnessing a gunfight in 1910 near webbers falls, okla. on her way home from school

we are from in and around heavener, okla...now, nearly a 'ghost town'...sad to say.

my mom is currently the only one left of all of them. she still has some photos of her childhood there. very hard life!

you guys that are able to... post those articles.

[salvo]

My Great Grandparents on my mothers side ran a Saloon & flop house in the mining town of Delamar NV. in the late 1800's early 1900's
Delamar is just a ghost now.
Here is a link about Delamar.
http://www.ghosttowns.com/states/nv/delamar.html

My Dads father was a miner in the town of Pioche NV in the 1st quarter of the 1900, he went on to help build the Hoover Dam (Boulder Dam) in the 1930's

[Charles]

One branch of my family came to Texas in 1835, another in 1846, another in 1855 and the last bunch came in 1868. They fought the Comanche, The Mexicans, the Yankees and each other. We pretty much cover the history of Texas from the primative, to the wild and wooly to the civilized and prosperous. Way to many stories, tales and yarns to spin on this board.

[Tennessee Hayre]

This thread made me pull out my dads old leather wallet that i have had since 1990 , received after his death. I keep it in my safe. I could not remember his birthday and after reviewing his drivers license i saw he was borned in 1929. My mom had a picture of him that I use to look at when he was a young man sitting on a horse with his hat and full gear. (picture burned up in our house with everything else years ago). He worked on the Money Company Ranch out in OR. I remember him telling me of an old timer that worked there as well that would always carry two Colt 45's everyday. He loved the old west. The first walk in movie me and my brothers and sisters ever went to was when he took us to see two movies that had just came out. (A Fist Full Of Dollars and a Few Dollars More.) I was hooked We lived in Kentucky in my childhood days and used mules to plow our fields , plant corn, mow hay and when we traveled to the back fields we used a wagon pulled with mules. Dad even took us to town once in that wagon which was a 20 mile round trip.That was the longest and hardest ride i have ever had. The year was 1970.(I think). That was on gravel and hard topped roads. I could not even image how hard it was to travel 100 mile in the old days across country like they did. They were very tough people and most did not complain.

[rangerider7]

For the guys near Central Texas, or you can do it by mail, let it be known that Hill Junior Collage at Hillsboro, Texas has a great research center for Confederate soldiers. It is the only one I know of other than Washington D.C. If you know the name of your ancestor that might have fought on the confederate side and what county of the United States they resided in you can find out what battles they fought in. I got, for ten dollars, all the battles my great grandfather fought in. They get his company off a muster roll and go from there. It sure makes the Civil War come to life for you.

[mescalero1]

My great-grandfather was a New Mexican that fought for the north.
Anybody know how I might find info on him?

[C. Cash]

Mescalero,

You can search his name on the Soldier's and Sailor's website run by the National Park Service. Using that info, go to the website for the National Archives. On the genealogy portion, you can order free forms to request his pay and if applicable, pension records. The latter gives alot more more info.

Great post!

Donw....I was raised by Mom's side of the family. My Grandfather was born the year Oklahoma became a state, in Bokoshe(Eastern OK) and my Grandmother from nearby Kinta. My Grand Dad's mother and father were acquainted with the Daltons and lots of stories of outlaws and the KKK riding around the hills. I cut my teeth listening to him talk of the old days. Never could get enough of the old West after that.

My Dad's side was from West Texas where they farmed, ranched , roughnecked, ran trap lines and anything else that helped feed them after the Depression hit. This is a pic. taken about 1914 of my Great Granparents, seated at right and kids and relatives. They were latecomers to Texas(about 1880) and were from East Tennessee. Their Dad had fought in the Mexican War and later fought as a Confederate Cavalryman in the Civil War before the kids moved to Texas.

[Tennessee Hayre]

A picture can say a 1000 words. Great Pic's. One thing I have noticed is if you look at most of the pictures from the old days. (1800's to early 1900's) people just don't smile that much.

[mescalero1]

Life was tough, not a lot to smile about.
My paternal grandmother ( always liked her ) was complaining about her friends talking about the "good ol days" she told me " I remember coal oil lamps & riding to town in the buggy, the good old days were not that good"
Only one that ever told me the truth.

[timkelley]

Dad used to tell me about the old Ranger who stayed around Quanah, Texas when he (Dad) was growing up in the late 20s and early 30s. Dad said this old boy was rough as could be and very few folks would try him on. Dad said he still carried an old Colt thumbuster and had the thumb and forefinger cut from his right glove. I guess the whole area stayed peaceful.

[jnyork]

My foster brother, 18 years my senior, spent his late teens working as a cowboy on ranches around remote Dubois, Wyoming in the 1930's, joining the Navy in 1940 and serving throughout the war. He got this Winchester 1886 .33WCF as partial pay for a summer's work at the Double Diamond ranch, which is now owned by famous lawyer Gerry Spence. I still have the rifle and the homemade cowhide saddle scabbard, both well worn. I added the tang sight just recently. I shoot it frequently in honor of the previous owner.

[mescalero1]

Now that is slick

[C. Cash]

Still one of the neatest levergun stories I've heard here jnyork! Thanks for reposting that.

[20cows]

My gg-grandfather (I'm his namesake) was in Texas in time to be on an 1845 census. His father-in-law (my ggg-grandfather) was in the "Runnaway Scrape" in 1836.

I don't know of any particular stories involving them though.

My wife's family comes with a story or two- we got this info from the Comanche Museum in Comanche, Texas.

Her ggg-grandparents were among the first settlers in the Comanche County area, having moved from further south (they were in the same 1845 census in Milam County, but it was a BIG county). They had 21 children (same wife ), 19 of which survived to adulthood.

Her gg-grandmother (first white female born in Comanche County), one of the above children, was taken by the Waco Indians for a bit. They were non-hostile and would go from farm to farm to get whatever the farmers would give them and after such one occasion in 1855, mom was surprised to find an Indian child in the crib, instead of her own daughter. She sounded the alarm and the child was found lying naked on a blanket, surrounded by a circle of Indians who had never seen a red-headed baby before.

After a parlay, the children were returned. The Indians insistied that everyone understand that they had not stolen the child, but had "traded".

One of her brothers spent a summer hunting buffalo as W. F. Cody's partner.

From the other side of her family, these are pictures of my wife's g- and grandfather (the two adults) with a cousin taken on a Ranch near Sanderson Texas, prior to the grandfather going to France (WWI).

[Tennessee Hayre]

Thanks 20cows, Great pic's. I was born and raised in Laruel Country Kentucky on the Clay county line, and my moms family name was Benge. Her mother (My grand Ma) was half cherokee Indian. And her dad (My Grand Pa) Matt Benge was also part Cherokee. My 4th Great Grandfather on my Mom's side was known as (The Bench) real name (Robert Benge) He was a red haired Indian chief (If you could call him that) who led a tribe of indians to kill white folk around the late 1700's around the Virgina and East Tennessee and Cumberland Gap area. His hatchet is in a museum somewhere out west. I seen a picture of the hatchet on the web. it was in a glass case. I guess nothing to be proud of. He and his tribe killed white settlers coming into the south through the cumberland gap, some on their way out west some to settle here in the south of the country. At one point he and his tribe started eating the heart and backskin of whom ever they killed to put fear into the homesteaders. The settlers would tell their kids if they would not go to sleep at night that (The Bench) would come and get them, Thats how much he was known and feared back then. He and his party did this for over 15 years. Until he was killed by a captain in the army leading a Milita and scalped during a battle which was given to the Gov of Virgina. They had formed to hunt him down because he had captured a well known white women in the Cumberland Gap area and while she was in his control rapped her and she had a child by him. That is where my family tree started from that point. Some say he was protecting his land from the white man and thought of himself as a William Wallace of scotland.(Re-Edit) I am a white Tennessee redneck and as most from the north would say (white trash) and proud of it, but would never be proud of what my grandfather did. It just goes to show if you search your family tree you will be surprised of what you can find out about your family's past. I was shocked To read the story just type in on the web (John Benge The bench) and select the page and you can read all about it...

[donw]

very interesting posts...keep 'em coming guys...it's very heart warming to know there's so many of us that such a great background...

[20cows]

Lots of white captives made good Indians and, if rescued, rarely made good settlers again. There are several good books on the subject.

[C. Cash]

Some say he was protecting his land from the white man and thought of himself as a William Wallace of scotland.(Re-Edit) I am a white Tennessee redneck and as most from the north would say (white trash) and proud of it, but would never be proud of what my grandfather did. It just goes to show if you search your family tree you will be surprised of what you can find out about your family's past. I was shocked To read the story just type in on the web (John Benge The bench) and select the page and you can read all about it...

Just as you say Tennessee Hayre, I think most folks have these same issues with their ancestors when you look hard enough. We tend to report on the good and leave out the bad. My Cash's married into the Stockton's in Knox Co. TX, and they were involved in hunting down runaway slaves. A bit chilling to think about. The good news is, none of us are responsible for what our Dad's and Grand Dad's did(in terms of God's final Judgement), nor can others rightly judge us as individuals for what our ancestors did right or wrong. Every man starts new. For that, I am thankful. What I appreciate about these previous generations is that even though they fought long grueling wars, lost many children, went hungry and lost all they had at times, they kept their Faith in the Lord. That to me is the legacy that is worth thinking about and giving to my children.

[gamekeeper]

I love reading all the posts about "the Wild West" but being a "Limey" my only family tale concerning the wild west is that my Dad saw Buffalo Bill on his last tour of England.

It must have made an impression on my Dad, as I still have his single shot lever action BB gun! (My Dad's that is not Buffalo Bill's)

[20cows]

Game keeper, you've got plenty of "wild west" like history of your own over there, involving swords and armor!

I've been looking over the UK on Google Earth, marking all the castles and forts I can find. I bet I'll find well over 1000.

[donw]

20cows...go to http://www.castlesofwales.com ...(if it's still active)

i visited there often as medieval europe is one of my intersts in history. it told me there were a known 700 and more castles in wales alone....basically anywhere there is a stand of trees or pile or rocks, chances are that it's the ruins of a castle in one way or another.

[gamekeeper]

Game keeper, you've got plenty of "wild west" like history of your own over there, involving swords and armor!

I've been looking over the UK on Google Earth, marking all the castles and forts I can find. I bet I'll find well over 1000.

I have lived in several places where English civil war battles were once fought and I spent some time living on the border of England and Wales, where battles were fought for centuries.
I was gamekeeper at Huddington Court where in 1605, 40 Catholic conspirators replenished their powder after getting it wet fording a river, whilst on the run from the Kings troops. Unfortunately they had failed in the plot to blow up Parliament. (Come back Guy Fawkes all is forgiven).

I love History but I find myself drawn more to what happend over on your side of the pond after the Pilgrims landed in The Mayflower.

[mescalero1]

Gamekeeper,
Is that the origin of "bonfire night" ?

[20cows]

The website went to a travel agent, no castles anymore.

I have found few active sites, however not on this computer.

[gamekeeper]

Gamekeeper,
Is that the origin of "bonfire night" ?

That's right, the fifth of November is Bonfire Night where effigies of Guy Fawkes are burnt.
When we were kids we would make "Guys" and take them around the streets asking for a penny for the Guy, when we collected enough money we would buy fireworks, mostly bangers and then terrorise the neighbourhood!

[mescalero1]

I remember the people I was associated with were split about 50-50
half because it failed
half because someone attemted it