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Edith L. Crawford, 1642 worde.
Oarriseso, I. Vex.
As toldriCyln.anffie Bourn* Skinner.
was born in independence, Virginia in the year 1858. On
October 21, 1938, it will be fifty seven years since i came to
Lincoln Gounty, New Mexico, and I have lived in thie county
111,111r eine..
My father was L. W. Bourne, and my mother whore maiden
name was FUlton, were born in Piohmond, Virginia. Father war a
farmer. He wanted tn go to Tewas fto he rale out and we left
Independence, Viretnia in 1859. My father, mother and their six
children; three boys mnd three eirles treveled by trein to Mem.
phis!, Tennessee and from there we went by boat. /e vent down
the Mteristipei River on ft boat named "The (treat MieeisrinPt"
to the Red River where we °harmed to a boat named. "Erie No. 9"
and traveled un the Red River to Shreveeort, Leuielane.From
there we rent on en old etege conch to Jefeerron, Texas, in the
eastern rert of Texae, just ;crop, the line from Louiriana.
Ihile at Jeffereon father met some cotton freiehterr eho were
going to Flack Jeck grove, Tex,p, which war our deetinetion.
Father had a brother who lived there. We traveled with the fro.
ightere mnd had a herd dry trie but ie did not heve to worry
about the °coking as the men fol)cs 411 ell the work. We tray.
oiled in big old freight wagone drawn by mules.
After arriving in Black Jack Grove father went into the
store buelnese, we stayed there about a year and a half then
moved to Stephenville, Texas. While living in Stephenvilie I
met John H. Skinner and married him in December IS73. X was
fifteen years old. We rode horse back out to Squire Johnathan
Selcheris house and he married un while we at on our horses.
Vt. ,kinner war living on a fary when we married. Re farmed
and also ?aim, a few cattle and horses. Soon after I arried,
my father End mother left Ctephenville and moved to Oak Creek,
Texas, about forty oiler east of Big Springs, Texas. The Texas
and Pacific Railrond Company 'e building through there to Big
ftprino,r and father and my t'ro brothers went there trying to get
.work, le omper on the fermr in those daya wer..not very much.
4 married man with a team was naid fifteen Sollars e month and
_
eine* ?Tien only tmn dollars, tcorking from pun up to eun domn.
They staid hare only 1. rhort while. They hears of the gold
strike on the Ponito /iver in Lincoln County, New Vexioo, and
father, mother, thrmo brother, and two pirters left Oak Creek,
Texas, in the rorinr, of 1881. They reached the Bonito sometime
in MnY and found nlenty of -ork. They wrote back for Mr.Skinner
and le to come out fts they found work plentiful and such a be...
utifUl country to live in.
when we received this 7etter we were living about ten
miler east of Colorado rsity, Texas, on the Jim Ned River, to
we loaded up what few clothes, and bedlingsand provisions re
had in our won Irclwn by two horses, and left for Nem Mexico
in Sentember, 1881. We had one boy and one girl at this time.
A young boy by the name of Wilburn Mackey came down to see us
the night before we left and wanted to come with up so we
brought him along. Wr. Skinner and Milburn slept on the ground
and the two children and 1 slept in the wagon as we were afraid
of snakes. We made our pour dough bisoults and cooked then in a
dutoh oven, using soda as there wasn't any baking powder in
those days. We used buffalo and cow chime to cook with and the
only light we had was the oamp fire as we had no candles. Bowie
nights when we camped where there was a lot of cactus growing
we would gather the dried cactus stalks and burn them.
The first town of any else that we stopped in was Ballin.
ger, Texas. We stocked up on provisions there. We crossed the
Colorado River et Ballinger at a ford. The water was so swift
we came near getting drowned in making the crossing. It was e
very hot dry trip !Prot there to Ban Angelo, Texas, where we
struck the Conch° River and laid over ft day to rest. After lam.
tag the Conch. River we ptruok the plains country and it wsm so
dry and hot that we drove late into the night to get to water
for our horeee. We earned our drinking water in kegs tied to
the out side of the wagon and always had plenty from one rater.
tag Plaoe to the next. The only fresh meat that we had on the
STIP woks wild ducks that we killed in the rivers and fresh fish
that the Iran caught when we oamped on the Conch° and Peoos Rivers.
We eew quite ft few buffalo and antelope but they were always too
for away for up to shoot at. We were always on the lookout for
Indians and robbers for we had been warned on leaving Bah Angelo
that there were st lot of Indians on the plains. When no get to
the Wetherlan Rancho they told up to look out for robbers up the
Seven Rivers (wintry and we were scared to death. We didn't have
4111.11.6
a bit of trouble though and didn't see an Indian until we
reached the 3mptcf, in New toxic°.
Is oroepsd the Poor liver at Peoos City. It was up so
high that we cropeed on a ferry boat pulled !arose by a rope.
We left Pecos and traveled almowt due north, we passed Roswell
Yew texioo to the north and came by the Netherlan Ranch*,
which was iurt below the Cottonwoods and also by Seven Riven',
per Yexicso. Pell of these places were in Lincoln County in thole
days. After leaving Fecoe City, Texas, the road was nothing
more than a cow trail all t1ogl way to the Bonito River. We
ororeed the Hondo A.ver jut below the eorder Hill and when is
came down the .:,order %ill, Mr. Skinner end the boy who wan with
us hd to stand on the upper side of the wagon to keep it from
turning over and r hld to drive the wagon down the hill. I was
so scared and I wongered what kind of a country w. 'sre coming
to. Je ORMO on up the Hondo '4iver towhet le now the town of
Hp4do, Nov Iexioo, waere 17e struck the Ao Bonito and on up to
Lincoln, New exico, where we saw our first adobe houses.
The Lincoln County ,:ar had not been over very long and
Billy the Kid had been killed only about three months before.
We went through Fort Stanton, which was a military poet in those
days, asped by the old Brewery, which was between Fort Stenton
end. Angus, and on to mining settlement *-hich was later called
Bonito City. I was so glad to get to where my mother and father
were when we landed on the Fonito Mr. skinner had only thirty.
five cents in his notket and that was every cent we had. The
first job he got after arriving there was hauling come sup..
plies far some minors. The miners had gone to White Oaks for
surplies with a burro team awl on the way back the burrOs
got awny from them and they were left a foot so they -came
for Mr. Skinner to haul their supplies about ten miles and
they gave him five dollsrs. We.thought that was a lot of
money for a little work.
There was plenty of work in the mines and lots of min.
ers coming in every day. It soon grew to be a big camp and
they named it lagnkto citri we got our mail at 7011t0 Oakediew
Mexico, about once a month. Later on we got ouS mail at Fort
Stanton and got it oftener. One of the miners would ride
horse back to the Fort and get the mail for the whole oanp.
My mother, one other woman, (I have forgotten her name) and
myself were the only women in oamp the first winter we were
there. Just before Christmas in 1811, father, my two brothers
and Mr. skinner went hunting and killed fifteen wild turkeys
and took them to Yort 3tanton and sold them for twenty five
dollars, we had such a happy Christmas.
44, lived in a little old log cabin on the Bonito and it
was chinked up with mud. When the mud dried some of it fell
out and left holes between the loge. One day while I was ',facto.
ing dinner I felt POMO one looking at me through one of these
holes, when I went out to investigate, I found several Indiana
had been peeping through the holes at me. They never did mow.
lest anyone around the camp, but we were always afraid of the,
for we didn't know when they would go on the war..path. Soon
after landing on the Bonito River we took up a homestead
near the camp, proved up on it and got our patent. IS lived
on this homestead until 1906 when we sold out to the Rail.
road Company and moved to ()asylum°, Now Mexico. Xt. Skinner
died in Carrie.** in 1925 at the age of 72 years. 1 am now
living with my daughter, Mrs. A.B. Sumwalt at legal, Now Mex.
too. have thirty five grandchildren and thirty eight groat
grandchildren now living. 0ounting the in.laws and all we
have over a hundred members in our family.
NARRATOR: Mrs. Pinkie Bourne Skinner, Nogal, low Meade°, Aged SO.