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Dulaney, Ethel C. Wichita Falls, exas
REMIWISCENSES ()FAIRS. J.A.KEMP
Yrs. J.A,KeMp is one the few pioneers
who are still livin She has resided in
Wichita Falls continuously since 1883.
She has lived a happy and contented life,
as well as a very useful one, and is be-
loved by all who' know her. The oriinalr(14)"
was written about the tithe that Wichitft
/alls celebrated her "golden and is is on file with the Historical Survey
Ftles'in Kemp Pullic Library. The library
itself was a gift of the late J.A.Ksmp
and Mrs hemp to the city of Wichita Falls.
"I was born at Clifton, Texas, January 14,1861. Mr. Kemp
an I were married there when we both were twenty-one years of
age. He was JP business thers.-1- Werwere married in October,
and before Christmas we had decided to move. One day I sA.d to
Mr, KemP: 1411, why not take Mr. Greeley's advice and go west?"
He was delighted; that was just what he wanted to do, but he
was afraid to suggest it to me. Mr. Sayers (his partner) bought
him out.
ile and Er. Kell came to Fort orth in January, 183$3, mt
knowing where they wouid locate. Brom Fort Worth he wired: 'Going
to wichita May locate loAced on the map
but failed to find such a town listed. When he came back .I
asked him for a description of the town, and he tlld me about
the Barwise family and their big house with eight or nine rooms,
and that the family were all solhice, and thgt they were:Presby-
terians. But I couldn't seem to fInd out much about the town.
"As soon as we could get ready, March, 1883, we moved to
Wichita Falls, and stayed at the riarris House, which was located
east of town on what is now Lee Street. The old house has been
made over, and has itad wings added to it, but the old room that,
Kemp,and I stayed in that night is still there.
Dulaney, Ethel G.I Wichita Falls, Texas Page 2
REMINISCENSES OF MRS. J.A.KEMP.
"Mr. Kemp opined up a dry goods and grocery store on Ohio
Avenue. Ward and Stanley had a store here when we came; it was
a general merchandise. Mr Ihrd and his mother, Mrs. La Valle,
lived next door to us on Indiana Avenue. His mother was Irish,
a staunch Roman Catholic, and a most charming woman.
"At first this countyy seemed so dull and uninteresting
that I felt that I just couldn't 'stick it out'. But Mrs.
Barwise was a great inspiration to m!) if it had not been -for her
I think I could not have stayed.- Anpther person who as a great
comfort to me in the early days was Mrs. Bettie Gentry, the mother
of Mrs. w.11. Downing. In all my life I have never seen a more
consecrate& Christian.
"After a while" learned to appreceate the beauties of nature
about us, and then I became happier. lhere was tall. grass all over
this country that was waist high. In the norning it was grey; at
noon it was rose;and at sunset it was lavender. The wild cattle
that roamed. the country were all colors. The skies at night were
beauteful; there was nothing to break the view. The climate was
delightful. Of course, wh_had sand storms —terrible )Jones, but
we had no mosquitoes, and very few flpes. One thing we did have
was a plenty of fleas; the abundance of prairie dogs was what
made the fleas so bad. Before we had been here long Mr. Kemp
bought me a pony from the Indians, and I ',Ode all over the hills.
I remember especially the road that goes out by. Haven Park, the
old Holliday Roads It was beautiful l. I began to love this big
open country; it came to seem like home to me and 'I was"happy.
Dulaney', Ethel C. Wichita Falls, Teoas-
Page 6
REMINISCENSES OF MRS.J.A.KEMP
"The Indians and the cowboys
me alive. There was al-
ways something interesting going on. Mr Kemp did a big business
with the Indians .and it was very interesting to me just to go down
to the store and watch theml, 'I hqd long red'hai which I wore _
11
braided and wound around my head.- One day Mr, Kemp's brother-in-
law touched my braids and called the Indians' attantion to it.
One or them looked very earnest and pointed heavenward. It seemed
that their idea of their god was a large man with flowing red
hatr. Some of the sq:Ilaws came up and were feeling of lay hair7
pins; I took one and gave it to her and said. 'Yours', and motion-
ed to her to put it in her hair, and she got out her knbfe to cut
it off.
"At tbAl back of the store Mr, Kemp had a bone yard. The
Indians gathered up the dried bones of cattle, buffalo, etc, and
brought them to trade for groceries and dry goods. The wuTrs
came riding on ahead and the squaws followed on wagons wit4 bones.
Th. Indian men sat against the house and smoked while the squaws
unloaded the bones. Mr. Kemp kept the bones until he had a car-
load and then shipped them to the East for fertilizer, etc.
"One day in warm weather -I wals at the store when the squaws
came in very hot and worn out from unloading bones. They always
wore those big heavy shawls no matter how hot it got. I pointed
to them and said, 'Hot', then I picked up a piece of red table
cloth and put it around my own shoulders and said, 'Cool'. I
pinned- it on wig# safety pins; They had their blankets pinned
on with mesquite thorns. Then I started selling red tablecloth.
Dllanay, Ethel C, Wichita Falls Texas Page 4
HEMINISCENSES OF MHS1 41.A.;YEMr
We sold all we had, and Ward and' Stanley sold all they had! You
never had to tell more than one; they'passed the word around.
They were delighted with the safety pins; they had never seen
any before. They didn't know how to count money; about all
4.1a4a.y could say was, 'two -bats', Moaning two -bits, or 2501
"They would sell you a big fish for a quarter, or a turkey
weighing twelve or fifteen pounds for the same amount.
"Mr. Kemp also opened up a store at Harrold, Texas, which
was the terminus for the Fort Wi and Denver for a long time.
Oen time went up, to Harrold with Mr, Kemp---Quanah Parker was
there with two of his wives and some of his children. I took
a little pink chambray dress of my "'pals and dressed his baby
up in it.
He was delighted; he AAked my baby's name and when I
told him, IPSyblet, he pointed to. his baby and said, 'Syble!. He
named his baby after mine (Mrs. Newton Mayer) -T
brother, Abch-Anderson, and Quanah Parker were very good friend.
uanah Parker had one son that was a preacher. lie was here a few
years ago and put on a war dance at the Womans' Forum.
"We lived for a long time in the Nino Hundred Block on Indi-
anaVe had a five -room cottage with a porch. The stock yards
were out west ot town at that time. The cowboys always had to
'paint the town red' when they came in. One night John Samuels,
who was a half brother of Jesse .ames, And two other boys,
amused themselves by riding their horses across our front porch,
as a part of thstir celebration. Jthn Samuels' brother-in-law,
Mr. Allen Palmer, found out about it,. and told John that he had
to go to Mr, Killitand apologize, that he had disturbed and fright-
Dulaney, Ethel C., "ichita Falls, Texas
Page 6
REMINISCENSES OF MRS. J.A.KEYP
until we got more water. He would tell people about it and
k
they would say, 'Yes', but they._did nothing about ito One day
he was riding out in the country after a heavy rain, and saw the
valley of old Holliday creek filled with water --acres and acres
all under water. He came home so excited he could hardly eat.
Ho said; 'My vision is complete. I have seen that valley full of
water. Irknow where to get water for our city.' The next Supdgy
afternoon he took me au+ to see it., Of course, the water had gone
down by that time, and I couldn't seem to get his vision. .It
seemed to me that liolliday Creek was so small for such a project.
He said, 'Maybe you can't see it, but I see it. It is a perfect
vision.' He go an engineer to come to look at it, and he said:
'Yes, you have it right.' Many people did not believe in the
plan, and said, 'Kemp is crizylf But it did not discourage
him. They built the dam, and dt the first big rain ninety feet
of it went o,Th; but still he was not discouraFed. lie said that
just showed that the water and the power werP there. We had
Col. Nettleton with us; he was the father of irrigation in Colo-
gado -and other places. He and.Mrs.Nettleton stayed about two
weeks with. us. We also had an engineer of the Katy railroad
to come and look the proposition over. I have made more hot bis-
cuits and fried more steaks for civil engineets than for any other
gboup. Finally, Lake 'illichita was completed and successful, and
was the making of Wichita Falls' and the surrounding country.
"I have the first piano ever shipped to Mchita Falls. My
grandmother gave me the: mpney to buy it, and 1 got it for Christ-
mas, 1883. It is a grand piano of the Chickering make, 'and we
Dulaney, Ethel C., Wichita Palle, Texas Page*1
REMINISCENSEA OF YRS. J.A,..KEMP
bought it from the Thomas-lioggan Company of Galveston. I
still have it in my home, in a room with other old-time things.