Document text
NIP
-)1ripps, ,;oody
Rangelore
Parrnnt Co., Dist. 47
Wm. Walter Brady, 7151 born on his father's
farm located 1* Mi. NA. of Dereatur, Tex.
V.W. Brady 8r. established the first dry goods
store in Decatur, was appointed the first C3.
Clerk ()twine Co., was eleoled Co. 3u4ge for
three termer drove a cattle herd up the trail
to Wichita, Kansas, and engaged in the (settle
business. Walter.made a regular cowhand .at 10,
and spent his life in the business, was Dep.
U.S. Marshall in Alhaquerque, N.M. at 1?, and
is, now. a Cattle Dealer in the Live Stock rxohange
Big in Fort ,Worth. Walter. new resides at 2219
Market Ave., Ft. Worth, Tex. .His story:
nnme is lilliam ;falter Brady. 1' was born February 15th,
186, in, double log house that now stands in a five sore park
looted in Northeast/ Decatur, Wise County, Taxes. iqy father,
'illiam wcilter Rredy Senior, had it built on his farm in 1855.
7e had the logs hewed swami in order to make the main two rooms
bullet proof. There is a long porch on the south, a hall between
nnd two side rooms on the north. The lumber we hauled from
lirevesport, Louisiana, by ox team. Bob Hunt hauled it. Re
made his home with the Halsells, the parents of Mre. W.T., and
A.s. Dan ffiaggoner. They were Olsten§ who married father end son.
"Now, my dad's farr, was a mile and a quarter south of
7oecatur when he built the house. The city has grown to it now.
don't renall the number of acres,, but,it was a pretty good
size Vim with a few heed of cattle on it too. Ded started the
first dry goods store in Decatur, but he later took in a partner
by the mme of Dan Howe. Their main trade was with the Indians.
1)sd bought furs from them befOre they went on the warpath.
Pesides cattle, dadolined a good many bosses when the.Indians
went on the war path in 1872. They raided and got a bunch of
his hosses. There had been' quite a bit of this kind Of trouble
Phipps, _bowl), Page #2
Rnngelore
rri,nt Co. Dist. VC
for other folks but when they picked on dad, he did something
ebout it. He organized a posse of about eight or ten men,
To nd'enry Jennings, Bill Anderson, George Stevens, Billy
.1f1sell, and old Nigger Sam.
"Dad's posse overtaken the Indians near Buffnlo Springs,
but they had really gone into a trap the Indians had set for
them. Before they knew it, the Indians were closing in on
both sides and back. Now this happened about three miles south
of I.,uffalo 3prings.. There was a grove of trees in front of Dad's
men, so they made for it to fight from behind the trees. hue
on the way, the Indians shot Nigger Sam's hoes from under him.
in falling, Nigger Sam felled, to clear his left leg so the hose
pinned him down where he couldn't move. The Indians were
furbously closing in, shooting everything from a good rifle to
bows rind arrows. lied was riding a racing mare, and when he saw
Itul's condition, he raced back to Sam, lifted the hose by the
pommel of the saddle,while Sam drug himself out. he Indians
,'ere coming together, nnd all of them were shooting at Dad and
iain while the posse rode on to the grove. nihen they reached the
grove, they taken trees for breastworks. Dad put sam in the
saddle, climbed up behind, and under the protecting fire of
the posse, beat the Indians to the grove. Pfter a good deal of
cross fire, the Indians left. Now all this happened in about
or lmost the same time it takes to tell it. Lucky for Dad and
jam, these Indi1ns were notoriously poor shots. "'ou couldn't
alwqya depend on this because a random shot will kill just as
bad as another.
Axidy
Rangelore
arrant Co., Dist. J7
Page #5
FO
"At this time, a small squad of soldiers were stationed at
duffel springs with a little old Yankee offioer in oharge. Dad
went in end raked for help to recapture his hoses. This offioer
was afraid of Indians and as an excuse to keep from helping them
because he was afraid ogt the Indians, he put my father and the
posse under gut -rd as Indian spies. The next day, he taken them
to the fort at SeoksborO4 Now, dad was well acquainted with the
officers at the fort, and after both sides were heard, the
3uMlo Springs offioer was given a dishonorable discharge. :he
jecksboro soldiers tried to overtake the Indirns, but were too
late. This happened in 1872, rAld the C=overnment paid my mother
for dad's loss in 1002.
"In 1912, Al bought enough (tattle from other ranchers to
make his herd about 2500 head, then drove them to Aohite, Kansas.
There were so many big delays on the trip that ;1.iiter set in.
an he got to A,ohlta, he oouldn't sell his herd, so he sold
it on credit to the Atters GomlAssion Company. rhat oomprny
went broke, so he lost his herd anyway.
-Dad was sppointed the first County Clerk of 7!ise County
by Covernor 7,ease in 1'388. 12 years later, he was elected
kgain and went into the cattle business once more. Then, when
he came home broke after he was rid of his herd, he ran again
1'or County 31erk, and was elected. !nem he held it two terms,'
the people petitioned him to run for County Judge, whioh he
held for three terms, liking five months. le died in 1F389,
7ive mouths before his lrst term expired.
"!,11 during my childhood, dad had hosses and cattle on
the place. He bought and sold all the time. I oould ride like
Phipps, oody Psge 141
af,ngelore
2'rrf-nt 7 Fc
a veteran. when I was 12, dad had a remnant of cattle scattered
over the country. ''ou see, there weren't many fences, so the
cattle just drifted here and there in search of grass and water.
-)ad gave me thie remnant, so when the roundup came in the All,
I made a regular hand with the rest of the oowmen.
"There was lots of cattle, and wild cattle in those days.
%ike deer, they would ley up in the brakes in the day tint,, and
graze at night. and another boy, Bill Stevens, a nephew of
Captain Ira Long, went on herd one night. Te had a gorral on
raters :Tanoh, which empties into Ottawa Crick. The corral was
about tan miles north of Rhome. e:e penned our cattle, took our
hosses cnd -lade our bed down in a hackberry grove. Next morning,
our hosses was gone. Ye walked and walked, and walked, but
couldn't find any houses. You know, grass was knee high all over
the country in them days. 'bout noon, Lewt ,enshaw, his brother
Ed, "orris and Jim ook, and others, rode up on me and Bill.
9111 Shoemaker says, 'What in the name o' God you boys'doin'?'
"1 says, 'Te got our cattle correled last night, and made
our bed down bnok there. vhen we got up this morning, the
hosses hnd pulled their stobs and took out.
"Bill arys, 'You see ral this grass meshed down? rhat's
Indians. :hey Rot your hosses.' e went down to oemp while
they ride a circle end found a part of the cattle the Indians
took but us boys hadn't yet discovered they w -s gone.
and me went in a different direction and found a couple of
bosses. e caught them, saddled them up, and came back to the
corral just in time to see Bill 3hoemaker turning the reat of
ir Fpn4.rwrg.:
Phlnes, oody
Rangelore
-rrnnt ;o., *1st. 7
age
our onttle loose. This happened on July 11th, 1374, end we were
miles from.7)eeetur. he men went on the 7ndinn's trail
while All and went homes
hey traied the Indians from OttaWa :,rick to Catlett
then 'est by Alvord. Two miles from lavord, they came
to the tiff residence. Old Man fluff, his wife, and three dau*ters
were there. Now, if he had gone -into the house and closed the
doors, the Indians would Tv.Are been afraid to attack,. ?hey would
!Irv(' be n afraid some of them would be killed but no,,he ran of
and they killed him ,,nywey. The door was open so the Indiens
rushed in, killed the three girls and their mother, and soaked
all but one girl, who fought them. If you had spunk enrnih to
;1.:tt an 7ndinni he woulde't scalp yo.
"!iuff had a son whose name Was LIM Uuff. 7.e was n ranger
and hepnened to be stationed at Alvord at the tine this killing
cone off. .hen it ve-s known about the trouble, he was on the
ranges and citizens who followed and surrounded the Indians at
M7 Thicket on the Fite Se&y River, eiOlt miles from tivord.
'he rangers and citizens sent for reenforeements, and people
mime from all directions cerrying everything under the sun that
eoald be used to right with. Next (icy at noon, the rangers and
eitizens c:ecided to make rive abreast. They were in a big
circle around the thicket.
"After' the different persons were chosen to lead the
charge, it was decide to go as close to the ground as possible.
'ell, it must have taken them an hour to close in because they
'.ere so cautious. The °loser they eame,'the more worried they
Phipps, toody
Rangelore
Tarrant Co., Dist. 47
Page ?le
teC,
were, because there were no shots, no kind of resistenoe made.
Olen they all got into the thicket, not an Indian Gould be
found. vidently, they .had crawled out on their bellies during'
the night, leaving their hosses, saddles, blankets, and other
stuff. That a messi Ragged blankets, old saddles, nothing
worth while but the hoses. Uncle they were stole from white
people, they were good.
"There was one thing about the raid 1 wont forget in a
hurry. I saw old Doe Renshaw ride in town on a hose he had
stole from him nbout three years before. It was one of the
hosses recovered. He was tioled a -plenty to get him back.
?hat was the last hoss stealine in A.se County but they got
a -plenty.
"4e had late Fall rrins in the winter of.1876. Chere
come a freeze and rotted the grass in 9acember. 'orris Cook,
T. Perrin, rnd -yself, cook had about 1,000 head, ?errin about
400, and me about 200 heed of dad's I hod gathered and he gave
me, we pulled out to hunt grass and stopped in Callehan County
before it was organized. 2hey organized Callahan County in
1877 and started a'little town celled Belle Plains. In buil ilia
the T.P. Reilroed, it missed Nalle Plains so they started a
town celled Laird in 1861, and mo-ed belle Plains to it.
Well I WFS in camp 1-11 winter after moving our cattle to
Cgillehan '„,ounty flad my hf,l,r vms so long it wrs two or three
inches below my shoulders. I heard ofe wo'Jin named Vrs.
estover, who wns the Felt Knife 7-einch cook, thnt h d a pair of
scissors. I rode ten miles to the ranch to borrow them, then
rode back to our camp to have Butch Hunley out my heir. Old
.o,r)dy
eanelore
f'rrnnt Jo., Dist. 7
ge
Dutch went to work on my heir just like a real berber. He worked
and worked on one side 'til he had it in good shape, then broke
and run.for'the crick like a .painter was after him. I didn't
know whet was uo Uut I tried to catch him beoeuse I was afraid
he had gone crazy. Then he got to the crick, he th'owed the
scissors into the deepest hole of water there. -1'811, it wPs
arch end the water too cold to go into so there I wee with my
te'ir heneing down nest my shoulders on one side, and oropned
real close on the other side. I like to froze to depth. They
sure did hurrew me. 010 Putch and me w,'s talking about that the
other day. 7e owns a ranch about ten miles frov:.
end works for the nssidy 3o:17:ission ompany in the same
buLlding I'm in. You know, I htd to go :20 miles to town, buy
thet woman a pair of sciusors, and take then to her after I
git T. errin to finish my heirout. 50 miles for a haircut.
"Cattle drifted awful bad in Callehen .ounty sb I moved
back to 3tevens County where there was more timber end protection
7ou see, cettle always put their hind part to the cold winds and
drift 'til they reach e place thet knocks the wind off.so the
timber :sde the jr of keepin the cattle toether easier. I
built myself n log house on T!og Drench in 117F7 nnd started a
s ell ranch.
.01d :lel ,!uddy, he was -a deputy sheriff under every sheri:f
rt :reckenridge 'til he died five yer-rs 8go. Tle could have been
sheriff but we eatitified with deputy sheriff. "-q, told it on
me that I drove 180 head to the ranch in .he linter and brruded
-00 mavericks 1): 3pring. I leased the piece to Clem Waters in
..,•511,tr.M.4.7!•., r•
r/5
ehi's, •oody
eengelore
:errant eo., eist.
lie, end me eed e boy numed Les Skidson went to Las Vegas, New
.exi.00. In the Jprine of '80, I went to :Abequerque. stage
coach line ended at Albequerque, and the T.P. had just built
their line through end were building west of town. I don't
remember just how fur west beceuae they got a little farther
every day but it helped to fill Albequerque with bums, outlaws,
rustlers, mexic-ns, Indinns, '-nd all kinds Offriff raft.
-urderers found elbequerqUe 8 good piece to hide out too.
don't know why, but they didn't like e Texan. I waelust a
kid of 18 so T cot into plenty trouble taking up for my State.
"1 got into so muCh trouble that I soon built a rep for
•taking care of myself and City Marshall Johnson made me a
deputy marshal'. There T was, 13 years old reid on °Moore
good meny thins happened to me thet you'd meke eood reading but
Y don't w nt to recell it beoeuse it's ellhost brneeing to bring
It up.
hile I wee deputy marshal', there was e paymaster for a
mine in the Joe xioo hills who wes e friend of mine. went
to the mine onoe e lonth with n fellow who was a guide•end e guard_
too, a •:exioan.. few days ft:ter he left with the payroll one
time, the offielels of the ()weeny reported their man missing.
'ene of our men investilpted,but he couldn't find ri trace of
either the guard or Potter. Potter w,6 his name. ell, the
compeny just decided 'otter had gone west with their money and
let it go et thet. 7e sent the regular description posters
ereend to the other sheri2fs, end forgot about it.
"About r month leter, 1 saw a "!exicen swaggering about
Phipps, jo9dy
rrunt
21,410 „i9
"C
with e pistol in his hend so I sneeked up behind him, grabbed
hi a pistol hend in one hend end stuck my pistol in his side.
started to ask him whet,he thought he was doing when he says,
In) telly& tellyl' I just didn't say a word but marched
him down to the office. :het he tried to tell me, or wented
to tell me fter seem nz who I Was, an officer end all, or maybe
rep had him Foing, flyway, he told us about .;lotter.
"IThe :exicien took us to a short cut to the mine the guard
and otr hPd be n using. end showed us where he with two other
!.7exicens he'd wayleid 'otter end killed them both. After getting
the pcyroll, they pulled the bodies off the treil, piled wood on
LheH end LJurnt then up. -e brought the Pexicen beck to town,
and fter proelisino, liiza we would teke °ere of him, he fingered
the other two :'exicans, e jailed all three of them.
nlvt evenim, I,wes going from the store with my landledy,
.re. :reston, to the borrding house when we heard shouts, end a
lot of noise. hurried on to see the cause of the excitement.
Then we rounded the corner leeding to the jell, we bumped right
into a bunch of men. :ley had broke the IAA door down and hed
the exieens tied with rope to the hitching rack in front of the
jail. here efts n heavy been going fill the wey ecross the porch
eith two by fours uprielt to the eaves of the building. I em
explainAv: it beccuse I went y:A.1 to see Lot they could heng a
rien on the front porch, or from the front porch. One of the
men handed me e rope end "re. 7'reston a rope. She started to
refuse but I told her to teke ci-A)ld of it. .he did, and we all
hung those men. f-ou see, everybody there was in on it so no
Phipps, moody Page 410
Vngelore
l'rrant Co. Dist. 417 .OU
body could squawk. I thought once' that Preston was going
to faint but she oame through. After hanging two days from the
porch as tiwarning to other toughs, we let the Mexican's
families bury them.
*While I've never told it before, there was one thing In,
did while in Albequerque that was sure enough silly. I'm going
to tell it beeeuse my friend, U.H. Pelson hes written a book
and told e smell part of it. Re didn't tell it (meetly the way
it happened. Pe's gone crazy on religion and flowered this
thing up. Understand me now, I think a lot of him. I consider
him one of my best friends but I'm going to tell this to get it
straight.
"As I aPid before, they didn't like ielcnns so I get to
thinking about it. The more I thought about it, the madder
got. The mAdder I got, the more I drank so I just went on a
spree. I filled two purses full of money, went into Charley
-enry's saloon, the biggest in town and filled with a crowd, end
dared anybody to take the money from a "'exam, I aouldn't get a
fiOit so came outside and went down the sidewalk. I sew a
fellow coming toward me, nnd I decided to jump an him rnyway.
mum he and I were olose to each other, he stepped off the side;',
walk. reoognized him ss a TexPn, and then as a kid ohum of
mine. I sald'Harry: and he replied, 'welter'.
“We fell to talking about old times and I offered him some
money but he turned it down. I never saw him again after that
'til I not him here in port 1orth. When I met him here, he says
when he left nes "Well, I hOpe to meet you in Heaven, Walter"
I don't intend to sake fun of his relleion but Wouldn't WO
Phibpil4 woody
Rangelore
Tamara co., Dist. A/
page #12
?PC
that kind of a statement to e fell)w in public. valsell is a
nephew of we. Tom Iaggoner of Fort forth and the book's title 140
'Cowboys and Cottle Lend'.
was Deputy Marshall, I met a detective by the
.name of Dave Mathewson. He was waled, Waterloos Dave'. He wee
kind of like the Mounted in Canada. He always got his men, deed
or alive* Another thing about him was, you couldn't get him to
tell a thing about his Vaasa. He just went out, got his man, and
oollectso the reward. Ea wouldn't work unless there was a reward
either. I've listened to lot. of people question him, but I never
heard him tell anything important. If the questioners got too
hot, he'd walk off. Dave and me got reel thick because I never
tried to get him to talk about his oases. After we had known
each other for awhile, he end another fellow by the name of Woo..
tried to talk me into quitting the life I was leading. I could**
see any harm in it so I Just laughed it off, and they never
mentioned it any more.
"Some way or other, my father heard of Mysterious Dave
hired him to bring me home. Now, Dave knew he couldn't just up
and tell me to go home so he crooked up about the wildest scheme
ever heard of. Dave comes to mend says, 'Now, Pve got a phase.
make 0,000.00. I know where my man Is but I went someone to go'
with me.' 'Tell, I jumped nt the chance I knew never had been
offered to anybody else. :a went to Les Vegas, and put in n day
there. All the time we was together, he iasisted_on as letting
him do ell the talking. HO 00M09 to me along in the evening and
'says, ''e've got to catch that train to Trinidad, Colorado'. While
Phipps, body page fl2
Bangalore
:arrant Co., Dist. 17 Ire
we we talking on a street corner, a Deputy Sheri:T walks up and
says to Dave, 'Your men is in Emporia, Kansas'. well, we takes a
train for Emporia. The Emporia ticket agent meets us As we leave
the train -nd recognized Dave. Dave describes our man to him and
he says, 'Yes, I know your man. U. took the last train for Dallas
WeV, by golly. 4e takes the next train for Danes. When we get
there, Dave and I start drinking. I really went on a spree and
thought Dave had. When I got just dog drunk, we had cone to Fort
Worth, still looking for this men. began to think, 1?;1111 (latch
this man yet'. don't remember getting into a wagon at Fort
worth but When I came to my senses, we was at Deep Criok on old
Sam Wood's place. Old sem -pls the first Nise County Settler. we
drove on to my Dad's place end I had Dave meet all the folks. is
all ivt up late that night, talking about different lonnges and I
told some of my experiences. Next morning when I woke up, Dave
we gone and had left me a goodbye note.
"This hapDened in leel. I went beak to Stevens County in
1882, and took charge of nr cattle. Soon after I went back, I
traded my "cattle to the OHO Ranch. When 's% cattleman says, 'Traded',
he usually means sold. ?hat's what I did because I had a chance
to become a foreman on a big outfit soon's I we rid of my stock.
I went to work for the Moors Ranch as foreman. The brand was a
bar M. Moore sold out to Z.A. Rullum and doubled his money.
"I went to the 'Cherokee Strip' where my cousin, Z.C.
Carpenter, owned the ZR-Bar Ranch. .T.C. had taken en Indian in
as a partner in order to hold his cattle in the Oherokee Nation.
You see, the Nation made it nein the law for a white man to own
Phippe, Woody PC
Rangelare
T rrent Co., Dist. #7 Page #13
anything outright in the Wition, but an Indian could have a white
man as a partner. About the time I showed up, the Indians had
been stealing J.C. blind. ne talked it over and I hatched up a
scheme to beat the Indians at their own game.
"I decided to sell the cattle so I went to Montague, Texas.
'Mile in Montague, I met 13111 !lurray, ex*Covernor of Oklahoma, who
was the editor of a paper in Montague. ITS introduoed me to a
Cattleman by the name of Coon Dunman.- Coon contracted to buy the
(tattle for $36,000.00 upon delivery of the cattle to just this
side of Red River. Governor Mirray, folks cell him 'Alfalfa
wrote some of this deal in his biography but Us didn't have it all
because he never did see us any more.
-You see, I went beak and told .T.C. about the arrangement,
and we told the Indian that we had a chance to sell the cattle for
big profit in Texas. Our men drove the settle across the river,
end 34. left for Decatur to stay with my folks 'til I shoved up
with the money. Dunman gave me the check for 136,000.00 end I
tied it up in n red bandana handkerchief, then tied it around my
neck like I was used to wearing it.
"1 ditched the Indian and lit out for Deoatar. When I
came to the Trinity River, en overflow was on. If I hadn't been
trying to ditch the Indian, I could have gone in p straight line
but in ditohing him, I went on a round-flbout trail. T had a good
hoes so I decided to take the overflow anyway. didn't feel like
running around the country with ell that money even if it was in
a °beak., Well, I rode the hose off into the water, and we started
aoross. I kept trying to make him go straight f,orose, and we
wasn't making any head way so I began to get worried. He kept
Phim,e, Woody
Rangolore
Trrrant Co., Dist. /7
Page #15
rullum moved to Odessa. I didn't want to go there so I wont to
the Lightning 4H Ranch, owned by the Innis Land and Cattle Compeny
of Ennis, Texas. we wont to Abilene ifi 1888, with 1,000 steers
from the Lathan Cattle Company, forth of uaskell, 7WEnes
"When we got to Abilene, Zohn D. Merchant had a telegram
from Elpaso saying, 'Men all refused to go further because of
Indians'. Meroltant wired book, 'I have your man'. Re told ma
t)at one of his men had bought some.oattlo from a oattleman on
the Rdo Grande, near el Rio, to be sent to the Miller and Floto
Ranch located about 40 miles north of Silwer City, New Mexioo.
I went on down and looked the situation over.
"I hadn't even got to Elpaso 'ti]. I heard everybody talking
ebout the things the Indian Goronimo had be 21 pulling off, -Ho
just had everybody soared to death. All the Indians oason the
mar path. I said I could make it. The rensOn I did was bsonuse I
had known Goronto when I was an offloor in Albequerque. All
ever seen nbout him then was just another Indian. ffell, another
lousy Indian. I believe that desoribes it better. _I had all the
same men get together that had refused to go any further and I told
them what r thought about,Geronimo. I °Mood everybody that
wanted to go, another °hence. They all took it, and I_gave theta
all a Winohester Corbin* with plenty oartridges. Thong we started
out. The weather had gone bad, what with the Fall reins and
everything bit we crossed the Gila River and delivered the herd
with just ordinary trouble.
"1 cane beck to Abilene and delivered a herd to the
Ci „moron River in the Spring of *87* for the Saginaw Land and
Minns, woody
Rangelore
T' meat co., Diet. 17
PC
rage #16
ttle Company. Bail Payne, manager of the north half of the Fox
Reservntion, was in charge end I stayed witifihe eattles Billy
-owers and Steve Webb was waking there too. They talked a lot
nbout easy money rnd the DAton Gangs I did my very beet to get
them not to join the Dalton Gang bat they quit anyway and joined
the gang. I knew the Dalton* by name when I was in Stevens county
before they went bad. I never she them, just heard about them
They came from -Caddo, They all got killed eventually.
"My father died in 1800 with the TB. I mm1404 Lottie
7.%rr in Sourry Gohnty in 1SOVI. We same to Fort "forth to live in
1902, end I've been woiking on the Stook Yards ever since. 3s,
had five Waldron, and all of them are still living here in Fort
orth.. Lottie- died in 1923, and I've been baohing it eversinoe.
I oo,ild eo and live with the kids but I realize I would be imposing
on them so I think I will just have them keep the Aoloome matt out
for me, end then I can go to may of them any, time I want to&
spoke of being here on the lards, I'm oonneeted with
'flqrence Keene and Sons in the Gettle Exchange Building on Xxohaike
*venue.