308 Lewis Thompson During the Fall of 1859, Lewis Thompson, Who Lived

308 Lewis Thompson During the fall of 1859, Lewis Thompson, who lived at the Patterson and Leaky Mills, where the town of Leaky now stands, started to Uvalde with a load of new lumber, made of the beautiful cypress timber of that section. He was driving two yoke of oxen. When Thompson reached a point of about six miles south of Rio Frio, he stopped to gather pecans. The Indians slipped up and shot him. When found, Mr. Thompson’s body was pinned to the ground with an arrow. J.C. Ware and about nine others, who followed the Indian’s trail, soon found where the savages had butchered one of Mr. Thompson’s oxen. A short skirmish followed, when the Indians were encountered; and the whites recovered thirty-two head of stolen horses. Note: The author personally interviewed: J. C. Ware, who followed the Indians; E. L. Downes, who lived in that section of the country at the time; and others. Further Ref.: Vital Statistics of the U. S. Census Records of 1860. Further Ref.: Hunter’s Magazine, September 1916. 309 Mary and John Richardson During 1859, Mr. and Mrs. Frank Richardson and their five children lived in Lankford Cove, about one and one-half miles west of the present town of Evant. Mr. Richardson had gone to the mill at Belton. Mrs. Richardson and her children remained at home. Late in the afternoon, Mary, age twelve, and John, aged eight, attempted to drive home the cows. They had stopped to eat grapes, about three hundred yards from the house when Mary saw Indians coming. The sweet little girl immediately told her brother, John, but he refused to run; for on previous occasions, she had told him, jokingly, the Indians were coming and on this occasion he failed to believe his sister. Mary immediately started for the house, but John continued to eat the grapes. Soon he, also, discovered the Indians and started toward the house. Within a few seconds two warriors passed him in an attempt to catch Mary, who was running a considerable distance in the lead. But the Indians failed to catch her. They turned and stabbed little John in the back, and, perhaps elsewhere in the body. When he fell, an Indian tried to make his horse step on the little fellow, but this the horse refused to do. Mrs. Richardson, at the house, could plainly see all the proceedings. She said, "I thought of my gun at that critical moment. I took it down and fired, and kept firing until assistance came. The Indians (as I supposed) thought there were men in the house prepared to receive them, and let my child alone." No doubt, this firing caused the Indians to run away, before they murdered little John Richardson. Dud Langford, a Negro, hunting hogs on the hill, was the first to arrive at the home of Mrs. Richardson. Little John got well and grew to manhood; but his death many years later was partly attributed to the old wound received on this occasion. Sources of Information: B. F. Gholson, Geo. Carter and others who lived within a few miles of the home of Mr. Richardson at the time. Also corresponded with Mrs. Richardson, who furnished us with a letter, which was written by Mrs. Frank Richardson. November 3, 1859, sixty days after this occurred, to her brother, Gen. H. L. Burkett, and printed in the Union and American at Nashville in 1859. 310 Indian Raid When Ira Wheat was Killed Approximately six Comanches came into Medina County and charged Ira Wheat, Sr. and Robert Blalock, a short distance from Wheat’s ranch headquarters. Mr. Wheat was killed; but Robert Blalock successfuly made his escape. When the news reached the ranch, one of the cowmen hurried to the ranchman’s assistance, but this pioneer citizen who tried to render aid to Mr. Wheat was also killed. The Indians drove away about twenty-five head of horses, and penned them in a temporary inclosure, on the east Frio, in Uvalde County. 311 Killing of John Bowles and John Davenport and the Fight That Followed John Bowles during 1856 established his ranch on the Sabinal River, about six miles south of the present town of Sabinal. For the purpose of protecting his stock, he constructed a corral near the house. During the dark hours of night, about 1856, and just before the moon arose, someone was alarmed by the running of stock. Almost instantly, Mr. Bowles and his boys were on heir feet, and in their night clothes followed the sound of the running horses, which could be easily traced, because one of the animals was belled. Mr. Bowles was the first to reach the ponies, and saw an Indian running away. He did not shoot, however, for fear one of his own boys would be killed. The horses were driven back into the pens. Mr. Bowles and his boys thought the Indians would again return. So D. Bowles and, perhaps, one of his brothers remained to guard the horses. John Bowles, his father, decided to station himself across the river, behind a hackberry tree. He had been there only a short time when the moon rose, and three Indians, lading a pony, came quietly walking down the trail. At the opportune time, Mr. Bowles discharged his shotgun. This alarmed the boys at the house; so they immediately started to his assistance. The sons then heard their father shoot his pistol six times. When the boys arrived their father was lifting a scalp from a savage. John Bowles remarked, “Hog my cats, if I havent’ got one of them!” Mr. Bowles and his boys returned to the ranch headquarters, which were across the river, and word was sent to the adjoining settlements. Just after the break of day several citizens went over to see the dead Indian, and much to their surprise, the dead body of another lay only thirty steps away. The third horse thief was followed by the trail of his blood for approximately four miles. Sometime later a dead Indian was found about one mile father. Mr. Bowles, no doubt, also killed this Indian. Afterwards, he was exceedingly cautious for fear the Indians would attempt to retaliate. On Oct. the 28th, 1859, Mr. Bowles heard the bell of one of his favorite horses, which he had placed in a field. The Indians had removed the rails, and let the animal out. The redskins afterwards removed the bell, and were no doubt making it rattle to decoy the pony’s owner. When Mr. Bowles reached the place where the Indians were concealed, they shot him down. True to their custom, the warriors now took a northwest course, for the purpose of leaving the settlement. John Davenport, who lived about three miles east of the present town of Sabinal on the lower San Antonio-El Paso road, reached the home of Doke Bowles, son of John Bowles, about the break of day of the same morning Mr. Bowles was murdered. He was riding a pony and driving a yoke of oxen. During the preceding night a Mexican train also camped near the home of Doke Bowles. The Indians sole some of their horses. After stopping for a short time, Davenport started away. But he had only gone a few miles when he, too, was massacred by the Indians. John Bowles and John Davenport were both scalped, stripped of their clothing, but true to Indian custom, one sock was left on one foot. Runners soon broadcast the news of the death of these two valued citizens, and word was also sent to Lt. Hazen, at Fort Inge. During the morning of the 29th, twenty-nine citizens and thirteen soldiers, all under the command of Lt. Hazen rapidly rode on the Indian’s trail. Doke Bowles, a son of John Bowles, Clade Davenport, a brother of John Davenport, Wm. Thomas, Frank Isbell , Nobe Griner, Arnold, Arnett, Everett Williams, Ben Pulliam, John T. Daugherty, John Kennedy, James McCormick, W. R. Russell, Jesse Lewis and James Robertson, numbered among the twenty-nine citizens. The finding of the bloody shoes confirmed the death of his father to Doke Bowles. Bud B. Arnett was riding a race horse, called “Fuzzy Buck,” and told Doke Bowles that in event the Indians were overtaken, he would gladly exchanged horses so Doke could better revenge the death of his father. The trail was followed to the head waters of the north Llano, and the Indians overtaken the 3rd of November. The order was given to advance and since a running fight followed with the Indians in the lead, in a short time, citizens, soldiers, and pack mules were badly scattered. Only the foremost men were able to fire. Early in the fighting in a personal combat between the chief and Lt. Hazen, the officer was dangerously wounded. Shortly afterwards, in a similar combat between the chief and Everett, the latter was also shot severely and wounded. In both instances an Indian waved his pistol which he took from the body of John Davenport. Shortly afterwards, Thomas, in a close combat with this same chief, also received slight wounds, and again, the chief waved his pistol and rode away! This chief had already been fired upon no less than one hundred times, and he and his horse were bloody from head to foot. Yet he madly defied his white foes, and continued to wave his pistol. Doke Bowles riding “Fuzzy Buck,” was always in the foremost of the fighting and no doubt, inflicted some of the wounds of the chieftain.

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