Author Archives: Mustang
Sedition in Texas —1915
The boss of all white bosses in South Texas was a thoroughly corrupt Brownsville attorney by the name of James Babbage Wells, Jr. Wells controlled South Texas from about 1880 until 1920. Along with wealthy merchants, bankers, and large land-owners, … Continue reading
The Shelby County War
Unable to agree on a boundary between the newly-emerging United States and the Spanish territories in what is now Louisiana, both nations pretty-much ignored that strip of land separating Spanish Texas from the Louisiana territory. The area became known as … Continue reading
Three-Legged Willie
Robert McAlpin Williamson (1804/1805–1859) was the son of Peter B. and Ann (McAlpin) Williamson, who was born in Clark County Georgia. While a teenager, he encountered an illness that confined him to his home for two years and left him … Continue reading
An Overlooked Lawman
Very few people know who Ahijah W. Grimes was —no, not even those who daily travel on the road named in his honor in Round Rock, Texas. Ahijah W. Grimes (called AW by his family and friends) was born in … Continue reading
The Hoodoo War
When Africans were brought over on slave ships they brought their beliefs and practices with them, as all migrating people do. Their form of spirituality shared a commonality with other African religions and practices, which was an abiding faith in the … Continue reading
Frontier Battalion
(Continued from last week) As mentioned in a previous post, Texas began to regain its states’ rights under the leadership of Governor Richard Coke aided by the Democratic Party in 1874. Part of this recovery involved doing away with the … Continue reading
Exit of the Scalawags
The election of Richard Coke[1]as governor changed the course of Texas for the next 120 years. Completely fed up with the Reconstruction government imposed by federalists, Texans tossed out E. J. Davis (who initially refused to give up his office) … Continue reading
The Red Raid, 1875
Last week, Captain Leander H. McNelly spoke to you through his own words of 143 years ago. McNelly’s official report of the Palo Alto Prairie War wasn’t the only rendition of what happened that day. Texas Ranger Private William Crump Callicott was … Continue reading
South Texas, 1875
As my readers may have already discerned, I enjoy recounting stories about the American west. Some would say, the Old American West. It may not have been so long ago, but make no mistake, it was a much different time. … Continue reading
Cap Arrington
George Washington Arrington was born in 1844 in Greensboro, Alabama as John Cromwell Orrick, Jr., the son of John Cromwell and Mariah Arrington Orrick. After John Sr., died in 1848, Mariah married William Larkin Williams, who lost his life in … Continue reading
