lawmen – Page 3 – Texas History Notebook

Sam Bass

Sam Bass was born July 21, 1851 in Lawrence County, Indiana and died on his 27th birthday, July 21, 1878 in Round Rock, Texas He had lived a life that had made him famous to the point that he had become a folk hero to some. Sam had been orphaned at the age of 13 after which he began to live with an uncle who was stern and strict with him. As soon as he could, young Bass left his uncle and relocated to Rosedale, Mississippi where he worked for about a year in a saw mill. In the summer of 1870, he set out for Texas, traveling with a family named Mayes who were returning to their home in Denton County, Texas. He had heard about Texas and the cowboy life and wanted to try it.

Manuel T. “Lone Wolf” Gonzaullas, Texas Ranger

Manuel Trazazas Gonzaullas was born on the Fourth of July, 1891 in Spain. His parents were naturalized US Citizens but were in Spain at the time of his birth. Manuel was brought up in the border town of El Paso. He was reportedly inspired to become a Texas Ranger after seeing Ranger John R. Hughes on horseback when Gonzaullas was only a youth. His desire to pursue a career in law enforcement was further led by the murder of his two brothers and the serious wounding of his parents in an incident. He did not join the Rangers at his first opportunity, but rather served in the Mexican Army and an agent for the US Treasury Department for five years. He married in 1920 and enlisted in the Rangers later the same year.

John Coffee Hays, Texas Ranger

Ranger John Coffee “Jack” Hays was born in Little Cedar Lick, Wilson County, Tennessee, January 28, 1817. In “Texas Rising,” he seems to be a somewhat less important character, likely because most of his service as a Texas Ranger occurred after the Texas Revolution. Hays was related to Andrew Jackson’s family in that Mrs. Jackson was his great aunt. His father fought with Andrew Jackson and gave Jack his middle name Coffee in honor of Gen. John Coffee who had also served under Jackson.

When Hays was still a young man, he left Tennessee and moved to Mississippi where he learned surveying. Some accounts have him coming to Texas in 1836, early enough to serve under Erastus “Deaf” Smith and Henry W. Karnes while others maintain that he arrived in late 1837 or early 1838. Regardless, he had settled in San Antonio by February, 1840 and apparently “rangered” while he also served as a surveyor. He fought in the Battle of Plumb Creek and in 1840 he became Captain of a company of Rangers under Mirabeau B. Lamar, during the interim years after the Texas Revolution but before the Mexican-American War. In addition to Plum Creek, he was also involved in action at Cañon de Ugalde, Bandera Pass and Painted Rock.

Tom Hickman, Texas Ranger

A good friend of mine grew up seeing a revered old cowboy walk the small downtown area of Gainesville, Texas. When he asked about the identity of the man, he was told that he was a retired Texas Ranger who had captured some famous outlaws. My friend eventually learned that the old gentleman was former Texas Ranger Tom Hickman.