texas – Page 116 – Texas History Notebook

Turkey, Texas

Turkey is located at 34°23′39″N 100°53′41″W in Hall County.

Its name comes from the nearby Turkey Creek and the community was originally known as Turkey Roost because of the wild turkeys that were found on the creek. It was thought to have been settled in the 1890s and a Methodist church congregation was established in 1892. The current name of Turkey was first used when the first post office was set up in 1893. The first train service arrived about 1928. It currently houses around 500 residents.

Continue reading Turkey, Texas

Unsolved Mystery: The Train Explosion at Paisano Pass

“Engineer Dies, Fireman Shot, In Mysterious Train Tragedy.” This was the sensational headline on the front page of the Bisbee, Arizona Daily Review on Saturday July 9, 1921.

Continue reading Unsolved Mystery: The Train Explosion at Paisano Pass

James Webb Throckmorton, 12th Governor of Texas

Throckmorton was born in 1825 in Sparta, Tennessee and came to Texas with his family when he was about 16 when they settled near Melissa in North Texas. His father Dr. William Throckmorton is the namesake of the town and county of Throckmorton. James studied medicine with an uncle in Kentucky before returning to Texas in 1847 to fight in the Mexican-American War. Throckmorton suffered from chronic kidney disfunction, so he only remained active for a few months. He then married, settled near McKinney in Collin County and opened up a medical practice. In the years that followed, he studied law as he also became more active in the community. Eventually, he left the practice of medicine and devoted his time to politics and the law. He successfully ran for the Texas House of Representatives in 1851 and served three terms. He then ran for the Texas Senate where he served from 1857 to 1861 until the outset of the Civil War.

Continue reading James Webb Throckmorton, 12th Governor of Texas

Bigfoot Wallace and the Bandito Vidal

William A. A. “Bigfoot” Wallace lived from 1817-1899 and was a Texas Ranger, one of 30 to be inducted into the Texas Ranger Hall of Fame. He came to Texas after the death of his brother and a cousin at the hands of the Mexican Army at Goliad in 1836, intending to somehow even the score for his lost relatives. Wallace is believed to have many times exacted his revenge, though he was captured and imprisoned by the Mexican Army himself in the early days of 1843 in the so called “Black Bean Episode,” which he survived. Wallace is mentioned in many other historical accounts as he fought as a Ranger in the Mexican-American War, continued to serve as a Texas Ranger during the 1850s and beyond. He did not serve in the Civil War, electing instead to remain in Texas to guard the borders against Indians, renegades and Union soldiers. The young State of Texas benefited from an uneasy arrangement with the Confederate Army to allow some Rangers to remain in place to defend the frontier.

Frank Hardy, one time member of the Barrow Gang

On Christmas Day, 1932, Doyle Johnson of Temple was taking a nap after the family Christmas dinner when he was awakened by his wife saying that some individuals were trying to steal his new car, parked outside. Mrs. Johnson yelled for them to stop as Doyle ran to the car, jumped on the running board and struggled with the thief, Clyde Barrow, who fatally shot him. Bonnie Parker, Barrow and W. D. Jones escaped with the stolen car.

Continue reading Frank Hardy, one time member of the Barrow Gang