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The Surveyors' Fight in Navarro County

Posted By Administration, Thursday, February 7, 2019
Updated: Tuesday, February 5, 2019

This excerpt, Indian Wars and Pioneers of Texas was submitted by Gina O'Hara, ANCO Insurance. 

The Surveyors' Fight in Navarro County, in October, 1838.

At this date the long since abandoned village of "Old" Franklin, situated in the post oaks between where Bryan and Calvert now stand, was the extreme outside settlement, omitting a few families in the Brazos valley, in the vicinity of Marlin, and was the county seat of the original Robertson County, with its immense unsettled territory. including the west half of Dallas County and territory north and west of it. It was a rendezvous for both surveying parties and volunteers on expeditions against the Indians. Its male population was much larger than the female and embraced a number of men of more or less note for intelligence and courage. Among these were Dr. George W. Hill, long a senator and once in President Houston's Cabinet, for whom Hill County was named: Capt. Eli Chandler, a brave frontiersman; E. L. R Wheelock, Cavitt Armstrong, the father of the Cavitt family of later times, and others.

There was a great desire on the part of both discharged soldiers and other citizens who had just received bounty and head-right certificates for land to have them located and the land surveyed. In the early summer of 1838, near Richland creek, twelve or fourteen miles southerly from Corsicana, three men belonging to a surveying party were surprised and killed. Their names were Barry, Holland, and William F. Sparks, a land locator from Nacogdoches. The remainder of the party, too weak for defense against the number of the savages, cautiously and successfully eluded them and returned home.

Early in October of the same year William F. Henderson, for many years since an estimable citizen of Corsicana, fitted out a surveying party to locate lands in what is now the southwest portion of Navarro County. He and his assistant each had a compass. The entire party consisted of twenty-four men and one boy and was under the command of Capt. Neill.

The party arrived on the field of their labors and encamped at a spring or water hole about two-mile northwest of what after that expedition was and ever since has been known as Battle creek.

Here they met with a large body of Indians, chiefly Kickapoos, but embracing some of several tribes, who were encamped in the vicinity, killing buffalo. They professed friendship, but manifested decided opposition to having the lands surveyed, assuring the party that if they persisted the Comanches and Ionies would kill them. But it was believed their design was only to frighten them away. After a day or two a trial of the compasses was made, when it was found one of the needles had lost its magnetism and would not work. William M. Love, afterward a well-known citizen of Navarro County, and a Mr. Jackson were sent back to Franklin for a magnet to recharge the needle, thus reducing the party to twenty-three. Early on the following morning Henderson ran a line for a mile or so, more or less Indians following and intently watching the manipulation of the compass, one of them remarking: "It is God's eye." The party, after a satisfactory trial, returned to camp for breakfast, and after that was over, returned to, and were about resuming their work, when from a ravine, about forty yards distant, they were fired upon by about fifty Indians. The men, led by Capt. Neill, at once charged upon them, but in doing so, discovered about a hundred warriors rushing to aid those in the ravine from the timber behind them. At the same time about the same number of mounted Indians charged them from the prairie in their rear. Neill retreated under heavy fire to the head of a branch in the prairie with banks four or five feet high. There was some brush and a few trees; but seventy-five yards below them was another cluster, of which the enemy took possession. This was between 9 and 10 o'clock a. m., and there the besieged were held under a fluctuating fire until midnight. Everyone who exposed himself to view was killed or wounded. Euclid M. Cox for an hour stood behind a lone tree on the bank doing much execution, but was finally shot through the spine, upon which Walter P. Lane, afterwards a distinguished Brigadier-general in the Confederate army, jumped upon the bank and dragged him into the ravine, in which he died soon afterwards. A man named Davis, from San Augustine, having a fine horse, attempted to escape through the line of Indians strung in a circle around the little band, but he was killed in sight of his comrades. A band of mounted Indians, not participating in the fight, collected on an elevation just out of gunshot, and repeatedly called out, " Come to Kickapoo! Kickapoo good Indian! " and by gesticulations manifested friendship, in which our men placed no possible confidence; but among them was Mr. Spikes, a feeble old man of eighty-two years, who said his days were few at best, and as he could not see to shoot, he would test their sincerity. He mounted and rode up to them and was mercilessly butchered. Night brought no relief or cessation of the attack, and a number of our men were dead in the ravine. The moon shone brightly until midnight. But when it sank below the horizon, the survivors determined to make an effort to reach the timber on a brushy branch leading into a creek heavily covered with thickets and trees and distant hardly half a mile. Three horses yet lived, and on these the wounded were placed, and the fiery ordeal began. The enemy pressed on the rear and both flanks. The wounded were speedily shot from their horses. Capt. Neill was wounded and immediately lifted on one of the horses, but both fell an instant later. A hundred yards from the brush Walter P. Lane was shot in the leg, below the knee, shattering, but not breaking the bone. He entered the brush with Henderson and Burton. Mr. William Smith entered at another place alone, and Mr. Violet at still a different place, terribly wounded, and at the same instant another man escaped in like manner. Once under cover, in the dark, each lone man, and the group of three, felt the necessity of perfect silence. Each stealthily and cautiously moved as he or they thought best, and the fate of neither became known to the other until all had reached the settlements. Smith, severely wounded, traveled by night and lay secreted by day till he reached the settlements on the Brazos, distant over forty miles.

The unnamed man, slightly wounded, escaped eastwardly and succeeded, after much suffering, in reaching the settlements. Henderson, Lane and Burton found lodgment in a deep ravine leading to the creek. Lane became so weak from the loss of blood that Henderson tore up his shirt to stanch and bandage the wound and succeeded in the effort. Passing down some distance, they heard the Indians in pursuit, and ascended the bank and lay in brush with their guns cocked. The pursuers passed within three or four feet but failed to discover them. About an hour before day they reached the creek and traveled down to a muddy pool of water. On a log they crawled onto a little island densely matted with brush, under which they lay concealed all day. They repeatedly heard the Indians but remained undiscovered. When night came as an angel of mercy, throwing its mantle over them, they emerged from their hiding place; but when Lane rose up, the agony from his splintered leg was so great that he swooned. On recovering consciousness, he found that Burton, probably considering his condition hopeless, was urging Henderson to abandon him; but that great-hearted son of Tennessee spurned the suggestion. The idea inspired Lane with indignation and the courage of desperation. In words more emphatic than mild he told Burton to go, and declared for himself that he could, and with the help of God and William F. Henderson, would make the trip. By the zigzag route they traveled it was about thirty miles to Tehuacano springs. They traveled, as a matter of course, very slowly, and chiefly by night. Lane hobbling on one leg, supported by Henderson. For two days and nights after leaving their covert they had neither food nor drink. Their sufferings were great, and their clothing torn into rags. On the third day, being the fourth from their first assault by the enemy, they reached the springs named, where three Kickapoos were found with their families. At first, they appeared distant and suspicious, and demanded of them where and how they came to be in such condition. Henderson promptly answered that their party, from which they had become separated, had been attacked by Comanches and lonies, and that they, in their distress, had been hoping to fall in with some friendly Kickapoos. This diplomacy, however remote from the truth, had the desired effect. One of the red men thereupon lighted his pipe, took a few whiffs, and passed it to Henderson, saying, " Smoke! Kickapoo good Indian!" All smoked. Provisions were offered, and the women bathed, dressed and bandaged Lane's leg. Henderson then offered his rifle to one of them if he would allow Lane to ride his horse into Franklin. After some hesitation he assented, and they started on; but during the next day, below Parker's abandoned fort, hearing a gunshot not far off (which proved to belong to another party of Kickapoos, but were not seen), the Indian became uneasy and left them, taking both his pony and the rifle. It should be stated that Lane's gun had been left where they began their march, at the little island, simply because of his inability to carry it; hence Burton's gun was now their last remaining weapon. But now, after the departure of the Indian, they were gladdened by meeting Love and Jackson, returning with the magnet, ignorant, of course, of the terrible calamity that had fallen upon their comrades. Lane was mounted on one of their horses, and they hurried on to Franklin, arriving there without further adventure.

A party was speedily organized at Franklin to go to the scene and bury the dead. On their way out at Tehuacano springs, by the merest accident, they came upon Mr. Violet in a most pitiable and perishing condition. His thigh had been "broken, and for six days, without food or water, excepting uncooked grasshoppers, he had crawled on his hands and knees, over grass and rocks and through brush, about twenty-five miles, in an airline, but much more, in fact, by his serpentine wanderings in a section with which he was unacquainted. His arrival at the springs was a providential interposition, but for which, accompanied by that of the relief party, his doom would have been speedy and inevitable. Two men were detailed to escort him back to Franklin, to friends, to gentle nursing, and finally to restoration of health, all of which were repaid by his conduct as a good citizen in after life.

The company continued on to the battle-ground, collected and buried the remains of the seventeen victims of savage fury, near a lone tree.

It may well be conceived that heroic courage and action were displayed by this little party of twenty- three, encircled by at least three hundred Indians — not wild Comanches with bows and arrows, but the far more formidable Kickapoos and kindred associates, armed with rifles. It was ascertained afterwards that they had sustained a loss in Killed equal to double the number of the Texians, besides many wounded. It was believed that Euclid M. Cos, before receiving his death wound, killed eight or ten.

The Surveyors' Fight ranks, in stubborn courage and carnage, with the bloodiest in our history — with Bowie's San Saba fight in 1831, Bird's victory and death in Bell County in 1839, and Hays' mountain fight in 1844, and others illustrating similar courage and destructiveness.

THE SLAIN

Of the twenty-three men in the fight seventeen were killed, viz.: Euclid M. Cox, Thomas Barton, Samuel Allen, — Ingraham, — Davis, J. Hard, Asa T. Mitchell, J. Neal or Neill, William Tremier, — Spikes, J. Bullock, N. Barker, A. Houston, P. M. Jones, James Jones, David Clark, and one whose name is not remembered.

Those who escaped were William F. Henderson, Walter P. Lane, wounded as described, and Burton, who escaped together; Violet, wounded as described; William Smith, severely wounded in the shoulder; and the man slightly wounded, who escaped towards the east — 6. Messrs. Love and Jackson, though not in the fight, justly deserve to be classed with the party, as they were on hazardous duty and performed it well, besides relieving Lane and then participating in the interment of the dead.

In the year 1885, John P. and Rev. Fred Cox, sons. of Euclid, at their own cost, erected, under the shadow of that lone tree, a handsome and befit- ting monument, on which is carved the names of. all who were slain and all who escaped, excepting that one of each class whose names are missing. The tree and monument, enclosed by a neat fence, one mile west of Dawson, Navarro County, are in plain view of the Texas and St. Louis railroad.

Note. This William Smith, prior to this disastrous contest, but at what precise date cannot be stated, but believed to have been in the winter of 1837-8, lived in the Brazos bottom. The Indians became so bad that he determined to move, and for that purpose placed his effects in his wagon in his yard, but before starting his house was at- tacked. He barred his door and through cracks between the logs fired whenever he could, nearly always striking an Indian, but all his reserve ammunition had been placed in the wagon and the supply in his pouch was nearly exhausted, when Mrs. Smith opened the door, rushed to the wagon, secured the powder and lead and rushed back. Balis and arrows whizzed all about her, but she escaped with slight wounds and immediately began molding bullets. She thought not of herself but of her little children. Honored forever be the pioneer mothers of Texas and thrice honored be such as Mrs. Smith. It was my pleasure after- wards, personally, to know her and some of her children, and to serve on the Southwestern frontier with her fearless husband, an honest Christian man. One of their sons was the late Prof. Smith of Salado College, a son worthy of such parents. Mr. Smith crippled so many of his assailants that they retired, leaving him master of the situation, when he removed farther into the settlements. There is one fact in connection with this affair that, as a Texian, I blush to state. There was an able-bodied man in Mr. Smith's house all the time who slunk away as the veriest craven, taking refuge under the bed, while the heroic father and mother "fought the good fight and kept the faith." I have not his name and if it were known to me would not publish it, as it may be borne by others of heroic hearts, and injustice might be done; besides, the subsequent life of that man must have been a continuing torture.

 

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