Search

Indians Attack the Reynolds Ranch

Michael has a BA in History & American Studies and an MSc in American History from the University of Edinburgh. He comes from a proud military family and has spent most of his career as an educator in the Middle East and Asia. His passion is travel, and he seizes any opportunity to share his experiences in the most immersive way possible, whether at sea or on the land.

Shackelford County, Texas

Several years before the secession of the states, Capt. Gibbons constructed a stone ranch residence, on the Old California Trail, in Throckmorton County, a few miles east of the Haskell County line. This building remained vacant for several years. But immediately following the Civil War, the Reynolds brothers rented this old rock house for ranch quarters. When Geo., Wm., and Ben Reynolds were away, and about 1867, the Indians charged this old stone ranch. Fortunately, however, two travelers had stopped for the preceding night and they assisted in the defense of the women and children. After exchanging many shots, the Indians drove the old milk cows and several other animals away.

    Note: Author personally interviewed: Ben Reynolds, and others who lived in this section at the time.

The above story is from the book, The West Texas Frontier, by Joseph Carroll McConnell.

Ty Cashion reports in A Texas Frontier that in April (1867) some of the Clear Fork herders exacted revenge against the Comanches for recent raids. T.E. Jackson, John and Mitch Anderson, Silas Hough, George and William Reynolds, and several others pursued a party of warriors to the Double Mountain Fork of the Brazos near the Haskell-Stonewall County line, where they noticed a large cloud of dust kicked up by running buffalo. A closer look revealed seven Indians-actually, five Comanches, accompanied by a Hispanic man and an African American in Indian clothing-slaughtering one of the beasts. Abandoning their quarry, the warriors charged the cow hunters. One "Indian" all by emptied two six-shooters in the direction of George Reynolds, who had separated from the others. The herder dropped the warrior from his horse, however, and later killed him by breaking his neck. Another of the Comanches shot Reynolds with an arrow, its iron spike lodging in his back, where it was to remain for several years. The cattlemen soon forced the warriors into a full retreat, with Silas Hough hotly chasing the one who had wounded his friend. He soon returned with several trophies, including the Indian's scalp. In all, they had lifted the hair from five corpses and left another adversary mortally wounded.

Join the discussion

Further reading

Recent Comments