History of Hutchinson County, Texas: 104 Years, 1876-1980 Page: 15 of 526
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the noose the Indians had surrounded him with by
the use of the cannon, which the Indians called the
"gun that shoots twice," because of the report it
made.
By 1874 what was left of the "Walls" had almost
completely crumbled to the ground. The site selected
by Charlie Myers for his store was about a mile north
and east of the walls on the west side of Bent or
Adobe Creek. With good grass, some plum and berry
trees, it was a good spot.
May of 1874 saw Myer's store open, along with
that of his competitor, Charles Rath, Hanrahan's
saloon and Thomas O'Keefe's blacksmith shop. A
corral had also been built. The "Little Dodge" of the
Panhandle was christened "Adobe Walls" by the
hunters, in honor of the ruined fort of old William
Bent.
In May and June the hunters were busy, for the
herd had been spotted, but unfortunately, so had the
hunters. Several were found killed by the Indians.
One of the dead was an Englishman known as
"Antelope Jack." His real name was John Holmes,
and more than fifty years later, another murdered
pioneer named John Holmes would be remembered
by the people of Hutchinson County
but more of
that later.
Both killings were a signal for a turning point in the
history of Hutchinson County.
In mid-June, however, the fears of the hunters quieted
down somewhat, and once again they resumed
the business of killing the buffalo. On the 18th, Amos
Chapman, a scout from Fort Supply in the Indian Territory,
then known as Camp Supply, visited the Walls
with a few soldiers. Chapman is reputed to have told
Hanrahan, the saloon keeper, and Myers and Rath
about an Indian raid planned on or around the 27th
of June. Chapman was not a man to be trusted by
many of the hunters since he was a half-breed Cheyenne,
but Hanrahan knew him better than most and
took the warning seriously.
The three businessmen kept quiet about Chapman's
information, fearing that the hunters might pull
out and leave their stores and goods unprotected.
When the eve of the rumored attack arrived, Hanrahan
took out a little additional insurance by setting up
free drinks for the hunters, who were still unaware of
the impending fight. No hunter would leave the postwhile free drinks were served, and by the time the
evening waned, most thought only of sleep. They
were still asleep around 2:00 A.M. on Sunday the
27th when Hanrahan fired his pistol to rouse them.
Hanrahan claimed the ridgepole supporting the roof
had cracked. It was found, however, to be undamaged
when examined later.
The Commanches, under the leadership of
Quanah Parker, the half-breed son of a Commancheand a white girl, Cynthia Parker, had counseled for
war against the Whites in the Panhandle. The slaughter
at the Washita still rankled, and most of the other
chiefs were in agreement. A loose confederation had
been formed of the Commanche, under Parker, the
Kiowas led by Lone Wolf, and the Cheyenne, under
Stone Calf. The chief spiritual advisor for this alliance
was a young, but up and coming medicine man
named Ishtai or "Wolf's hind end," "Wolf's droppings"
or more politely, "Little Wolf."
Little Wolf promised the ultimate defense
bullet
proof paint. It did not work.
It has been reported that the Indians practiced
their assault on a mock-up model of the walls.
Whether true or not, the attack came as a complete
surprise to most of the twenty-nine inhabitants,
including one woman, who made up the population
of Hutchinson County's first settlement of any size.
The first casualties of the fight were Ike and Shorty
Shadier, and their dog. The Shadlers were asleep in
their wagon outside the protection of the buildings.
The dog apparently put up enough of a fight that it
was honored by the Indians by being scalped along
with the Shadlers.
The Indians had formed a half circle to drive off the
stock and hit the post in one maneuver. A bugler
blew calls to which the warriors responded. More evidence
that the affair was well planned and quasi-military
in its conception.
Billy Tyler was shot next, returning from the stockade
where the horses were kept. William Olds, some
days after the initial attack, accidently shot himself in
the head with his own gun while coming down a ladder
from the roof of Rath's store. These were,
together with the Shadlers, the only casualties suffered
by the Whites. The Indians did not fare so well.
The big buffalo guns of the hunters had taken their
toll of the Indians and their mounts. Little Wolf narrowly
escaped a beating at the hands of the outraged
Indians. The failure of his medicine was blamed by
him on the killing of a skunk prior to the attack. The
Indians apparently did not swallow his rather weak
excuse and Little Wolf, a disgraced man, disappeared
from history. I rather suspect that the more
impolite form of his name was used from then on.
Billy Dixon, some days after the battle, knocked an
Indian off his horse at a distance approaching onemile with his big .50 caliber rifle. Little wonder the
Indians decided not to mount more attacks on the
post. After several days, there were in excess of one
hundred whites who had taken refuge at the site, and
the Indians, including the wounded Quanah Parker,
left the scene.
The real significance of the 1874 battle at the Walls
has, in my opinion, been largely lost on historians of
this period. In 1874 the Indians of the Southern
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History of Hutchinson County, Texas: 104 Years, 1876-1980 (Book)
History book describing Hutchinson County, Texas, featuring local history, photographs, illustrations, and biographies.
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Hutchinson County Historical Commission. History of Hutchinson County, Texas: 104 Years, 1876-1980, book, 1980; Dallas, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth20204/m1/15/: accessed April 25, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Hutchinson County Genealogical Society.