Madera Valley 1870-1970: Irrigation Water to Drinking Water

By Darlene Ellison Chandler

Madera Valley 1870 to 1970
Irrigation Water to Drinking Water

This is the story of the Madera Valley in Reeves County from 1870 to 1970. It traces the history of the valley from the Indians, Mexican, and settlers who came into the valley. The valley had plenty of water for irrigation, but drinkable water was not obtained for the whole valley until 1970. The book is unique in that the history from 1906 to 1915 comes from a letter written from E. D. Balcom to the author. Some of the history of the schools, churches, and individuals who lived during these first one hundred years are described briefly.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris US
• Release date: Feb 21, 2014
• ISBN: 9781493152957

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Copyright © 2014 by Darlene Ellison Chandler.

Library of Congress Control Number:   2013922594

ISBN:   Hardcover   978-1-4931-5294-0

             Softcover    978-1-4931-5293-3

             eBook          978-1-4931-5295-7

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Rev. date: 02/18/2014

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CONTENTS

Acknowledgment

Toyah Valley

Recorded Inhabitants

Madera Valley

Jumanos along the Pecos River

Mescalero Apaches 1750 to 1880

Mexican Americans Arrive in the Madera Valley

1860-1906 First Settlements, Ranchers, and Daniel Murphy

Huelster, Texas

The Dutchover Family

Cattlemen Move into Madera Valley

McCutcheon Brothers

The Kountz Family

Weinacht

The Kingstons

Phantom Lake

Charles Harvey Splittgarber and Tillie Meier Splittgarber

Hoefs Family and Ranch

Calera

Daniel Murphy

Indio—Brogado

Alvarez Family

The Moore Family

Juan and Dominga Carrasco

Saragosa

Saragosa Bank Robbed

Juan Navarette Family

Natividad Briceno and Maria Briceno

Roy Rowe

Remembering Wynn Hamilton’s Store

Toyahvale

The Oliver Family

Earnest D. Balcom and the Start of Balmorhea (1906-1915)

Balmorhea: The First Thirty Years

Local Doctors

Some Early Families in Balmorhea

William Edgar Moore and Teresa Davies

Lee Dennis Kingston and Frankie Maria Walker

The Farrington Family in Balmorhea

Sam and Cordelia Davis

The Harbour Family

Cora Draper Moody

Q. A. Crenshaw and Mary Crenshaw

Albert and Cora Moore

Burt and Helen Martin

Other Early Families

1932-1952 Balmorhea State Park and World War II

First Cavalry Division Maneuvers

School

World War II

Nat and Zora Finley Gunter

Nat Gunter Family

The Race Humphries Family

Ruben Millan Fuentez

Mary Lou Roman

Alvin and Sally Ellison

Melvin and Pauline Chandler

Garland and Geraldine Rowe

The O’Rear Family

Carrillo Family

Ellen & Nelson Lethco

Pecos and Elizabeth Cook

Fidella and Manuel Jasso

Pat Brijalba

Willis and Patty Winters

Mr. and Mrs. Alfred Cate

1950-1970 Basketball and Drinking Water

Schools

August 8, 1969—Death Notice

The End of an Era

Bibliography

As for man, his days are as grass:

As a flower of the field, so he flourisheth.

For the wind passeth over it, and it is gone;

And the place thereof shall know it no more.

—Psalms 103:15-16

ACKNOWLEDGMENT

This book is dedicated to those before me who worked so hard to keep the history of the Madera Valley from disappearing. Frankie Kingston, Pat Kingston Towler, and Cassie Farrington, all at various times wrote historical stories for the newspaper. J. T. Moore sent me his written memories. Pat Kingston Towler loaned her collection of newspapers and her mother’s writings to me. Elizabeth Kingston Bettle sent the history that she had written in high school. Marty L. Burnett sent information and pictures. Rev. Inman wrote about the Baptist Church. Irma Peck and Amie McIntire wrote stories that Pat Towler shared. Albert Alvarez shared his own stories and the stories that he had collected. Zora Finley Gunter had written her own book about her life in the Madera Valley. Mary Helen Pax wrote about the Pecos Valley Southern. All the people who sent me stories, these are the people who made this book possible. These are the people to whom this book is dedicated.

I also have to thank those who wrote histories of the Big Bend County, the Davis Mountains, Pecos, and Fort Stockton. Carlysle Graham Raht, Barry Scobee, Alton Hughes, and Clayton W. Williams all had researched and written some stories that included the Madera Valley. These books were read, reread, and looked over for any bit of information that could be found. I waited too long to get firsthand information from anyone, except for the personal histories that different people wrote. The computer was helpful on some of the names.

I have left out so much that needs to be added. I have left out people who should be included and stories that needed to be told. I tried to include anyone who had a story to tell. I ran ads in the newspaper and put out posters asking for stories. Oftentimes I ran into a wall, trying to write about Hispanics. Many of their stories are mostly untold. Alberto Alvarez has his own collection, and had we not been so far apart, we probably could have collaborated more.

Thanks to all of those who helped, including my sister-in-law Johnnye Montgomery and her friend Tom, the Balmorhea librarians Rosa Dominquez and Shirley, and Dorinda Millan, curator at West of the Pecos Museum. I cannot forget my husband, Larry Chandler, who has been so patient with me.

Special thank-you to those who helped me when I was cussing the computer (which was often). Ken Geiger came when I e-mailed that I was in trouble. Two of my former students, Randy Elliott and Augie Capitan, helped with the computer organization and in getting the book to the publisher.

Madera Valley

Come to Madera Valley, oasis of the West.

In Davis Mountain Horseshoe Bend, with

Flowing waters blessed.

The air is clear, ’neath skies of blue; with

Friendly folk abounding.

The view of sky, and hill, and plains

Is really quite astounding.

Lake Balmorhea, a good size pond, is stocked

With fish galore

For fishing buffs, whose trailer homes

Are lined along the shore.

And Balmorhea, the Valley’s hub, is such a

Friendly place,

Where folks will welcome every one, with

Smiles upon their face.

The State Park outdoor swimming pool is fed by

Springs so clear,

Where Camp sites and cozy cabins are open

All the year.

Where wild birds teem; some rattlers buzz, with

Coyotes’ nightly singing.

Where summer days are followed by cool air,

That night comes bringing.

The mountains beckon from the west, for those

Who heed their call.

Their rugged cliffs and mountain trails,

Are beautiful to all.

Where timid deer, wild antelope, and mountain

Cougar too,

Will sometimes suddenly appear and pass

Before your view.

Where yucca stalks and century plants, their

Towering blooms hold high.

Where morning sunrise and dying day splash

Paint across the sky.

Where springs run clear, and waters flow to

Irrigate the land

Encompassed by the mountain range and by

The desert sand.

Oh, come and see, variety. Oasis in the west.

Madera Valley, Balmorhea. It offers you the best.

—Cassie Farrington

TOYAH VALLEY

The Trans-Pecos Area is bordered by the Pecos River on the east and the Rio Grande on the west. It is a part of the Chihuahuan Desert. This is a desert land where some have described everything either sticks or bites. In the l850s, Lt. Hartz, a participant in the Big Bend camel experiment, stated that, A rougher, more rocky, more mountainous and rugged country can scarcely be imagined. The area closest to the Pecos River is full of mesquite bushes, cacti, sparse grass, cresote bush (better known as greasewood) loco weed, sage, and bare ground.

The land is flat at first but gradually gives way to valleys, low hills, and mountains. The elevation ranges from 2,000 feet up to 8,750 feet in the mountainous areas. Vegetation in the mountains includes gamma grass, mountain laurel, ocotillo, Spanish gagger, century plant, peyote, and the mansiola tree.

The desert land close to the Pecos River is fertile soil when it has water. Cantaloupes, cotton, and other crops have been grown with great success when the land is irrigated.

The Pecos River, until after the early 1900s, was only fordable in a few places. The river was sixty-five to a hundred feet wide and was seven to ten feet deep. It had a very fast current. It was also almost undrinkable. It was a dirty brown in color and very salty.

Mules, horses, and humans preferred to try to make the next water hole rather than drink from the Pecos. Mexicans called the river Rio Puerco, dirty river. The Spaniards named it Rio Salado, salty river.

The Pecos River changed when the Red Bluff Reservoir in Reeves and Loving counties was completed and a hydroelectric power plant was implemented in the early 1900s. Today, it is a small, shallow, narrow stream with a sluggish current.

Reeves County

The creation of counties in Texas covered some ninty-five years. In l850, the eastern half was already composed of original countries. The complete western half was known as Bexar territory. This was divided into Young District, Bexar District, Presidio County, and El Paso County. Pecos County was taken from Presidio County in l871. In l883, Reeves County was organized from Pecos County. The last two counties out of Presidio were Jeff Davis and Brewster in l887.

Reeves County borders the Pecos River on the east. Interstate Highway 20 travels through the county. Pecos County is the border on the southeast and Jeff Davis County on the southwest. Reeves County has 2,626, square miles of land. Pecos is the county seat.

It is often described as being halfway between Odessa and El Paso. Rainfall is only ten inches a year. The growing season is 226 days. The average temperature is a mild 64 degrees.

RECORDED INHABITANTS

There were some early travelers through this part of Texas. Cabeza de Vaca was the first recorded traveler. History states he was shipwrecked on Galveston Island. He and his companions were trying to return to Mexico. It is hard to pin his exact route as this country was totally unmapped. As best as can be deciphered, he did cross the Pecos River, near Toyah Creek. He did record meeting what he called cow people in this area.

The first recorded inhabitants were a tribe of Indians known as the Juamano Indians. Antonio Espejo and his expedition were guided by these Indians down Toyah Creek in 1571. In Espejo’s record of his journey, the Jumanos and Espejo expedition camped at San Solomon Springs on August 10, l583. The Jumanos helped guide Espejo’s expedition back to the Rio Grande.

Other groups that went through Reeves County were Captain Marcy in 1849; Lt. N. H. Michler Jr. in 1849; the Camel Experiment in l850; the Gila Trail in l849; Major Neighbors l852; Emigrant Trail to California in 1849; Pope in l855; Butterfield Trail l858; and the Good Night Loving Trail.

The western area of Reeves County has always had a very important resource—water! Toyah Creek, in l870, had several springs located along the creek. San Solomon Springs, also known as Mescalero Springs and Head Springs, had a flow of twenty-two thousand gallons a day. This water is full of hard minerals and not good to drink. There was also Phantom Springs, west of San Solomon and Sandia Springs, which was located at Brogado (Indio).

The Jumanos were the first to settle in the Toyah Valley. They had settlements along the springs in the Toyah Creek, Phantom Lake, San Solomon Springs, and Sandia Springs. The Apache gradually took over these areas and the Jumanos. For many years, the Comanche and Apache were at war with each other and Mexico. Both tribes made extended raids into the interior and took horses, cattle, slaves, and anything else they wanted. The central government of Mexico, trying to put a stop to these raids, made each state responsible for their own protection. Thus, the various states would give protection to one tribe of Indians if they would not bother the citizens of that state. The states of Chihuahua, Coahuila, Sonora, and Durango made separate peace treaties with certain tribes. While the peace treaties were in effect, the Indians of that tribe would live among the people of that state and intermarry and raise families. Many of the chieftains—such as Victorio, Gomez, Bajo el Sol, Espejo, Alstate—were products of intermarriage. The Mexican villages would harbor and protect these people, often giving them the privilege of passing through the streets in triumphal procession so they could display the trophies they had won.

The Trans-Pecos area was the last part of Texas to be settled. In fact in the l850s the Texas Legislature considered making this part of Texas an Apache Indian Reservation.

MADERA VALLEY

Madera Valley is located in Reeves County in the Trans-Pecos Area. The Pecos River is the east and north boundaries. The Davis Mountains are the west boundary. This was the home of the Jumanos and later the Mescalero Apache. Most of the area is dry desert land; however, the Madera Valley is an oasis right in the middle of Reeves County. Toyah Creek meanders through the valley and, in 1900, was spring fed and ran all the time. It also has San Solomon Springs, which has 22-26 million gallons of water a day flowing from it. The valley was first called Toyah Valley. Toyah is an Indian word meaning flowing water or much water.

The name Madera Valley comes from a canyon that feeds Toyah Creek. Canon de Madera (Timber Canyon) was the name given to the canyon by the early Spanish-speaking settlers. It was one of the few places where trees of any size could be found. Madera Canyon actually begins west of Fort Davis on the northern slope of Mount Livermore. The canyon meanders northward for about twenty miles, before leaving the mountains. It becomes a dry creek if there is no moisture, but if it rains in the area, flood waters can charge down the narrow channel, falling a hundred feet per mile. Big and Little Aguja Creeks join with Madera Creek and flow into what is known as Toyah Creek. Toyah Creek flows about twenty-five miles and empties into a lake that usually has no outlet unless it floods then it flows into the Pecos River.

The first settlements in the Madera Valley (called Toyah Valley at that time) were along Toyah Creek. They were settled so the people could earn their living in the calera pits. These pits provided all the cement used at Fort Davis and the Toyah Valley. Many of these pits were washed away in l932 when the creek flooded. Each of these settlements were only two—or three-adobe houses with perhaps a small store. Often, the settlers dug into the creek bank and covered the roof with whatever was available. These were called tapias. They kept the cold out, but when it rained, the water seeped in and they were most uncomfortable. Settlements from west to east, and not in chronological order, were Calera (lime burner), Victoria at San Solomon Springs, an earlier settlement at San Solomon was called El Ojo, La Loma also called Lyles, Tres Casas on Balmorhea Site, Alamo (west of Balmorhea) later called Pera, Indio (Brogado), La Mata, and Saragosa.

The name Victoria at San Solomon probably originated when the settlers finally defeated the Mescalero Apaches around l879 at that spring. Others have said it was the way that the Mexican settlers said Toyah. One other explanation is that it was Chief Victorio’s campsite.

Today, the Madera Valley is a peaceful green oasis in the middle of a desert. The highway goes around the valley, but any traveler who takes Highway 17 enjoys the canal, green foliage, and the surprising sight of a large blue swimming pool.

JUMANOS ALONG

THE PECOS RIVER

The Jumanos were documented by Cabeza de Vacca in 1535. He mentioned a tattooed people coming to help him. They brought gifts of skin blankets. Archeologist have suggested that the Jumanos may have farmed in the Trans-Pecos since 1200 A. D.

In l582, Antonio Espejo noted that the Jumanos were irrigating their fields using diversion ditches in the (now Brogado and Balmorhea) areas. In all probability, they were some of the first ones to use the waters from the springs in the area.

The Jumanos soon found themselves being squeezed by the Spanish and the Apache. The Spanish had long been mistreating the Jumanos. They had been victims of slave raids, Spanish expeditions that burned pueblos and Indians at the stake. The Apache were traditional enemies. They raided the pueblos, again taking slaves and whatever else they wanted.

The Jumanos needed an ally and a strong friend. They chose to make this friend the Spaniards. In the 1620s and 1630s, the Jumanos started to make deliberate attempts to court the Spaniards. During this time, the Jumanos visited the pueblos near present-day El Paso and repeatedly asked the Spaniards to visit their lands and establish missions. The Jumanos said that they had been visited by the Lady in Blue who urged them to search out missionaries and be baptized.

Father Alfonso de Benavides learned that Mother Maria de Jesus de Agreda, a cloistered abbess who lived in Spain, was the Lady in Blue. Mother Maria said that she visited the Indians by falling into a trance when she prayed for them. She said that God took her to the Indians and that she spoke to them in their own language. She also said that she visited them from l621 to l631, maybe as many as five hundred times. The last reported appearance of the Lady in Blue was in the 1840s, when a mysterious young woman wearing a long blue dress came into the homes of the families stricken by a black tongue epidemic. She brewed a tea from forest herbs, tended to the ill, cried over the dead, and never slept. When the epidemic was over, she disappeared.

Between 1710—1740 Indians near present-day Nacogdoches, asked for blue cloth to bury their dead in memory of the Lady in Blue who came to them years ago, teaching the Christian ways.

Missions were established on the San Saba River, but did not last very long as there were not enough priest or soldiers to keep the missions safe. The Jumanos, for their own survival, ended up joining with the Mescalero Apaches. By the 1750s most of the Jumanos were gone from the Toyah Creek area.

It is interesting to note that some Jumanos are now trying to reestablish their tribal identity with the U. S. Bureau of Indian Affairs. They call themselves Jumano-Apaches and have registered four hundred to five hundred members with the BIA. Their tribal chief as of 2005 was Gabriel Carrasco. (The Carrasco family has long been in the Brogado and Balmorhea area. If there is any kinship, it is not known.)

Head Springs (San Solomon Springs) around 1906. Notice the adobe building on the left side.

21572.png

Toyah Creek about the same time. This was Toyah Creek about four miles from San Solomon Spring.

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MESCALERO APACHES

1750 TO 1880

The Apache were the dominant tribe in Texas from 1600 to 1750. Around 1700, the Comanches were pushed out of their hunting grounds into Texas. They, in turn, pushed the Apache west to the Trans-Pecos area, including the Davis Mountains and the Big Bend Territory.

From l750 to 1880, the Mescalero Apaches, in the spring and summer of the year, lived in small groups. They farmed and grew watermelon, corn, beans, squash, and peaches. Most of these rancherios were along Toyah Creek, Sandia Creek, San Soloman Springs, and Phantom Lake.

From l840 to l860, Chief Gomez ruled the Toyah Valley and Davis Mountains. There were four hundred warriors in his group. They were divided into five bands. Their strong hold was in the Davis Mountains. They had always lived on both sides of the Rio Grande. Once, when Governor Trias in Mexico had offered one thousand pesos for Gomez’s scalp, Gomez offered an equal amount for any Mexican or American scalps. The Apaches raided the Mexican settlements south of the Rio Grande. They took horses, livestock, and often slaves. The captured young children were often adopted into the tribe.

Gomez was chief of one of the Apache tribes that farmed along the Toyah Creek. The women made small irrigation canals so that all the corn, beans, squash, and melons could get water. During the spring and summer, around six hundred Apaches could be found in this area. They lived in small dome-type shelters called Wickis during the summer months. A few logs were tied together; then, grass and bushes were piled over the frame. During the winter months, the Apache moved into the mountains, and a leather tipi became their home. As the crops were harvested, some of the beans and corn were stored in baskets made from the yucca plant. These baskets would be stored in different caches to use during the winter months.

The Spaniards had started calling these Apache, Mescalero, because they ate the bulb found at the bottom of the century plant. The Apache women dug the bulb up. They dug trenches, put rocks at the bottom of the trenches, then burned wood. When nothing but ashes were left, grass was put over the ashes; the crowns of the plant were placed in the trench. Grass was placed over the plants, then rocks, dirt was piled on top. This was left for twelve to twenty-four days before the crowns were dug up. The roasted plant had a slightly sweet taste. After eating the plant, a cud, which could be chewed, was left. These crowns could also be stored and eaten in the cold months. The Apache also made a drink, pulque, which made them drunk. It was usually saved for celebrations.

Flint was abundant in this area. The Apache could make arrows to use for hunting. Buffalo were also close by. They usually had to cross the Rio de Natage (Pecos) to find the buffalo but they were plentiful. Chief Gomez could take some of his followers to hunt for buffalo. This took several days as the women had to dress the buffalo, cut it up, and make jerky.

The Apache women were gathers and gardeners. These women used the irrigation system that the Jumanos had started and improved it. They fed the Apache people everything except for meat. Toyah Creek had plenty of fish, but the Apache did not eat fish, turkey, prairie dogs, snake, or bear unless they were starving. The Apache women were credited with always being able to find water. There was also the legend that Apaches often filled the springs with rocks so other could not find them.

By the 1850s, the Apache knew that this land was now part of the United States. They had watched the government change in Mexico. They had seen the Texans fight Mexico and then join the United States. Then the United States fought Mexico. Through it all, their lives had barely changed in the Trans-Pecos area. They had no idea that, soon, the winds would change and their lives would be changed forever.

Many of the Mescalero Apache were bilingual. They spoke Apache, Spanish, and some spoke English and other tribal languages.

Chief Gomez had control of the Davis Mountain from the l840s to the l860s. Gomez was probably only thirty years old when he became a chief. Other Mascalero leaders were Marco with two hundred warriors, Espejo, Nicolas and Antonio. All of these groups made travel on the Old Spanish Trail between San Antonio and El Paso troublesome. These groups often made treaties, but both sides broke the treaties. The Apache chiefs knew the important words in the English language. They often offered to make a treaty, but it usually ended in an ambush on the unsuspecting white man.

The last group of Mescalero Apaches to cause trouble in the Toyah Valley was led by a Mescalero chief, San Solomon, who settled his followers at Head Springs during the Civil War. Apparently, there was a battle between San Solomon and the settlers in 1879.

Ed Balcom, in a letter to Darlene Winn (Chandler) in 1964, said that one of his tenent farmers, Lyhon, said that Victorio and his followers came into the Toyah Creek and Brogado area and raised corn, beans, and melons. He also stated that as many as six hundred Indians were in the area. Victorio was a Warm Springs Apache. He was joined by Muchacho Nego. Their people were almost starving on the reservation as the federal government had not kept its promise of food. Most of the records show that Victorio was in the Big Bend area and not the Toyah Valley or Davis Mountains.

The Indians that Cabeza de Vaca and later Antonio de Espejo described being in the area were the Jumanos. However by 1700, these Jumanos had either joined with the Apaches or other tribes. They were no longer found as a tribe in the Trans-Pecos Area.

Fort Davis was built in l854 and Fort Stockton in l858. This had helped keep the Apache in check. However, with the start of the Civil War, the federal troops pulled out of these forts in l861 and the Confederate troops moved in. The Confederate troops stayed less than a year, then they left for San Antonio. This again left the Davis Mountains, Toyah Valley, and Big Bend territory open to the Apache.

There was a need for westward expansion when the territory of New Mexico, Arizona, and California were added to the United States after the war of l848. Then gold was discovered in l849. Many travelers preferred the southern route to the northern route with its mountains, deserts, and snow. The San Antonio-El Paso Road (also called the Old Spanish Trail) was soon busy with migrants, mail, freight, and other travelers. Plenty of Indian trails intersected this southern route. Both Apache and Comanche raiders were happy to find horses, livestock, and other goods so close.

It also opened the door to Mexico as farmers in Ojinaja as well as Presidio started hauling fruits and vegetables to the soldiers at Fort Davis. The Mexicans widen and smoothed the trail so their carts and wagons could get through the area easier. In 1860, Lt. Williams H. Echols wrote a report to the Thirty-Sixth Congress, Second Session, Senate Executive Document No. I, Washington, 1861. This report was on his experiment with twenty camels into the Davis Mountains. He described Presidio as the largest dirt dauber nest he had ever seen. He also stated that, at Fort Davis, he had eaten watermelons, mush melons, apples, and pears from Mexico.

MEXICAN AMERICANS ARRIVE IN THE MADERA VALLEY

Sometime around l850, Mexican Americans started arriving in the Toyah Valley.

These first Mexicans were the dark Indian type and settled around Brogado. They simply followed the farming pattern of the Mescalero before them. These Mexicans had very few material possessions in Mexico. Their grandparents had been forced into slavery and had to work in the mines. Then the Comanches and Apaches raided their villages, killing the men and taking the women and children hostage. The Indians and the Mexicans were natural enemies most of the time, probably because of the payments for Indian scalps by Mexican officials. Yet at the same time in some villages, Indians and Mexicans lived side by side. Many of the Mescalero Apaches were part Mexican.

Most of the first Mexican arrivals into the Toyah Valley at this time were uneducated. Few, if any, spoke English. They had no knowledge of United States Laws. (Texas became a nation in l836. In l845, Texas was annexed to the United States.) They left Mexico because the Mexican officials gave them no protection from the Indian raids. They squatted on lands, built their adobe homes, but lack of knowledge kept them from filing for titles to the land.

Yet there were another group of Hispanic settlers who started coming into Toyah Valley.

These were people who were of Spanish decent. They had lived in Texas when it was a part of Mexico. Many had fought in the Texas Revolution. Some had received land grants for fighting against Mexico. Many of these did speak English. Some were knowledgeable about U.S. laws. There were two things that both groups had in common—their Catholic religion and language.

There is no written history of the first Mexican settlers before l870 other than their abandoned adobe houses. The only other items that these early settlers left is a cemetery, a cross on top of Brogado Hill, and future citizens.

1860-1906 FIRST SETTLEMENTS, RANCHERS, AND DANIEL MURPHY

In The Romance of Davis Mountains and Big Bend Country, Mr. Raht states that a few of the more daring Mexicans built their rancherios at Head Springs during the years l850 to l857. "Hardly were they established, before the Mescalero Apaches destroyed them, killed the men, and took the women and children away in captivity."

After the establishment of Fort Davis and Fort Stockton the area along Toyah Creek should have been halfway safe from Indian attacks by 1861, but then the Civil War broke out. The federal troops moved out and the Confederate troops moved in. The Confederate troops only stayed in the Trans-Pecos area for less than a year, and then they also left. The Mescalero Apache wasted no time in settling back in the San Solomon and Phantom Lake Spring area. There are two references of l879, when the Indians failed in one desperate attempt to regain control of these water sources. Both of these references were found in the Pecos Enterprise in an article on Reeves County Water District and in an interview with Joe Kingston, but no details were given. (The author suspects that this story was told mouth to mouth but never written down.)

Sam R. Miller

After the soldiers moved back into Fort Davis in l866, Sam Miller had the beef contract for the fort. In 1867, he brought in 165 head of beeves, only to have the Mescalero Apaches kill his herders and take the beeves. Sam Miller had first come to the Davis Mountains with Sibley’s Brigade in the