North Texas Star

ALSO INSIDE:

April 2015

H Chasing Our Tales to Belton, Texas

H Palo Pinto County Historical
and Wildflower Tour
H The Post on the Clear Fork
Fort Phantom Hill
H Not to mince words think about
cooking a mincemeat pie

a Ser/Sta/Gro

April 2015 NORTH TEXAS STAR Page 2

North Texas Star

April 2015 NORTH TEXAS STAR Page 3

OUTDOORS ALONG THE BRAZOS

Checkerville, a Ser/Sta/Gro
By Don Price

CHASING OUR TALES

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to Belton, Texas

By Sue Seibert

THE POST ON THE CLEAR FORK

Fort Phantom Hill
By Jim Dillard

10

NOT TO MINCE WORDS

think about cooking a mincemeat pie

12

PALO PINTO COUNTY

Historic and Wildflower Tour
By Kate Nowak

By Wynelle CaItlin

April 2015 NORTH TEXAS STAR Page 4

Outdoors Along the Brazos

Checkerville, a Ser/Sta/Gro

By DON PRICE

NOTE: Since 1963 I've been writing for newspapers,

magazines, history books, but the following story concerning tiny Checkerville has been by far the most difficult of 50 years of column writing.
There is nothing standing today.
In the year 1921, the coast-to-coast Bankhead
Highway was the only way to go if you had a motorcar and wanted to travel, perhaps in a Model T Ford,
later perhaps in a Model A Ford. Entrepreneurial
Henry Ford had a near-monopoly on mass transit.
The most common part to fail in the following scenario was a necessary part of an automobile. It used to
be called a casing, and inside it was an innertube. You
could be looking at a casing while talking to a friend
and it'd go flat as a pancake.
So full service stations began to spring up from
coast to coast, selling gasoline, kerosene, and ubiquitous Monkey Grip Hot Patches and Monkey Grip Cold
Patches. Ice cold Soda Water was a savior.
Southeast Sixth Avenue in our city was a brick highway and it was referred to as the Millsap Highway.
We understand that this
brick highway was a segment of the coast-to-coast
Bankhead Highway, just as
important in a historical
sense as the famed Highway
66 in the classic John
Steinbeck's Grapes of Wrath,
perhaps even more so.
For close to 70 years I'd
been hearing from time-totime about Checkerville, but
not knowing if it had been a
tiny village, hamlet, settlement or what. I didn't know
enough about it to even
know how to ask a question
without embarrassment. Was
it folklore?

Finally I discovered in our own wonderful 18572007 Painted Post Past (a 150-year History of Palo
Pinto County) a drawing of a wooden building on
page 97, rustic it was, with a sign above the lone gas
pump, facing the Bankhead Highway.
It was a hand-lettered sign in cursive style:
Checkerville.
Going back several years, no one seemed to know
anything factual about the Checkerville Station.
About 50 years ago, perhaps a lot longer, I had
heard that Ed Holland was the man to talk to. At the
time there were three Ed Hollands, two in the nearby
settlement of Sturdivant, and the third Ed Holland was
found in the near southeast part of our city.
This Ed Holland was a retired civil service employee; before that he was a mechanic working for the
Green Stoker Pontiac dealership at 400 N. Oak Ave.
(Bennett's Office Supply) in Mineral Wells, offering
no help concerning Checkerville.
Chasing down three Ed Hollands was too much for
me; I just didn't have the time to check it out as I was
trying to make a living myself. But I never forgot
Checkerville. Some day.

Was it factual or was it mythical? Was it a tiny hamlet without a post office or was it only one lone Ser/
Sta/Gro? Absolutely nothing remains today.
I drink far too much coffee in the local caf for an
85 year old, but ain't it fun! Being hard of hearing
doesn't help one bit. An example of this: Your lady
friend said no but you thought she said go. You're
now in deep trouble because everything rhymes.
Sometimes, though, in the coffee shop you'll find
the Holy Grail. But don't play it by ear for gosh sakes.
On a recent morning two of us were having coffee;
the other fellow introduced himself as James Holland.
Out of a clear blue sky he said he was the son of Ed
Holland who built the Ser/Sta/Gro with the
Checkerville sign in 1921, on South Swanson Road,
but facing the Bankhead Highway. And across the
road was the Davis' Filling Station/Grocery.
Since I don't have the ears of a 20-year-old I asked
him to repeat it. Everything matched: he was James
Holland, the son of Ed Holland who built the quaint
service station, etc.
I reacted with shock by spilling a full cup of hot
coffee down deep where it hurts, soaking myself. You
ought to know the name of the restaurant.

This sketch was provided by Lucille Armstrong-Pilgrim

Signed by: Bill Robinson - Dated 1978

Checkerville's Heyday
Business was good on the coast-to-coast
Bankhead Highway even the big
Greyhound bus stopped. Hotel busses from
the T&P Railroad used the brick highway,
going to the Millsap Depot to pick up
patrons headed for the big Baker and Crazy
hotels.
For a hot spot, a rural filling station,
Checkerville was second to none. There
were checker tournaments that became so
popular people from everywhere, even
Oklahoma, came to play at the Holland
Station and across South Swanson Road at
the Davis Sta/Gro.
James, now 78 years old, remembers the

April 2015 NORTH TEXAS STAR Page 5

two mules he followed when he wasn't fixing flats at

Ed's station, breaking land, planting corn, watermelon, cantelope, sweet potatoes. And the orchard of
peach apricot, plum trees. It was hard work, perhaps
a lot more fun than fixing flats at the Checkerville
Station.
His dad always kept a half dozen big mules for
breaking and plowing. James started early, about 10
years old.
He remembers the first day when he was about 10
he rode the tractor with his daddy: it was an ironwheeled No. 2236
International. The old
tractor started on either
gas or kerosene (coal
oil). And since it had

James Holland

iron wheels, hurrah! No flats, the young boy said.

To pass the time at the Checkerville Ser/Sta/Gro,
when he wasn't plowing, James played a lot of
checkers with his dad but never won until his senior
year, beating his daddy for the first time. It was the
last time dad ever played with him, saying, Son you
know the game now. His dad realized his son was
growing up.
The Kings' Row
(But all good times end. It's called progress, but
progress for whom? Please look at our national culture, our difficulties with the whole world, the need
of wisdom no matter where you turn, and everyone
restless, waiting for some kind of harmony among
competing national powers, heavy padlocks on every

door. We need to settle down and play a good, old

honest game of checkers.)
An all-brick highway (U.S. 180) from Weatherford
straight through our city was now the way to go.
Everyone seemed in a hurry, not wasting time on the
Bankhead, certainly not through Millsap and
Checkerville.
Business got so slow Ed Holland closed the Ser/
Sta/Gro. Later the station was razed. Nothing
remains today.
Later, his son, James, went to work for Southern
Airways during the Vietnam War. He's mighty proud
of the trophy he won while there: He won the
Southern Airways Checker Tournament.
His two sisters helped with this story: his twin sister Jane of Benton, Arkansas; a younger sister of
Mineral Wells, Betty.
Now comes the hard part. A few days ago James
had a doctor's appointment the doctor did not give
James a good report at all.
Next time you see James Holland in the coffee
shop, you might mention his prowess at the checkerboard in old Checkerville, that you heard he had yet
won another tournament, and that he'd finally made
it to The King's Row. Just watch his eyes sparkle.

Ed Holland, standing in front of Holland's

Garage, the forerunner of Checkerville.
(Courtesy family album)

April 2015 NORTH TEXAS STAR Page 6

Chasing Our Tales

to Belton, Texas

Belton, Texas, is the county seat of Bell County. A

longtime friend, Wayne Schatzle, who died recently,
came from Belton, and Ive noticed a lot of historical
references to Belton recently, so I thought I would
write about the town and dedicate this column to the
memory of Coach Schatzle, who worked with my husband, Raf, for many years and taught our grandson to
swim.

Belton was settled in August 1850 as Nolandville,

but the name was changed to Belton the following
year. The town was laid out in blocks with streets
and a town square for the newly organized Bell
County. The town incorporated in 1852 and named
Belton for Texas governor Peter Hansborough Bell.
It became a place where pioneers heading west
could stop and rest in a fairly civilized environment.
Its settlement came only six years after statehood
for Texas was established.
In 1852 a post office was established and mail
arrived in the town by horseback. Also that year a
stagecoach route was established through Belton,
which began in Tennessee and ended in Brownsville.
The next year a two-story jail, a school, hotel, church,
saloons and stores were built.
Many of the buildings were pole shacks, but soon
permanent buildings were being erected of native
stone. Several of those building have survived to this
day. The A.D. Potts building was built in the 1860s
and is not only still in use but is still owned by the
Potts family.

A.D. (Adiline D.) Potts went to Belton from

Kentucky. He was a banker and hardware dealer. He
was born in Creelsboro, Russell County, Ky., on June
15, 1847. He left Kentucky in 1870 in a two-horse
spring wagon with his brother and their families. The
spring wagon was ferried across the Mississippi River
at Memphis, Tenn., and up the Arkansas River, to Pine
Bluff. Six weeks after leaving Kentucky they arrived
in Belton. Although they had
not meant to go to Belton, that
was where they stayed and
made their home.
In the beginning of Potts
career in Belton he carried a
full line of harnesses, saddles
and hardware, and when buggies and carriages came into
demand, he added them to his
stock.
Potts was also the vice president of Belton National Bank, a

member of the Masonic lodge, being a Shriner, a

Knights Timplar and a Rotarian.
Potts married Emma Strange of Kentucky, and they
had three children, Albert, Arthur and Zora. When
Emma died in 1889, Potts married Clara Hefley, and
they had a daughter, Elizabeth.
Another pioneer of Belton was George W. Hefley
who built a grocery store in Belton in 1853. Hefleys
daughter, Clara, was Potts second wife. Hefley was

By SUE SEIBERT

born in North Carolina on May 25, 1826, and died

April 22, 1894, in Belton. He was married to
Elizabeth Ann Bradberry, 1833-1926. Hefley and his
wife had a son, William J., as well as a daughter.
William J. died the same year as his mother, but he
was living in Tarrant County at the time.
Tom Hughes, an early druggist in Belton, recalled
natural gas coming to Belton, but the first electricity
was introduced in 1887 when the Belton Electric plant
was built with the Reverend M.V. Smith at its head:
That was a long time ago and early in the days of
electricity, but Mr. Smith put his sincerest efforts into
making the plan a success. But as most small enterprises, the lack of equipment handicapped Mr. Smith
from making as many extensions of his lines as he
would have liked. Again, the service could not always
be depended upon to perform every minute of the day
and night. We had a few street lights and were mighty
proud of them in the old days.
Texas Power and Light Company purchased the
Belton Electric plant in about 1914 and supported the
change of ownership at that time, because Smith had
always favored giving Belton the best service obtainable. I think most folks here will agree with me that
since the Texas company has handled the Belton service, we have had about the best in service and equipment and management that could be found anywhere.
Other outstanding early citizens of Belton included
the Reverend C.E. Smith, pastor of First Christian
Church; Mrs. John A. Wallace, of the Daughters of the
American Revolution Ben Milam Chapter in Belton;
Mrs. C.E. Metcalf, Mrs. May Harris Walker, Miss
Alice Partens, George W. Tyler, J.C. Rudd, and C.W.
Peyton. Also early in Belton were Dr. Alex Dienst, J.P.
Charlton, J.C. Baker and Charlie Callaway.
Bell County was probably first visited by the white
man, Phillip Nolan, for whom it was first named.
Stephen F. Austin first owned the area, but the first
colonizer was Sterling Clack Robertson, who was the
nephew of James Robertson, founder of Nashville,
Tenn., and known as the Father of Tennessee. Sterling
Robertson brought 300 American families to Texas,
settling at Nashville on the Brazos River near
Cameron. Robertsons grandson was Huling P.
Robertson and his son, E. Sterling C. Robertson,
founded Salado, where the Robertson mansion was
built.
Among the early settlers of Bell County were the
Davisons, Tylers, Reeds, Childers and McKays. All
settled near the river for water, thinking the prairies
were wasteland. The earliest business in the area was
cattle raising.
The only important Indian battle that occurred in
Bell County was the one in 1839, which happened at

April 2015 NORTH TEXAS STAR Page 7

Birds Creek. In this battle, 31 Texas Rangers defeated
300 Comanches. More than 100 Comanches died, as
did six white men, including Capt. John Bird, who had
come from Fort Milam on Brazos River.
Just before the Civil War, Sam Houston campaigned
across the state urging people not to vote for secession.
He made two speeches in Belton. However, his speeches were not received well, and he was booed loudly.
When that happened, he took out his two pistols, laid
them on a box in front of him and dared anyone to
interrupt him again. They did not.
More than 1,000 Bell County and Belton men joined
the Confederate Army and the women of Belton met
daily at the new courthouse to sew clothing for the soldiers. At that time there was only one sewing machine
in Belton, and it was in constant use.
However the Civil War wreaked havoc on the town,
and when supplies and currency got low, many stores
were forced to close. Following the War things did not
get better as all the elected officials were Union
appointees rather than elected by the citizens. Federal
troops patrolled the streets, giving little protection for
the citizens and their property, and allowing outlaws to
roam the area stealing, assaulting and killing the citizens of Belton.
It got so bad that a group of horsemen, Belton citizens, rode to the jail in the dark of night, dismounted,
walked into the jail and shot nine men to death. For
decades following, outlaws stayed away from Belton. It

is said that Sam Bass, on his way to rob a bank, refused

to enter Belton, saying, Those Belton men are too
tough for me.
Belton had a reputation for having many, many
saloons and E Street was called Rat Row because of its
bad reputation and its four saloons.
Then in the 1870s, a building boom hit Belton, and
the town was filled with new businesses and enterprises. A group of men organized the Belton Telegraph
Company, and it
extended to Round
Rock where it joined
Western Union. With
the telegraph, the
town had daily quotes
of the cotton market,
which was important
for areas where cotton
was king. Also in the
1870s, a group called
the Belton Womans
Commonwealth, or
Scactified Sisters, was
organized as a battered wives refuge,
but it was also a
socialistic, communistic society, a first in
Central Texas.

But in 1881, the city fathers found themselves duped

by the Santa Fe Railroad for, after investing $75,00 and
meeting the railroads demands, the Santa Fe decided
to build its own town, Temple, to connect to the railroad. Although the United States Supreme Court years
later found in favor of Belton, the town had already
built a depot for the M.K.&T. Railroad just a block
from the courthouse.
During that time, the town also installed a town
water system and mains throughout the town, added a fire department, a lumber yard, a flour mill,
newspapers and banks. And a
new college, now known as Mary
Hardin Baylor, was founded as a
college for females. It added two
parks, which are still in use.
Then the Great Depression hit
Belton but by the 1970s it had
worked its way out of a financial
slump, and because of World War
II, Fort Hood arrived in the county in January of 1942, giving
much economic relief and a surge
of growth.
Belton and Bell County have a
truly interesting history. Hope
youve enjoyed a peek into that
history.

April 2015 NORTH TEXAS STAR Page 8

The Post on the Clear Fork

FORT PHANTOM HILL

by: JIM DILLARD

photos by: ANDY DILLARD

"We are like the dove after the deluge, not one green
sprig can we find to indicate that this was ever intended for man to inhabit. Indeed, I cannot imagine that
God ever intended white man to occupy such a barren
waste. The ladies will have to live in tents all winter;
how much they will suffer is sad to contemplate."
Lieutenant Clinton W. Lear penned this letter to his
wife on Nov. 19, 1851, five days after arriving for duty
at the site selected for a new military fort on the plains
north of present Abilene, Texas. It was to become one
of several new forts established on the Texas frontier
to protect westbound travelers and immigrants from
Indian attacks as westward expansion continued
through the vast region in northwest Texas known as
Comancharia. Lieutenant Lear's words would prove
prophetic for the short-lived outpost on the Texas frontier.
Following the signing of the Treaty of Guadalupe
Hidalgo at the close of the Mexican-American War in
1848, Brig. Gen. George Mercer Brooke, commander
of the Department of Texas, began an extensive construction program to establish an arch of military forts
along the Texas frontier to stem the tide
of Indian attacks, protect settlers
and stop raids by Comanches
and other tribes into Mexico.
Constructed during 1849,
these eight federal military
forts extended from Fort
Duncan, McIntosh, and
Ringgold Barracks along the
Rio Grande to Fort Worth at
the forks of the Trinity
River in North Texas.
Also during 1849, Capt.
Randolph B. Marcy was
sent by the federal government to the Texas frontier
to locate a route for travelers headed to the gold
fields of California
through the vast unoccupied region.
Indians, particularly
Apaches and
Comanches,
still considered this
region their
hunting

domain and posed a threat to travelers, cattlemen and

anyone brave enough to move through the region.
Knowledge he gained from this trip of the terrain and
resources of the region would prove instrumental in
site selection for future military forts along the Texas
frontier. It was soon determined that a second line of
forts should also be built beyond those previously
established. Around 20 additional federally manned
camps and forts would be constructed throughout the
Texas frontier during the 1850s and 1860s.
In the spring of 1851, six companies of the Sixth
Infantry under command of General William
Goldsmith Belknap accompanied by Captain Marcy
and Delaware Indian scout Black Beaver left Fort
Gibson, Arkansas, and traveled to north Texas to establish a new military post on the Texas frontier. On
Marcy's recommendation, Belknap selected a site on
the Brazos River near present Newcastle, Texas
(Young County,) where the old military road between
Fort Smith, Arkansas, and Donna Ana, New Mexico,
crossed the river. The new post would be named in
honor of Belknap who died shortly thereafter from
typhoid dysentery. Following Belknap's death, General
Persifer F. Smith took command of the District of Texas.
During 1851 and 1852 several other federal military
forts would also be built to the south of Fort Belknap
including Phantom Hill, Chadbourne, Clark, Mason,
Terrett, and McKavett.
Belknap had been ordered to build a second fort on
Pecan Bayou in present Coleman County, but Smith
changed the order and selected a site located above the
junction of the Clear Fork of the Brazos River and its
tributary Elm Creek in present southeastern Jones
County, a site Marcy had previously visited during
1849. Lieutenant Colonel John J. Abercrombie arrived
at the new site on February 4, 1851, with five companies of the Fifth Infantry to begin construction of the
new post. They had traveled from Fort Smith, Arkansas,
and Fort Gibson in Indian Territory to Fort Belknap
before heading further south to the site selected for the
new fort.
Originally, the post was to be named The Post on the
Clear Fork of the Brazos River, but its name was soon
changed to Fort Phantom Hill. When approaching the
site selected for the fort, it appeared to be located on an
elevated and timbered hill which disappeared like a
phantom the closer one traveled toward it. Once at the
site the terrain was relatively level and the timbers were
nothing more that mesquite trees. It is unknown who
coined the new name for the fort, but it likely came
from some of the first soldiers that were stationed there.
The unit was followed by wagons driven by teamsters
that were filled with supplies, construction materials and
tools, and other items necessary to construct the fort.
During a severe blizzard that struck them on their

march, one teamster died from the extreme cold and

twenty-seven mules and oxen froze to death. Tents
served as living quarters until better accommodation
could be built.
Construction of the new post on the bleak landscape
that greeted the soldiers began during the first month
after their arrival. Two carpenters, a blacksmith and a
stonemason assisted with construction of the fort. A suitable stone quarry was located two miles away along
Elm Creek that provided building materials for chimneys, a magazine, guardhouse and commissary storehouse. The officer's quarters and hospital were built with
blackjack oak logs cut and hauled by teams of oxen
from 40 miles away. The company quarters and other
buildings were constructed jacal-style with upright logs
anchored in trenches, woven with brush and chinked
with mud. The roofs were thatched with sod and grass
from the surrounding prairie, which proved to be a poor
construction material during rains. Although these quarters had dirt floors, stone fireplaces and chimneys provided some comfort of warmth during cold weather.
The lack of a reliable water supply made life at the
new fort difficult. Water in Elm Creek often dried up,
and in the nearby Clear Fork of the Brazos, its water
was brackish and foul tasting. An 80-foot deep, walk-in
water well was dug near the guardhouse, but it often
went dry and proved unreliable. Water had to be hauled
in barrels from a spring located four miles upriver from
the fort. Weather conditions brought further hardships to
the troops with hot and dry summers, cold blustery winters with ice and snow, hailstorms and tornados. Basic
supplies had to be hauled hundreds of miles to the fort
and were often insufficient to sustain the troops in good
health. Many of the men were frequently sick and
lacked proper food and clothing to live at the bleak outpost. Fort Phantom Hill was the last place on the Texas
frontier any soldier wanted to be assigned.
During the existence of Fort Phantom Hill, there were
few encounters with Indians, although several bands visited the fort as they passed through the area, including
Buffalo Hump and his Penateka Comanches and other
bands of Kiowas, Wichitas, Lipans and Kickapoos.
Being manned by infantry units, the garrison was illequipped to contest horse-mounted Comanches, who
were the lords of the plains. About all the infantry troops
could do was defend the fort and escort travelers
through the region between Fort Belknap and Fort
Chadbourne.
By April 1852, 284 enlisted men and officers were
stationed at Fort Phantom Hill. Command of the fort
was turned over to Lt. Col. Carlos A. Waite on April 27,
1852, who was succeeded by Maj. H.H. Sibley on
September 24, 1853. Four of the five companies of the
Sixth Infantry were eventually withdrawn and the
remaining company reinforced by Company I of the

April 2015 NORTH TEXAS STAR Page 9

Second Dragoons, commanded by Lt. Newton C. Givens
on March 26, 1854. Twelve days later, on April 6th, the
fort was abandoned and all troops moved back north to
Fort Belknap. Fort Phantom Hill mysteriously burned to
the ground after the troops left and was never reoccupied
by federal troops. Only the old chimneys and a few of the
stone buildings remained. Givens was charged with giving orders to burn the fort when he and the soldiers left
and was brought before a military court. He was acquitted in the first court marshal trial and given nine months
suspension in the second one.
While on patrol during 1856 with the first squadron of
the Second Cavalry from his base at Camp Cooper on the
Clear Fork of the Brazos in present southern
Throckmorton County, Lt. Col. Robert E. Lee mentioned
passing by the ruins of Fort Phantom Hill. They rendezvoused at Fort Chadbourne (present northwestern Coke
County) with two companies of the Second Cavalry from
Fort Mason to conduct patrols searching for Comanches
along the Colorado, Concho, and Double Mountain Fork
of the Brazos rivers. They would travel over 1,100 miles
searching for Indians throughout the Comancharia and
found only one small Indian camp and one lone captive.
Abandonment of Fort Phantom Hill by the military
would not be the last hurrah for the fort. In 1858, the
remaining structures at the fort were repaired and used as
a way-station (No. 54) by the Butterfield Overland Stage
and Mail Route. It was managed by a man named
Burlington and his wife who
prepared meals for weary
travelers. Waterman L.
Ormsby, correspondent for the
New York Herald, while on a
trip to California on the
Butterfield State line,
described his observations
about the old abandoned fort.
"Most of the chimneys are
still standing and they reflected the light of the full moon
as we drove up as might well
become the title Phantom Hill.
There are ruins of from forty
to fifty buildings. The magazine which stands today built
entirely of stone is so little
injured it is used for a company storehouse. The stable
also is a fine stone building,
so altogether, Phantom Hill is
the cheapest and best new
station on the route." The
Butterfield (Southern) Mail
route was discontinued at the
outbreak of the Civil War in 1861 and once again the
fort was abandoned.
During the Civil War, it was used as a base for field
operations by a state Frontier Battalion unit under Col.
James B. (Buck) Berry and other ranger units. It was
also a stop along the Goodnight-Loving Trail for cattle
herds being driven between North Texas and New
Mexico. John Hittson, first sheriff of Palo Pinto County
and trail driver of cattle on the Goodnight-Loving Trail,

camped at the site during 1866 while on a cattle drive to

New Mexico. In 1871 it served as a sub-post to Fort
Griffin, which had been established after the Civil War
on the Clear Fork of the Brazos River north of present
Albany, Texas. Gen. William T. Sherman made a stop
there during 1871 on his inspection tour of the frontier
forts in Texas. When Col. Ranald McKenzie began his
campaign against Indians in northwest Texas during
1872, Capt. Theodore Schwan led one column of troops
from there to join McKenzie in his push to expel all
remaining Indians from the Texas frontier.
After the last roving bands of Comanche Indians were
subjugated and moved onto reservation in Indian
Territory (Oklahoma), the small town of Phantom Hill
grew up around the site of the old fort. Between 1876
and 1878, it became a buying and shipping point for
buffalo hides taken during the great slaughter of the
southern buffalo herds. The first post office for the
region was established there on July 1, 1879, with
Thomas Fletcher Scott as postmaster. With population
of 546 in 1880, Phantom Hill was selected as the county
seat for Jones County. On Nov. 14, 1881, the county
seat was moved to Jones City, a name that was later
changed to Anson in honor of Anson Jones, the last
president of the Republic of Texas and namesake of the
county. During 1881-1882, when tracks of the Texas
and Pacific Railroad were laid 14 miles to the south
through northern Taylor County, the town of Abilene
sprang up and began to grow.
In a letter written to the San
Antonio Express newspaper
in 1881, it stated that Fort
Phantom contained nothing
but "one hotel, one saloon,
one blacksmith shop, and
10,000 prairie dogs."
Although the site and ruins
of old Fort Phantom Hill had
been open to the public since
l972, it was contributed to

the Fort Phantom Hill Foundation by Mr. and Mrs. Jim

Alexander of Abilene in 1997. The foundation is funded
by grants and donations from organization and individuals. A free self-guided tour can be made at the site from
dawn until dusk daily. Landmarks are indicated with
information signage, and a brochure is available
explaining the history of the fort. Fort Phantom Hill is
located on the 650 mile highway Texas Forts Trail in
west central Texas approximately 14 miles north of
Abilene on FM Road 600 and north of Lake Fort
Phantom Hill which was built in 1938.
Fort Phantom Hill served an important, albeit short,
role in the settling of frontier Texas. Now only its chimneys and a few old rock buildings stand against the
winds of change that continue to blow across the landscape of the Comancharia. Rumors are that ghostly spirits still roam through the ruins of the old fort. On a still
frosty morning just at sunrise, you can almost hear the
pounding of horse hoofs and soldiers stirring from their
jacals to greet another windy day at the Post on the
Clear Fork.
William Lawrence Chittenden wrote a poem titled
Old Fort Phantom Hill that was published in his book
"Ranch Verses" written at his ranch near Anson, Texas,
in 1893. An excerpt from that poem reads, ....."And today the birds are singing where was heard the cannon
roar, For the gentle doves are nesting 'midst those ruins
of the war. Yes, the mocking-birds re-echo: "Peace on
earth, to men good will," And the "swords are turned to
ploughshares" in the land of Phantom Hill."
Sources: Texas State Historical Association @tshaonline.org (Fort Phantom Hill; Abilene; Texas, Fort
Belknap; Anson, Texas; Givens, Newton Curd; Old
Stone Ranch; Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo; Butterfield
Overland Mail); fortphantom.org; wikipedia.org/wiki/
Fort_Phantom_Hill; Robert E. Lee in Texas by Carl
Coke Rister; John Hittson: Cattle King on the Texas and
Colorado Frontier by Vernon R. Maddux; Ranch Verses
by "Larry Chittenden"; and other Internet sites.

April 2015 NORTH TEXAS STAR Page 10

Not to mince words think

about cooking a mincemeat pie
By WYNELLE CAITLIN
Margaret Wampler and I have known
each other for a long time. We lived, with
our families, in Jacksboro. Our kids her
two sons and my two sons and two daughters went to school together. Her husband, Bill, was our mailman.
Both of us now live in Mineral Wells.
One day, Margaret said, Write about
mincemeat. It's a food from olden days
that people don't know much about. And
it's one of my favorites.
I hadn't thought about mincemeat in
years. My daughter, Karen, remembers her
grandmother cooking a huge hog's head in
a big pot. The meat from the hog's head
would be the main ingredient in mincemeat.
That brings up memories from my childhood of hog-slaughtering time. We lived
on a farm at Squaw Mountain, in Jack
County, where we grew and raised all our
food except salt, sugar and flour. A choice
pig was fed and fattened all year. First cold
snap when the temperature was supposed
to stay down through the winter, word was
sent out and friends and relatives came to
help with hog-killing.
The disemboweled carcass was strung
up on a sturdy limb of a large oak tree,
dipped in a barrel of boiling water before
the guys got busy with scraping knives to
remove all the hair. Ham and bacon were
cured with the skin on, and no one wanted
to eat a hair along with their breakfast
meat.
All parts of the hog were used. After the
hams and bacon were cut off and hung in
the smokehouse to cure, the rest of the
meat was trimmed with the meat scraps
going through a meat grinder, pepper and
spices added to make sausage. The fat was
put into big iron pots and rendered into
lard. Brains extracted to be scrambled with
eggs for breakfast, the feet were pickled.
The hog head was cooked whole, the
meat scraped off and used in making souse
or mincemeat.
To write about mincemeat for Margaret,
I delved into its history. Obviously the
name comes from mincing meat, or cutting

meat into small pieces. It is known that

making mincemeat began in England over
500 years ago. Cooking meat with dried
fruit and spices was a way to preserve it,
in pre-refrigeration days, without salting or
smoking. All meats were cooked in this
manner, but mutton was the one most often
used.
At that time minced meat was a main
course dish with more meat than fruit. It
was baked in a pastry shell, with pastry
across the top. Or it was spread on a pastry
circle with the pastry pulled over and
sealed. When need-be, pasties could be
carried around for lunches.
Some historical facts:
In the 11th century, when the
Crusaders brought a variety of oriental
spices back to England, more seasoning
was added to the minced meat dishes. It
became the custom to add some spices in
memory of the gifts brought by the Magi
to Baby Jesus. Mince pies became a part
of Christmas celebrations.
In 1413, King Henry V served a
mincemeat pie at his coronation.
In the 1500s, a cookbook gave the following instructions: To make Pyes: Pyes
of mutton or beif must be fyne mynced
and ceasoned wyth pepper and salte, and a
lyttle saffron to colour it, suet or marrow a
good quantite, a lyttle vyneger, prumes,
greate raysins and dates, take the fattest of
the broathe of powdred beyfe, and yf you
wyll have paest royall, take butter and yolkes of egges and so tempre the flowre to
make the paeste.
In 1657, Oliver Cromwell, the self-proclaimed Lord Protector of England detested Christmas as a pagan holiday (one not
sanctioned by the Bible that promoted
gluttony and drunkenness). His Puritan
Council abolished Christmas and soldiers
were ordered to go around the streets of
London and take, by force if necessary,
food being cooked for a Christmas celebration. The traditional mincemeat pie was
banned.
Cromwell's Puritan influence spread
across the Atlantic to the British Colonies

in America. In 1659 many towns in New

England banned mincemeat pies at
Christmas. From 1659 to 1681, Christmas
was banned in Massachusetts. Those celebrating it were fined.
Despite bannings, mincing meat and
combining it with dried fruit and spices
became popular again in the 1800s. In
1853, Elizabeth Lea in her book,
Domestic Cookery, said, When persons
have a large family, and workmen on a
farm, these pies are very useful. They
could be baked in large numbers and, more
importantly during cold weather, they
could be kept as long as two months.
Mincemeat could be made ahead and kept
even longer.
In 1909, a 92-pound mincemeat pie was
given to President Taft, delivered in an oak
case. In the early 1900s, a Yankee physician claimed that mincemeat pie was bad
for America's health. A New Orlean's
newspaper responded, The republican
dynasty in Washington may overthrow the
federal constitution, deny rights of the
states and pluck the stars from the blue
field of the national design, but the mince
pie will continue to be the nation's comfort
and pride.
Factories began making meatless mincemeat and that continues to be popular.
Margaret likes her mincemeat without
meat, but with lots and lots of raisins.

The following recipe is for

meatless mincemeat:
1 large orange
1 small lemon
1 15 oz. box of raisins
3 lbs. tart apples, cored
1-1/2 cups apple cider
3 cups brown sugar
1-1/2 t. salt
1-1/2 teaspoons each of cinnamon,
nutmeg and cloves
Using coarse blade force fruits through
food chopper with raisins and apples.
Add cider. Simmer for 15 minutes. Add
remaining ingredients and simmer for
20 minutes more or until thick.
Makes enough filling for three
9-inch pies.
A recipe for mincemeat with meat comes
from a cookbook my sister-in-law, Mollie,
and her twin sister, Dollie published:
1
1
1
2
1
1

lb. ground meat, cooked

lb. diced apples
cup vinegar
lbs. Raisins
cup brown sugar
cup sorgum syrup

Spices to taste. 1/2 t. cinnamon,

1/2 t. nutmeg, 1 t. allspice
Cook the meat. Mix apples, raisins,
spices and syrup in the vinegar. Mix
well with ground meat. Pack in jars
and seal.
To make pie take jar of mincemeat
and pour into an unbaked pie shell.
Lattice or cover top entirely as you wish.
Cook in oven at 350 degrees 35 to 40
minutes or until crust is browned.

April 2015 NORTH TEXAS STAR Page 11

This photo is from a University of Toronto collection taken from

an 1895 Canadian grocer's advertisement. The caption reads:
'The Best and Cheapest Mince Meat on Earth Price reduced to
$12.00 per gross, net. J. H. WETHEY,St. Catharines Ont.
Manufacturers by appointment to Her Majesty the
Queen,H.R.H. The Prince of Wales and the Army and Navy.'

Shop
Historic
Granbury

April 2015 NORTH TEXAS STAR Page 12

Palo Pinto County Historic and

WILDFLOWER TOUR
BY KATE NOWAK

2015 Palo Pinto County on Tour

Palo Pinto County Old Jail Museum

First Christian Church - Palo Pinto
Lovers Retreat
Worth Ranch
Rio Roca Chapel on the Brazos
Young at Hart Ranch
Johnson League Ranch
Johnson League Mausoleum
Old Belding Ranch House

HWY 254

HWY 281

GRAFORD

FM 4

HW
Y1
6

MINERAL
WELLS

4
3

BRAD

2 1

HWY 281

180

FM 919

y1

FM 4

HWY

80

Y1

HW

PALO PINTO

Hw

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.

8 7

SANTO

FM
4

STRAWN

GORDON

I- 20

Ah springtime! When a young mans fancy turns to history.

History? Really?
Well, maybe not every young mans thoughts are centered on history this time of year, but for those men and women who love and
appreciate the rich and fascinating history of the Palo Pinto
Mountains region, the spring of 2015 couldnt be more eagerly anticipated. Thats because this is when the Biennial Palo Pinto County
Historic and Wildflower Tour takes place. A one-day driving tour
hosted by the Palo Pinto County Historical Commission and featuring some of the areas most significant landmarks, along with breathtaking postcard-worthy landscapes.
It will all take place this year on Saturday, April 25th, beginning at
9 a.m. and lasting until 4 p.m. (with one exception that will be
explained later in this article) and youre cordially invited to join in
on the fun.
As with past tours offered by the commission, you will be free to
start at any point whether Abilene, Fort Worth, Dallas it does not
matter. For discussion's sake, let's assume you depart from Mineral
Wells and head west on U.S. Highway 180. Here is a quick peek at

April 2015 NORTH TEXAS STAR Page 13

the places of interest along the designated route:

Palo Pinto
Our first stop will be the Palo Pinto County Old Jail Museum
Complex in Palo Pinto. Constructed of native sandstone in 1882, the
jail housed the areas scalawags on its top floor for just shy of sixty
years. In 1940, when the current courthouse was built, a new jail was
constructed on its third floor, and the historical old jail building bid
farewell to its last prisoner. In years since, the Palo Pinto County
Historical Association has beautifully restored and operates the old
jail as a museum, offering visitors a glimpse of many of the interesting artifacts and memorabilia currently housed within its walls.
In addition to the jail, various other buildings from throughout Palo
Pinto County have been restored and added to the old history premises, among them log cabins and a carriage house.
One block to the west of the museum complex, take a look around
at the First Christian Church built in 1882 and rededicated in October
2010. It was first organized in 1857 in the home of Dr. Stephen S.
Taylor. Members later built the church building in 1882-83.
Leaving Palo Pinto, well next head west on U.S. 180, our destination
Lovers Retreat. One of the most scenic spots in the county, in its heyday
Lovers Retreat was a popular gathering place with regularly scheduled
outdoor rodeos and other entertainment venues designed to both draw and
please the crowds.
It was the rugged splendor of natures artwork, however, that garnered
the most visitors, with many coming to see for themselves the gigantic
stones hugging the banks of Eagle Creek, forming a network of crevasses, canyons and ledges along the creek bank.
While stories of its name abound, one particular legend tells of a young
Indian couple from rival tribes who chose the secluded area as a hiding
place from those who would separate them. With only the slightest mental nudge, it is easy to imagine such a couple living secretively and happily along the banks of the creek, settling each night around the twisting
curl of smoke rising from their evening campfire.
Gordon-Strawn
Dont get too comfortable around your mental campfire, though, for
there are other places along the tour that will just as easily spark your
imagination and carry you back to times long past. Our next stop is one
of them. So lets head west for a few miles and then turn south down FM
Road 919 toward Gordon. Its time to pay a visit to the Johnson League
Ranch.
William Whipple Johnson and his brother Harvey came to Palo Pinto
County from Michigan in 1878, lured to the area by the building of the
railroad and the promise of new enterprise. Together the brothers settled
in a small community of settlers that would eventually become Strawn.
There they established a successful business selling cedar post to the
westward-advancing Texas Pacific Railroad. Having come west to seek
their fortunes, the brothers truly found it when, a few years after coming
to the area, William discovered coal in the southwestern corner of the
county while out scouting for new sources of cedar. He and his brother
quickly bought up all the land in the area they could get hold of and
diversified their business interests to include coal mining. Their fortune
was not quite big enough, however, and eventually the brothers were
forced to sell the bulk of their mining operation because of lack of operating capital. Along with this reversal of fortune and the feeling that hed
been duped into the sale by those he had hoped would invest, Johnsons
life was soon marred by far greater tragedy when, within the span of a
few short years, he lost his brother and his two young children.
continued on page 14

April 2015 NORTH TEXAS STAR Page 14

In 1905, following the death of his second child, Johnson purchased a

league (4,428 acres) north of Gordon, where he and his wife then moved and
where he hoped to build a community large enough to rival Thurber, the company town built by his business nemesis, Robert Dickey Hunter. Though his
hope never materialized, Johnson remained both a successful businessman
and rancher throughout the remainder of his life. He was the first importer of
white tail deer to the area, keeping the animals in high fenced game preserve.
Ironically, today, the present owners of the ranch also manage a wild and
exotic game preserve on the property, so at least a part of Johnsons vision for
the property lives on.
No visit to the Johnson League Ranch would be complete without first
stopping by the Johnson League Mausoleum, the history of which speaks to
both the love of parent for child and the heartbreak of loss. As previously
mentioned, William and his wife Anna lost both of their children to disease
prior to moving from their home in Strawn to Johnsons League.
Preceded in death by her husband, when Anna Johnson died in 1922, she
left specific instructions detailing the building of a stone mausoleum, which
was to house the bodies of herself, her husband and their two children. She
specified that once the bodies were placed inside, the building was to be forever sealed shut. Today it remains a silent reminder of a time gone by and the
deep and lasting mark William Whipple Johnson and his wife made on this
land.
From the Johnson League, we will circle down through Gordon, Mingus
and Strawn located on the southern edge of the county and then head north
along Highway 16 to the historic Belding Ranch.
Henry Belding arrived in Palo Pinto County in the late-1850s, settling on
the prairie west of Palo Pinto in an abandoned cabin. Numerous generations
of Beldings have occupied the family ranch house that has grown like topsy
over the years since Henry Belding first settled here. Though family members
of each generation have added on, the little one room cabin that Henry and his
wife first moved into back in 1859 still remains at the homes core.
As you drive past the entrance gate and follow the road to the ranch house,
youll notice both split rail and rock fences along the way, much of the latter
built by an itinerate fence builder fittingly named John Rock. He and his family traveled throughout the area by wagon building sturdy rock fences wherever they were hired to do so. Some of the finest examples of his work can
still be seen on the Belding Ranch.
Leaving the Belding Ranch, our next stop is just outside the town of
Graford, where well get a chance to say howdy to the folks at the Young at
Hart Ranch aka Young Ranch at Flat Rock Crossing. Headquartered at what
was once the Hart Ranch, the property is owned and maintained today by Jim
and Pam Young, who stay busy restoring and preserving its history.
In its early days, raising and selling horses to the United States Cavalry was
the Hart Ranchs primary source of income. Today, old buildings restored to
their former glory continue to tell its fascinating story. A large hand-hewn
cedar and rock barn is still standing, along with a log cabin built in the mid1800s. Currently furnished with period pieces, the downstairs of the cabin
was originally used to house livestock. A pit intentionally dug in front of the
cabin once provided shelter for animals whenever marauding Indians were on
the attack, giving those inside an advantageous firing line above the animals
backs. Behind the barn, old rock fences built in the late 1800's and similar to
those found on the Belding Ranch can be seen and are still functional today.
Alongside Keechi Creek, which runs through the property. is a deep, springfed pond that was once used as a baptismal pool. And for those who once visited the ranch seeking solace of a less spiritual nature, there is also a moonshiners shack, constructed during Prohibition in one of the ranchs more
densely wooded areas, away from prying eyes. Many bottles and artifacts of
continued on page 15

April 2015 NORTH TEXAS STAR Page 15

that period are currently on display in the shack and tell

more of the ranchs unique and colorful history.
From the Young Ranch, were heading back through
Graford and south down Highway 4 toward Palo Pinto.
Our first stop along this road will be Rio Roca Ranch,
approximately six miles south of Graford. Be certain
you arrive at Rio Roca between the hours of 10 a.m.
and 2 p.m. as these are the only hours they will have the
gates open for the tour.
In 2010, the Rio Roca Chapel was built on a limestone bluff overlooking the scenic, winding Brazos
River.It is located on a working red Angus cattle
ranch.Maurice Jennings, a noted architect, and his son,
Walter, designed the structure. The chapel is constructed
of limestone, steel, wood and glass, creating a breathtaking design.The chapel is 1,080 square feet, and will
seat approximately 75 people.It is a private facility used
for cultural, artistic and spiritual enrichment.Since its
completion, the chapel has received multiple awards
including the 2011 AISC IDEAS2 national award; the
2011 Merit Award fromFaith & FormMagazine; and
the 2012 Honors Citation award from the AIA Gulf
States Region.
A bit of Texas history is said to have occurred on this
site.Comanche Indian Chief Peta Nocona came through
Palo Pinto County in the early 1860s, on his last raid on

the settlers.He reportedly stole 600 of their horses,

which led to the Battle of Pease River.To commemorate
this historical event, the Trail of the Iron Ponies was
constructed.It is an amazing series of life-size art installations of horses by noted artists across the U.S., constructed along a two-mile stretch of road leading up to
the Rio Roca Chapel.
Leaving Rio Roca, our next stop will be a few more
miles down the road at the historic Worth Ranch Boy
Scout Ranch. The Boy Scouts of America bought the
land for Worth Ranch in 1929, and every year since
then, Worth Ranch has been the summer camping
ground for thousands of scouts and their leaders, making it one of the oldest Boy Scout camps in the entire
state. Rock brought in by horse-drawn wagons was used
to construct many of the buildings still standing on the
property today, and restoration of many of the 85 year
old buildings has been ongoing for the past two
decades. An old log cabin on the property still holds a
special place in the hearts of many campers who have
stayed at Worth Ranch over the years.
According to the late county historian and long-time
Palo Pinto County Tax Assessor, John Winters, cowboys
working in the area used to hunt wolves on Kyle
Mountain, which is located on Worth Ranch property.
The cowboys viewed the wolf hunts as a delightful time

of socializing, since most of them worked on isolated

ranches and rarely saw one another. In a much earlier
era, evidence suggests Caddo and Wichita Indians built
straw hut settlements on the flat mountain top where
they planted crops such as gourds and hunted the unlimited deer and buffalo in the area. In later years, the more
nomadic Comanche were often known to camp in the
area, as well.
That wraps up our look at the 2015 Palo Pinto County
Historic and Wildflower Tour. Tickets cost $15 per adult
and $5.00 for children, ages 6-15. While most of the
tour is open from 9 a.m. until 4 p.m., the one exception
is Rio Roca Ranch, which will have its gates open from
10 a.m. until 2 p.m. You may start your tour at any of
the eight locations along the way and proceed as you
wish as a tour map will be provided to you on tour day.
Tickets are available for purchase at the various tour
stops on the day of the event and advance tickets can
be purchased at the Mineral Wells Area Chamber
Office.
For tour questions, call the Possum Kingdom Lake
Chamber Office from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday
through Friday at 940-779-2424.
For more information about the history of Palo
Pinto County and this years tour, visit www.palopintohistory.com.

April 2015 NORTH TEXAS STAR Page 16

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AVI T. DESHMUKH, M.D., F.A.C.S., MBA, MHA

Board Certified Urologist
Dr. Deshmukh is a Fellow of the American College of
Surgeons, and received an MBA from Texas Womens
University in 2009. He recently received his second MBA in
Health Administration at Texas Womens and an MHA in
2012.
He is a member of the American Medical Association,
Texas Medical Association, and American Association of
Clinical Urologists.

Womens clinical services provided by Dr. Deshmukh and his staff are:
Incontinence
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1021 Holden St., Glen Rose 76043
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2003 Rockview Dr., Granbury 76049
561 N. Graham St., Stephenville 76401
Appointments Call: 817-599-3690
www.ncturology.com

April 2015 NORTH TEXAS STAR Page 18

April 2015 NORTH TEXAS STAR Page 19

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April 2015 NORTH TEXAS STAR Page 20