Ben & John Caruthers; Lim Vaughan

Ben & John Caruthers, Lim Vaughan and Four or Five Others Encounter Indians

Shortly after the close of the Civil War, and during the summer or early fall of 1865, Ben and John Caruthers, Lim Vaughan, and four or five others, were cow-hunting between the Big and Little Keechi, about three miles south of the present town of Graford in Palo Pinto County, when they accidentally came in contact with about ten Indians. The cowmen were armed with cap and ball six-shooters and the Indians with their bows and arrows. As usual the savages fled, and were pursued by the citizens.

When the Indians realized they were going to be overtaken, they stopped near some trees and made a stand. During the fighting, one of the cowboys quickly dodged when he saw an Indian shoot an arrow toward him. This arrow passed on and mortally wounded Ben Caruthers, a young man about nineteen years of age. The cowmen then made a retreat, Ben Caruthers lived only a very short time. He was buried in the Bevers Graveyard, on Big Keechi, about three miles nearly northeast of Graford.

Note: Author personally interviewed: Mrs. Mary Jane (Bevers) Taylor, A.M. Lasater, Martin Jane, James Wood, and others who lived in Palo Pinto and adjoining counties at the time.

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