During the March raids of 1860, the Indians stole horses of Wm. Jenkins, who ranched in Mills County, about one and half miles east of Center City. Early the next morning, Mr. Jenkins and John Wills trailed the Indians eight miles to the northeast, and found them in camp on the top of a mountain. The horses, however, were not in sight. There were five Indians in this camp. John Willis had broken his gun. But Jenkins soon killed one of the warriors, and wounded another. He picked up a gun lying in the Indian camp and shot a third Indian. The other two then ran away. After recovering one of Mr. Jenkin's horses, and some trophies of war, the two citizens started toward the east. But they had gone only about two hundred yards, when Jenkins and Wellis met a large band of Indians. A running fight followed with the two whites in the lead. The citizens only fired when it became necessary to hold back the enemy. The Indians finally turned and rode away. Shortly afterwards, however, Wm. Jenkins discovered he had been seriously wounded. He died two days later. The first fight happened in a post oak grove on the mountain about two and a half miles northeast of the present town of Star. Ref.: B.F. Gholson, of Evant, Vital Statistics of the U.S. Census for 1860. The above story is from the book, The West Texas Frontier, by Joseph Carroll McConnell. |
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