Tip Seay, who had been a Confederate soldier, was living on Palo Pinto Creek, about one and one-half miles north of the present town of Santo. During 1866, he lived where the citizens had "Forted-up" for mutual protection, and commonly called "White's Town, and Burnet's Street, Stubblefield's Fort, and Nothing to Eat." Tip Seay, who had married a daughter of Bennie Fulkerson, another resident of this citizens fort, had one child nine days old. Several of the boys had gone to Weatherford to mill, and taken all of the guns. The Indians had stolen Tip Seay's horse. So on the first day of June, 1866, contrary to the wishes of his people, Tip Seay, who was riding a black horse he was breaking for Wm. Porter of Parker County, started to the Rhodes Settlement, in Erath County, to purchase, if possible, another pony. Seay left home about the middle of the week, and told his people he would return the following Sunday. Saturday night, however, news reached his family, that this frontier citizen had never arrived at the Rhodes Settlement. Mr. and Mrs. Adam Bleeker, and their sons George and Calvin, were going to the Mill. They observed unusual Indian signs and Mr. Bleeker remarked that something was wrong. The Indian trail was then followed a short distance. These frontier citizens soon discovered the corpse of Tipton Seay. They were among the first, if not the first to find him. Shortly afterwards, his father, Michael Seay, who was with a searching party, found Tip about one mile south of the Bosley Home, and about six miles southeast of Santo, where he had been slain by the savages. Signs disclosed the Indians ran him about three hundred yards before he was caught and killed. But the Indians failed to capture his horse. A grave was dug with sharp sticks. Tip Seay was buried where he was found. But in later years. J.C. Cox, of Santo, and others, who belonged to his company during the confederacy, removed his remains to the Cox Graveyard, in Parker County. Note: Author interviewed Mrs. W.J. Langley, a sister of Tip Seay; Geo. Hill, who broke the black horse of Wm. Porter, which the Indians failed to recover; W.J. Langley; Jas. Newberry; C.R. Bradford; Woodbury Draves, and others who lived in this section at the time. The above story is from the book, The West Texas Frontier, by Joseph Carroll McConnell. |
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