The
Bushwhacker
Part I of II
By: Dusty Williams
One
cannot mention the term “western” and not
think within
the first few seconds, “Josey Wales.” A
classic film with the famed, Mr.
Eastwood, creates for a legacy in the media
market that will continue to speak
to people, especially those of the south.
However, the tale of Josey Wales
connects more with north Texas, Van Alstyne in
particular, than many of us may
know.
Some
sources state that the story of Josey Wales
was written
and based upon the life of Bushwhacker William
“Bill” Wilson. He was referred
to as “The Bushwhacker” or “The Great
Bushwhacker.” He was most probably the
most notorious of all other men like him. Some
say he ran with men like
Quantrill, Jesse James, The Younger gang, Dick
Kitchen and Anthony Wright and
it is said that when he was with them he was
in charge, leading all of
Quantrill’s men on several occasions, this
according to a 1938 biography
written about him.
Bill Wilson
Born
around the year 1830, he was a native to
Phelps County,
Missouri, an area deep within the Ozarks.
Before the war he had been married
and throughout his life, no matter what he was
doing, he remained a family man
to his four children and wife. He stood six
feet, two inches and weighed 185
pounds with thick locks of black curly hair.
Light skinned and light blue eyes,
he normally wore a short beard. He was
charismatic and enjoyed playing the
violin at local get-togethers. He remarked
that his three best friends were his
two 44’s and his horse. A classic countryman,
he had two known horses. The
first was called “Dime” because the horse had
a dime shape on its forehead.
When the horse went lame, The Bushwhacker set
him free to the hills and he
could be seen from time to time. The other
faithful companion was a horse
named, “Bullet” – named so for his incredible
speed. He was a well-trained
horse, as all of Wilson’s horses were, and
would come to Bill the moment he
whistled.
Bill
and his three friends roamed the Ozarks
throughout the
Civil War making terror for the Union and Red
Legs whenever they could.
Originally Bill, like his home state of
Missouri, was neutral and chose neither
the Union nor Confederate. After being wrongly
accused of horse theft, his
family was thrown from their house while he
was away and the structure was set
afire. From this moment on, Bill made it his
goal to make hell for the
Government and Union forces. Keeping to the
hills he would see his family and
friends when he was able and did what he could
to help them, all the while
leaving the bodies of Unionist and spies
across the countryside. So good a marksman
was he that it is said he would draw out his
double 44’s while amount and
charge toward a tree, firing at it as he went
around it. When he was done,
there was a perfect ring around the tree from
his target practice. These rings
were found around trees long after his
disappearance.
After
the war, Missouri was still full of unrest and
bodies
continued to emerge throughout the area. The
great cleanup of Bushwhackers came
in 1868. Bill moved his family to a new piece
of land nearby and bid them
farewell as he headed for Texas. There are not
many accounts as to what Bill
did over the next year, however if he had rode
with Quantrill and his men at
other times, it is likely he came to Sherman
where some of these men were known
to have resided. Grayson County was full of
Missouri migrants, especially
during this time period.
Recently,
a story has emerged that Bill Wilson was
murdered
near Van Alsyne and buried in a shallow grave
somewhere nearby. The McKinney
Examiner reported to the Galveston Flakes
Daily Bulletin on February 7, 1869 as
follows: “Horrible
murder and robbery of
a Missourian - One of the foulest murders and
robberies in the annals of crime
was committed on last Sunday evening in the
southern portion of Grayson County,
a few miles north of Mantua in this county, a
stranger from North Missouri,
entirely unknown in this section, being the
victim, whose name is yet a
mystery.” The Georgetown Watchman reported
on April 17, 1869 that “On the
discovery of the body of the murdered Wilson,
great excitement prevailed on the
suspicion falling on the two men, Blackmore
and Thompson.”
Accounts
state that Mr. Wilson was driving to McKinney
with
a wagon load of apples which he sold. At the
drug store of Foote & Herndon
Wilson exchanged gold for currency, a total of
$600. It was revealed later, in
some newspaper accounts, that Blackmore and
Thompson were preparing to rob the
drug store, however when they witnessed the
before mentioned transaction they
decided to take their chances in robbing
Wilson. Mr. Wilson headed back north
and stayed the night with Col. Wilmeth. The
next day he continued north and was
gunned down by the two men north of Mantua
near present day, Van Alstyne. Some
reports state that Wilson had seven bullet
holes, supposedly all that entered
him through his back, while other accounts
state there were only two gunshot
wounds, one in the head and one in the right
side.
The
Galveston Flakes continued by
saying: “The firing, which
occurred between two and three o’clock in
the afternoon was heard throughout
the neighborhood, and the body of the
murdered man was found off the main road
about a quarter of a mile, just before
sundown. His saddle-bags, memoranda book
and all his money had been carried off by
the murderers. Citizens to the number
of two or three hundred were summoned to the
spot, and everyone was required
under oath to prove his whereabouts on
Sunday, at the hour of the shooting was
heard, but this through investigation failed
to throw any light on the track of
the murderers. Determined to bring the
perpetrators of so foul a murder to
justice, scouts were sent in various
directions. Two young men named Wm.
Blackmore, formerly of Carroll County,
Missouri, and John Thompson, formerly of
Barry County, Missouri, were arrested and
they are now lodged in jail at this place
(McKinney), awaiting an examination on the
charge of murdering the traveler.
The murdered man is supposed to have had
with him between $2500 and $3500 in
gold and currency.”
