Trials of the Trinity

By Bob Balch

In this, his fifth book, Bob returns to historical fiction with the story of a young Keechie Indian thrust into the world of the white man following his capture during a historic battle on the upper West Fork of the Trinity River. He falls in love with an Irish beauty who has emigrated from Ireland with her family, and who brings with her a great secret entrusted to her by the head of the McMalley clan. Their love story is one of the many stories of life on the Trinity in the 19th century. Bob hopes you learn as much about this great river as he did in writing this book, and that you will be entertained as you turn its pages.

• Language: English
• Publisher: AuthorHouse
• Release date: May 14, 2009
• ISBN: 9781467844369

Bob Balch

Bob is a native of Seymour, Baylor County, Texas, where he was born in 1947. Being a baby boomer and growing up in the post World War II era, he enjoyed the slow pace of small town America. He spent many leisurely days roaming the areas around his hometown with his friends. This included frequent trips to the Brazos River to hike, swim, seine for minnows, hunt, and trap game. Lake Kemp was another favorite spot for boating, swimming, water skiing, fishing, duck hunting, camping, and for just hanging out with friends. Between Seymour and Lake Kemp he enjoyed outings with his scouting buddies, and two of their favorite spots were the Craddock Ranch and the old George Place. It was on the Craddock Ranch that the famous Permian era bone bed was first discovered in the late 1800s which has attracted much attention from the scientific community down through the years. As a Boy Scout, Bob learned about these discoveries and even did some fossil hunting himself. He earned the Eagle Scout award along side his friends, Bill Whitley and Ken George, the current owners of the Craddock Ranch and the George Place, respectively. Bob graduated from Seymour High School in 1965 and went on to Baylor University in Waco, Texas, where he earned a BBA and JD degrees in 1971. He took a geology course as an undergraduate, and the field trips during that course brought back memories of his experiences on the Craddock Ranch and the old George Place. Now over forty years later serving as a director of the Whiteside Museum of Natural History in Seymour, his interest in this bone bed has been renewed. This eighth book, D-Don Lives! is his tribute to his hometown and the people who have made this story come to life. Bob has lived in Wichita Falls, Texas, since 1974 with his wife, Deborah Ann, where they raised two sons, Trey and Josh, both of whom are doctors who practice medicine in both Texas and Alaska in the fields of physiatry (physical medicine and rehabilitation) and interventional pain management. Bob practices law in Wichita Falls but maintains close contacts with his hometown about an hour away where his mother still resides at the age of 97. He hopes the readers of this book learn some history of the area and enjoy this tale of dimetrodons. A lot has transpired since I first started writing this book in 2014 and completing in 2015 with revisions through 2017. Many new specimens have been found and assembled for research, education of the public and study. New dig sites are opening up for study including the Ross Place owned by Joe Clay Ross. We appreciate the opportunities provided by all of the landowners in allowing us access to these sites. The future is bright for the Whiteside Museum of Natural History that has become a world class museum in the City of Seymour, Baylor County, Texas, my hometown which I am proud to say I grew up in and continue to visit regularly.

Book preview

TRIALS OF THE

TRINITY

BOB BALCH

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AuthorHouse™

1663 Liberty Drive

Bloomington, IN 47403

www.authorhouse.com

Phone: [phone]

This book is a work of fiction. People, places, events, and situations are the product of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or historical events, is purely coincidental.

© 2009 Bob Balch. All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means without the written permission of the author.

First published by AuthorHouse 5/7/2009

ISBN: 978-1-4389-7228-2 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4678-4436-9 (ebk)

Printed in the United States of America

Bloomington, Indiana

The author began this book on August 21, 2006, and has worked on it in 2006, 2007, 2008, and 2009, completing the manuscript in January of 2009. Your author learned a tremendous amount of history about the Trinity River; the events that occurred in its watershed, and the pioneers who tamed this frontier.

Contents

DEDICATION

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

ON THE COVERS

I.

EARLY VISITORS TO THE AREA

II.

THE WATERSHED

III.

THE WEST FORK OF THE TRINITY/THE CONFLUENCE

IV.

"THE FRENCH TRADING POST/TWIN VILLAGES

V.

THE SCOUT/TOMMIE TWINKILLER

VI.

THE BATTLE OF THE STONE HOUSES

VII.

A MILITARY PRESENCE

VIII.

THE WARREN MASSACRE

IX.

THE TRIAL OF THREE CHIEFS

X.

THE SOJOURN AT FORT GRIFFIN ON THE BRAZOS

XI.

THE CIVIL WAR MINING VENTURE

XII.

COWTOWN/PANTHER CITY

XIII.

THE ELM FORK OF THE TRINITY

XIV.

BIG ‘D’ & DEEP EL’M

XV.

COMMERCE ON THE TRINITY

XVI.

ALL THE WAY TO ANAHUAC

XVII.

GUIDING ‘EM TO THE TRINITY VALLEY

XVIII.

OLE’ DOC PRIDEAUX

XIX.

PEACE FINALLY COMES

XX.

WEALTH OF THE TRINITY

XXI.

WHAT DOES THE FUTURE HOLD

This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, institutions, and incidents either are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or locales or institutions or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental. Various people who had actual lives in history appear through this fictional story, and their fates in this story are entirely invented.

DEDICATION 

I DEDICATE THIS BOOK TO the pioneering spirit of all the different ethnic groups of people who settled in Texas in the 19th century, and all the hardships they faced, and especially the European immigrants who settled on the Brazos, Trinity and Wichita Rivers of North Texas. Finally, I pay tribute to the American Indian tribes who fought valiantly to save their way of life only to fall victim to the axiom known as Manifest Destiny and the western migration of the peoples of the United States of America. I also dedicate this book to my friends who I incorporate into this story. I won’t embarrass you by naming you here, but you will recognize yourself wandering through the pages of this story. Thank you for your encouragement and your friendship.

Bob Balch,

Wichita Falls,

Texas, 1-7-09

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS 

I’LL HAVE TO ADMIT THAT I didn’t know much of the history of this great Trinity River of Texas when I began my research for this book. I love the rivers of Texas, and this is my fourth book with stories centered on a river. Previously, the Brazos, Red and Wichita were my rivers of interest. I mentioned this book to my friend, Craig Newcomb, who is in my Sunday School Class at the First Baptist Church of Wichita Falls, Texas. Craig said he had a book about Archer County that was a wealth of information on the Trinity River, and he loaned it to me for my research. Craig was right. It is entitled Trails Through Archer written by Jack Loftin in cooperation with The Archer County Historical Commission. This is a great book, and I recommend it to anyone interested in the history of this area. I salute the authors for this fine publication. I also want to thank Richard Prideaux, a descendant of Dr. R. O. Prideaux, who visited with me about the area and his family. Thanks to our mutual friend, Ed Covington, who owns property in the area and shared his experiences with me. Other useful information about cities on the Trinity, and Fort Richardson, Fort Griffin, Fort Worth, Fort Belknap, and Fort Sill were found by way of Internet search as was information about the Keechie, Comanche and Kiowa Indian tribes. Tommie Twinkiller’s sojourn