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By ED SYERS Despite her extraordinary career and your good salvage ef forts, Texas Revolution’s Steam boat Yellow Stone remains Ghost Ship No. 1 on OBT’s registry. Hear, among others, Houston’s Mrs. Sarah FE, Horton, Orange’s M. W., Fort Worth’s Elwood Tay lor and Landon A. Freear. The twin-stacked, 130-foot ri verboat was built in 1831 for John J. Astor’s northwest fur trade, startled Mandan Sioux on the upper Missouri, far as the Yellowstone mouth. By 1834, her too-deep-for-white water draft had her primarily on the lower Mississippi, newly owned, New Year’s Eve, 1835, she stood out from New Orleans, Tom Gray son skipper, Texas-bound with a detachment of young Mobile Grays, destined for Fannin and Goliad. She stayed Texian, working the Brazos, was at Grace’s Land ing (near Hempstead) March 31, when Sam Houston command eered her to put his San Jacin to-bound troops across within two weeks and had her working down river against the flood of river and Runaway refugees. Finally, she ran Mexican gunfire and at tempts literally to rope her from the bank, made Brazos’ mouth, and started guns for Galveston and a battle somewhere above it, already won. Her San Jacinto cargo then shifted to President David Bur nett’s entourage, to talk treaty with captured Santa Anna. Back down Buffalo Bayou, she car ried that beaten general, finally to Velasco moorage. It was aboard Yellow Stone, Texas In dependence was treaty-signed. Not yet ready for routine river cargo, she would, in six months carry Stephen F. Austin’s body as best a young Republic could convey its Father to Peach Point burial. For a time thereafter, Yellow Stone labored the Brazos, Quin tana mouth to Washington rou tine cargo, taking her boiler firewood from riverbank, , ,late as 1837. Then, in record and re gistry, she disappeared. No one yet has reported her fate. This ship? Yellow Stone, who tried for Fannin, made it for Houston, brought Santa Anna back, housed freedom’s signing, and finally made last voyage with Stephen Austin? Old skippers wouldn’t have forgotten this ship. Records, maybe, “but not ship’s captains. Somewhere, attic or archive, there’s a letter or scrap of pa per that tells Yellow Stone’s end. It shouldn’t be ghost ship. Long Shot: Longest true shot known here abouts, OBT carried some years ago: Billy Dixon’s near-mile bullseye with a Sharps Big Fifty at Adobe Walls on the far high plains. But tale tops incide Via Midland’s T. J. Chapman, here’s a surveyor - handed - down yarn for any marksman. In Guadalupe Mountain coun try, up Carlsbad way, a white bearded prospector told rail road surveyors too many stories of long shots he’d made for an telope. He could fire, light a smoke, then watch his quarry drop. Exactingly busy surveyors tired of it, determined to cure the old man. He found them soak ing cartridges in salt water when suppertime came, ‘“‘Well I never,” said the old man, ‘‘seen anybody soak bullets in salt water, How come?” ‘We've got a hunter,” retort ed Surveyor Paul McCombs, ‘“‘He kills his game so far away that, unless we salt the bullets, the meat spoils before we can get 16. it, Mailbox Family Circle; Austin’s Mrs. John C. Swi cord, 6809 Columbia Dr.; ‘‘My great grandfather, William F. Dyer, born Dundee Scotland, died at Coalville (Palo Pinto Co. ghost) Feb. 28, 1885. Mr. Dyer, in the barber’s chair at Coalville, got in a heated argument with the bar ber who allegedly cut his throat. My question: Who was the bar ber? Was he prosecuted? Does anyone have pictures of old Coal ville? (Note: Whew!) Pat McKenna, 108 £, 17th St., Apr. 3-F, New York, N.Y.: ‘John Jordan, b, 1817, Tennessee, fought at Siege of Bexar, mar ried (by 1840) Minerva A. Pfi fer (b, Alabama, 1826.) Family lived at Head’s Prairie, Lime stone Co., from 1850 to 1875, moved to Mason. Children were Mannin, Lucinda, Joseph, James Matt, Matilda (Tildy, married to D. F. Cain, Mason, 1878), Jane Elizabeth (my grandmoth er), and John Erwin (b. near Bremond, Sept. 10, 1864, mar ried Hattie Francis at Roswell, N.M.). Two brothers died of men ingitis, two at Gettysburgh; one girl killed by Indians, John and Minerva Jordan died circa 13)) at neighbor J. D. Perry’s, Camp San Saba. Trying to trace the Pfifers, or Pfifers need help; am from Tyler, not New York. (Note: Now you understand the extra length for this Texan, Can you help?)
Newspaper Details
Kerrville Daily Times
Kerrville, Texas, US
Thu, Sep 14, 1967
Page 2
Full Page
Clipped by
Amy B.
TX, USA 02 Jun 2026
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