Cynthia Ann Parker: The Story of Her Capture at the Massacre of the Inmates of Parker's Fort; of Her Quarter of a Century Spent Among the Comanches, as the Wife of the War Chief, Peta Nocona; and of Her Recapture at the Battle of Pease River, by Captain L. S. Ross, of the Texian Rangers — John Shaqi
Cynthia Ann Parker: The Story of Her Capture at the Massacre of the Inmates of Parker's Fort; of Her Quarter of a Century Spent Among the Comanches, as the Wife of the War Chief, Peta Nocona; and of Her Recapture at the Battle of Pease River, by Captain L. S. Ross, of the Texian RangersDeShields, James T.
History
Cynthia Ann Parker: The Story of Her Capture at the Massacre of the Inmates of Parker's Fort; of Her Quarter of a Century Spent Among the Comanches, as the Wife of the War Chief, Peta Nocona; and of Her Recapture at the Battle of Pease River, by Captain L. S. Ross, of the Texian Rangers
DeShields, James T.
Comanche Indians -- History; Indian captivities -- Texas; Parker, Cynthia Ann, 1827?-1864; Parker, Quanah, 1845?-1911; Ross, Lawrence Sullivan, 1838-1898
The Faulkenberrys, Lunn, with Mrs. Parker and children, secreted
themselves in a small creek bottom, some distance from the first party,
each unconcious of the other’s whereabouts.
At twilight Abraham Anglin and Evan Faulkenberry started back to the
fort to succor the wounded and those who might have escaped. On their
way, and just as they were passing Faulkenberry’s cabin, Anglin saw
his first and only ghost. He says, “It was dressed in white with long,
white hair streaming down its back. I admit that I was worse scared at
this moment than when the Indians were yelling and charging us. Seeing
me hesitate, my ghost now beckoned me to come on. Approaching the
object it proved to be old Granny Parker, whom the Indians had wounded
and stripped, with the exception of her underwear. She had made her way
to the house from the fort by crawling the entire distance. I took some
bed clothing, and carrying her some distance from the house, made her a
bed, covered her up and left her until we should return from the fort.
On arriving at the fort we could not see a single individual alive
or hear a human sound. But the dogs were barking, the cattle lowing,
the horses neighing and the hogs squealing, making a hideous and
strange meadly of sounds. Mrs. Parker had told me where she had left
some silver, $106.50. This I found under a hickory bush by moonlight.
Finding no one at the fort we returned to where I had hid Granny
Parker. On taking her up behind me, we made our way back to our hiding
place in the bottom, where we found Nixon, whom we had not seen since
his cowardly flight at the time he was rescued by Faulkenberry from the
Indians.”[4]
[4]--In the book published by James W. Parker on pages ten and
eleven, he states that Nixon liberated Mrs. Parker from the
Indians and rescued old Granny Parker. Mr. Anglin, in his
account contradicts, or rather corrects this statement. He
says: “I positively assert that this is a mistake and I am
willing to be qualified to the statement I here make and can
prove the same by Silas H. Bates, now living near Graesbeck.”
On the next morning, Bates, Anglin and E. Faulkenberry went back to
the fort to get provisions and horses and to look after the dead. On
reaching the fort they found five or six horses, a few saddles and some
meal, bacon and honey. Fearing an attack from the red devils who might
still be lurking around, they left without burying the dead. Returning
to their comrades in the bottom, they all concealed themselves until
the next night, when they started through the woods to Fort Houston,
which place they reached without material suffering.
Fort Houston, an asylum on this as on many other occasions, stood on
what has been for many years the farm of a wise statesman, a chivalrous
soldier and a true patriot--John H. Reagan--two miles west of Palestine.
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