Legends of the Old West - FRANK HAMER Ep. 1 | “The Kid from Wilson County”

Episode Date: January 6, 2021

As a young man, Frank Hamer hones his skills as a tracker and a marksman, and uses them to catch horse thieves and earn himself a spot in the prestigious Texas Rangers. Join Black Barrel+ for bingeable seasons with no commercials: blackbarrel.supportingcast.fm/join For more details, visit our website www.blackbarrelmedia.com and check out our social media pages. We’re @OldWestPodcast on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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Visit amex.ca slash yamex. Benefits vary by card. Other conditions apply. Ten Texas Rangers trained their guns on the Sharp House, a brothel on the northern outskirts of Del Rio, Texas. It was December 1st, 1906, and the Rangers had the place surrounded. Captain Rogers ordered all the ladies to come out. The Rangers knew their man was inside, and they were going to take him tonight. That man was Ed Putnam. He was a horse thief and a killer to boot. It was two weeks ago that he arrived in Del Rio under the name A.R. Sibley. Now, as ever,

Putnam had left a trail of frauds and bodies in his wake, but this was the end of the line. Sheriff John Robinson was growing impatient. For 30 minutes now, it had been more of a standstill than a standoff. Then the sheriff finally ordered his men to open fire. Putnam survived the volley and took cover in the rear of the house. But now he was in a tight spot. He had guns on him from all sides. Escape was impossible. But he couldn't just sit there. They were giving Putnam hell and he needed to give some back. So he went to the window and lined up his shot. He pulled back the curtain with the barrel of his revolver, and just as he did, a bullet nailed him beneath his left eye.

It severed his jugular and exited through his shoulder. Ed Putnam fell dead, and the ranger who did the job was a new recruit, a young, dead-eyed shot named Frank Hamer. merch. And organizing that was made both possible and easy with Shopify. Shopify is the global commerce platform that helps you sell and grow at every stage of your business. From the launch your online shop stage, all the way to the did we just hit a million orders stage. Whether you're selling scented soap or offering outdoor outfits, Shopify helps you sell everywhere. They have an all-in-one e-commerce platform and in-person POS system. So wherever and whatever you're selling, Thank you. also the global force behind Allbirds, Rothy's, and Brooklinen, and millions of other entrepreneurs of every size across 175 countries.

Because businesses that grow, grow with Shopify. Sign up for a $1 per month trial period at shopify.com slash realm, all lowercase. Go to shopify.com slash r-e-a-l-M now to grow your business no matter what stage you're in. Shopify.com slash realm. From Black Barrel Media, this is Legends of the Old West. I'm your host, Chris Wimmer. In this season, we're telling a four-part story about the historic career of Texas Ranger Frank Hamer. This is Episode 1, The Kid from Wilson County.

Francis Augustus Hamer was born in Fairview, Texas on March 17, 1884, to Franklin Hamer and Lou Emma Francis. The elder Frank was from all over, having been born in Missouri and moving between Ohio, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia. He came to Texas by way of the Army after enlisting in 1874 and being stationed at Fort Clark, just north of the U.S.-Mexico border. He received a medical discharge just five months into his enlistment and moved to Fairview, where he courted Lou. The two got married in 1881, and just ten months later they had their first boy, Dennis Estill Hamer. Then, in 1884, came their second son, Francis. And then came all the rest, Sanford, Harrison, Mary Grace, Patience, called Pat, Alma, and Flavius. Alma, and Flavius.

Lou and Franklin were family people, but Franklin had never lost his proclivity for moving around. In the years that they were having and raising their children, the Hamers moved twice. First from Fairview to Bend when Frank was six, and then from Bend to Oxford when he was ten. That's where they would settle for years, in the Texas Hill Country, on the road from Lano to Fredericksburg.

Frank's father opened a blacksmith shop, where Frank and his brother gathered wood, pumped the bellows, and worked the anvil. The Hamers were devout Christians. They attended camp revival meetings, and Frank's own grandfather had been a minister. Like many in those days, the main book in the house was the Bible. And though Frank didn't end up as a man of the cloth as he thought he once would, the values he cultivated stayed with him for the rest of his life. And he learned from other places as well. Frank was an athletic young man, but he preferred the solitude of outdoorsmanship to team sports, so he took to the wilds. It was common for boys to be skilled in

marksmanship, and Frank would often spend hours or even days out there with only a knife and a rifle. He paid close attention to the wilds, and it was there that he learned the calls of birds and deer. He learned how to identify plants and insects, how to read animal tracks, and he honed his sharpshooting. He learned patience, resourcefulness, and curiosity. And he learned two more important lessons. First, the world was separated into top dogs and underdogs. First, the world was separated into top dogs and underdogs. Honor and pride were everything in those days, and Frank learned quickly to defend himself from bullies who pounced on his shy demeanor.

Frank learned that sometimes a swift, powerful use of force was necessary to get someone off your back. Second, he learned that life in Texas was hard and that it had a rough history. Like anyone else in the hill country at the time, Frank probably heard countless stories from friends and family about the Comanche war parties that had patrolled the area in the old days. But he knew there wasn't conflict without opposite sides and different points of view. So instead of condemning Native Americans like so many stories and books of the time did, Frank respected them. He said later, I made up my mind to be as much like an Indian as I

could. Even as a young man, Frank was guided by ideals of fairness, justice, and defending the weak. He was a confident young man who didn't suffer bullies, whether they gave him hell or anyone else. And when he was 16, the first test of his mettle arrived. It was 1900, and once again the Hamers had moved. Franklin had packed up the family and moved everyone to Regency, Texas, about 60 miles north of Oxford. Frank was a strapping young man, standing six feet tall and sporting broad shoulders and strong arms. Frank and his 12-year-old brother Harrison had agreed to help work the land of a local sharecropper, Dan McSween. McSween was a widower, and in return for the help, he agreed

to give Frank half the yield of the land come harvest time. It was a good enough deal that Frank and Harrison spent the spring on the farm, but McSween was one to hold a grudge, and it didn't take him long to notice that Frank was a skilled shot. to notice that Frank was a skilled shot. McSween approached Frank one day as the youngster was tilling the fields and asked if Frank would do him a favor for $150. Frank had inherited his father's wry sense of humor. He looked up at McSween and asked him who he would have to kill. But McSween wasn't kidding. He answered that there was a local rancher he would have preferred to have out of the way. Frank was shocked. Not only was it wrong, he still wanted to be a man of the cloth. He refused and said he'd been joking a moment ago.

McSween upped the offer to $200. McSween also promised that Frank wouldn't get caught. $200. McSween also promised that Frank wouldn't get caught. The plan was that McSween would bring the rancher over to the farm. Then Frank, hidden in a covered wagon, would shoot the rancher through a slit in the canvas. McSween probably shouldn't have given the plan away. Not only did Frank refuse, but he said he would warn the rancher of the whole thing. Off to the side, hiding behind a tree, Harrison heard it all. He also heard, just as well as Frank, when McSween promised to kill Frank if word of the idea ever got out. The threat didn't stop the Hamer boys. They warned the rancher of the plot against him. Two days later, they were back on

the farm doing their chores when McSween told Frank to get some food from inside. Harrison watched from behind a chinaberry tree as Frank emerged from the house with an armful of canned goods. Frank lost control of the cans and dropped them. As he bent over to pick them up, Harrison saw McSween a little ways off, pointing a double-barrel shotgun at Frank. Harrison called for Frank to watch out, and not a moment too soon. Frank ducked just as a shot flew past him. McSween fired the other barrel. It was buckshot, and it caught Frank from behind as he was running away. Frank fell. He was wounded, but he drew his revolver and fired back. Now McSween was wounded too, and it had only taken Frank one pistol shot.

Harrison ran over to help his brother up, and McSween went into the house. The boys took refuge in a nearby ravine. Frank spotted McSween. He drew his gun, but Harrison warned against it. McSween was now on horseback and he was armed with a buffalo rifle. They hid quietly and eventually McSween lost the trail and rode off. The Hammer boys fled to their wagon. Harrison took the reins while Frank lay bleeding in the back.

When the boys got home, somebody sent for a doctor. The doctor was able to remove some of the buckshot, but wasn't confident of Frank's chances of survival. But Frank made it, and the whole incident left him with two important lessons. First, the knowledge that he could keep his head cool and his aim steady, even after having been shot. And second, he would remember forever that it was an African-American man who had raced against time to fetch the doctor. Frank said, a colored man was the best friend I ever had in my life. The wording of Frank's praise reflects the racial prejudices of the time, but Frank wouldn't forget that if it hadn't been for that man,

he probably wouldn't have lived to see his 17th birthday. No doubt he would remember it in the future as he took on lynch mobs in East Texas, but for now, he was still a boy becoming a young man, and he was just about to come into his own. Frank had survived the encounter with McSween, but it was close. Too close for his father's comfort, who feared that McSween may come back to finish the job. So Franklin sent his son 250 miles away to Sheffield, Texas, to recover on the ranch of a family friend, Barry Ketchum. Frank's time in Sheffield was just what he needed. He was able to make a full recovery. It also gave him time to pursue new hobbies and hone his skills. He took up music, practicing on a fiddle he bought in town. And when he was well enough to work, Frank became a horse wrangler and a cattle driver.

But he didn't love the work. He was good at it, and he had to be to earn his keep. Ranchers had been using barbed wire to divide up their lands for 20 years now. But there were still wide pieces of open range in Texas. Land like that needed drivers who were confident on horseback, drivers who really knew how to move with the horse, not just on it. Frank knew how. He was fit for cattle driving, but it wasn't fit for him. In 1903, his boredom and curiosity nearly landed him in trouble. He was hired along with some other wranglers to drive horses to a corral in San Angelo,

about 150 miles from Sheffield. They were closing in on the corral when the foreman had to take care of some business. While they were waiting, one of the other wranglers, an older man who was a criminal, told the rest of the company how easy it would be to rob the bank in San Angelo. Each of the wranglers would take part, and they would split the money and keep the horses for themselves. They would all flee to Mexico and start a ranch together. Despite Frank's values, he couldn't lie, it sounded interesting. So the group made a plan. They took their positions around the bank, and just as they were about to make their move,

the foreman arrived and told them to drive the horses to the corral, and the plan evaporated right on the spot. Frank said later that he regretted this whole incident. He wasn't even interested in the money. He wanted the adventure. And two years later, in 1905, he landed a job at the Carr Ranch, and he got a taste of the adventure of his true calling. He noticed one day that two horses were missing along with their bridles and saddles. He also noticed the tracks led away from the ranch, so he followed them, and after days of solitary tracking,

he saw two riders in the distance. These were his men. He rode a wide path around them and cut them off at the pass. He took them by surprise and leveled a Winchester rifle at them. He escorted them to the closest county sheriff and brought the horses back to the ranch. It was an important event for Frank. In his early days, he wanted to be a holy man,

and for a couple years he was a cattleman. But this was his first manhunt. It was more than just putting his skills to work. It was an adventure. And he would have one more experience at the Carr Ranch before embarking on the path of the lawman. It was October of 1905, and the country was modernizing. One important development was the telephone. Not everyone had one in their home, but there was one at the Carr Ranch where Frank worked. In those days, it was possible to listen in on local conversations on what was known as a party line.

Younger listeners probably don't remember party lines, but amazingly, they were still in existence in some part of the country up until the early 2000s. still in existence in some part of the country up until the early 2000s. Back in 1905, Frank eagerly listened in on the party line to cure his boredom, and it led to the adventure that was the turning point in his life. Normally, the conversations were just gossip, but Frank tuned in one day to an urgent discussion between two lawmen, Pecos County Sheriff Dudley Barker and Barker's former deputy, Charlie Witcher. There was another horse thief on the loose. The sheriff would have gone after the thief himself, but he was busy at the jail in Fort Stockton. Charlie was busy too.

And then Frank heard a detail that made him jump. The thief was headed in his direction. Frank took action. He spoke up and introduced himself as Frank Hamer of the Carr Ranch. If Charlie and Sheriff Barker were busy, he would nab this guy himself. The sheriff said he'd be grateful for it and he would bring the thief in the next day. Frank had caught horse thieves before, but this time felt different. This time felt official. He got ready. He reckoned that even

in the middle of a getaway, the thief would have to water his horse. And the only source nearby was the car windmill. He was right. The thief arrived the next morning at the windmill and found Frank waiting for him. Frank confidently trained his rifle and informed the thief that he was under arrest. The thief didn't even put up a fight. He knew he was caught. Sure enough, Frank met Sheriff Barker on the road to Fort Stockton. When they arrived and locked up the thief, the sheriff turned to Frank and asked if he would like to be a Texas Ranger. It was a big deal. The Rangers had been around in one form or another since the earliest days of Anglo settlers in Texas.

Frank couldn't deny that it sounded good. So the sheriff, himself a Ranger of three years, gave Frank a personal recommendation. Frank was soon ordered to report for duty back in Sheffield. There he met Captain John H. Rogers of Company C. Rogers was impressed, and on April 21st, 1906, Frank Hamer took the oath. It was official. The kid from Wilson County was a Texas Ranger. Frank was a natural. Everything he learned up to that point was paying off, from his childhood days in the wilds to his years as a cattle driver. The tracker and hunter was becoming a detective and lawman.

It helped that Frank's first tasks as a Ranger were things he was used to. Between land for grazing and land for mining, there was a lot of money to be made in southwest Texas. So, like the acts that made him a ranger, many of Frank's jobs in those early months were to catch thieves. He made a few arrests, but in general it was long, hard work. And it wasn't always rewarding. Sometimes Frank would have to end an operation after days or even weeks, all because not enough evidence could be found to make an arrest.

But things took a turn that fall. Frank was dispatched to Del Rio, Texas, on the border between Texas and Mexico. And it was there he would have his first major test as a ranger. Del Rio was a little town, but it provided no shortage of work for lawmen. The country might have been modernizing, but many parts of it were still the Wild West. The rangers were stretched thin as they rode back and forth to police all the little towns of Texas. The Rangers received a call on the afternoon of November 30th. It was about a

missing person, a man named Blake Cawthorn. His wife called it in. She said he'd left that morning and hadn't come back. Then the next day, on December 1st, someone found the body. Captain Rogers' investigation revealed something important. Cawthorn had turned up dead after making a deal with a man named A.R. Sibley. Sibley had arrived in Del Rio two weeks earlier, claiming to be a livestock dealer. But Cawthorn wasn't the first person to disappear after dealing with Sibley. John Ralston was a shepherd who'd agreed to sell his flock to Sibley for $6,000. They were on their way to the bank in Del Rio to complete the transaction.

Then, nine miles from town, Sibley shot Ralston. That happened just one week before Blake Cawthorn went missing, and now Cawthorn had been found dead from a gunshot wound. He was slumped over in the front seat of his buggy, just a few miles from Del Rio. He was a rancher who thought he'd paid $4,500 to buy a flock of sheep from Sibley. It was the flock of the dead shepherd, John Ralston. But the flock wasn't Sibley's to sell. For one thing, he hadn't actually paid Ralston, he'd killed him instead. And for another, he didn't actually have the flock. John Ralston's boys were still tending it, and they'd grown suspicious after their father hadn't returned from Del Rio and they'd put in a missing persons report. Whoever the dealer was, he had killed two men and had made off with thousands of dollars.

The Rangers now had a manhunt on their hands. Frank and his partner Duke Hudson led a search party on foot. They set a bloodhound on the trail and combed through jagged terrain in search of the fugitive. Captain Rogers and Valverde County Sheriff John Robinson went to the scene of the latest crime. Blake Cawthorn's dead body was still slumped over in a buggy on the side of the road. Tracks led back to Del Rio, and that's where the rangers continued their hunt. Tracks led back to Del Rio, and that's where the Rangers continued their hunt. The sheriff discovered that A.R. Sibley was a fake name.

The man behind all of this was named Ed Putnam. Putnam had drifted through the Southwest for the past seven years and was an alleged smuggler, and the sheriff believed he was now hiding at a brothel in Del Rio. The posse of lawmen, consisting of both the sheriff's men and the rangers, arrived at the brothel on the evening of December 1, 1906. They immediately surrounded the place. Frank was posted at the back. All the ladies of the brothel were called outside. The lawmen gave Putnam a chance to do it the easy way. They sent the owner's daughter in with a message, give up and surrender. But Putnam wouldn't do it, so they had to do it the hard way.

The sheriff gave the posse the order to open fire. They pelted the house with a hail of bullets, but to no effect. Putnam didn't surrender. Frank hadn't fired. He was waiting for any sign of life. Then he saw the curtain move a little. He wondered if Putnam had taken cover in the rear of the house. Frank didn't hesitate when his theory was confirmed. He saw the barrel of a revolver peek out from the curtain, and he fired. There was a thud from inside. The lawmen went in to investigate, and there was Putnam, bleeding,

with a revolver in his hand and $3,500 in his pockets. He was dead, and it only took Frank one bullet to kill him. The Ralston boys identified the body as A.R. Sibley. him. The Ralston boys identified the body as A.R. Sibley. The lawmen found John Ralston's body too, in a gully nine miles out from Del Rio. All the weapons on Putnam's person were confiscated, including a Colt.32 revolver. It was given to Frank as a memento for his first gunfight as a ranger. Frank was proving himself to be a promising recruit. He had discipline, and he seemed to understand innately what it took to be a Texas Ranger. Guts, a clear head, a sharp eye, and a steady arm. His initiative had helped him catch horse thieves.

He was able to keep calm, even under fire. And his boyhood days hunting and tracking made him a deadly sharpshooter. His star shone bright, and he was just 22 years old. Next time on Legends of the Old West, Frank is dispatched to East Texas, where racial tensions are high. He's given his next big challenge, protecting black men awaiting trial from angry mobs. He's outnumbered again and again,

and he'll have to keep his wits about him if he's going to do his job in the midst of the violence. That's next week on Legends of the Old West. This season was co-executive produced by Stephen Walters in association with Ritual Productions. Research and writing by Dante Flores. Original music by Rob Valliere. Audio editing and sound design by Dave Harrison. I'm your host and producer, Chris Wimmer. Find us at our website, blackbarrelmedia.com, or on our social media channels. We're at Old West Podcast on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. And you can stream all our episodes on YouTube. Just search for Legends of the Old West Podcast. Thanks for listening.

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