The Legend of Eli CrowChapter 47
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They did make that trip in September. Eli wanted the family to visit their hotel in Santa Fe then come back through Albuquerque on their week-long trip. They even made it down to Las Cruces to stay two nights at that hotel before heading back home.
Eli knew the women would be having babies in the spring and he was already planning trips to Kansas City after the babies were born.
In April of 1890, Eli took his Cherokee brothers, Iron Hammer, Iron Hand and Iron Eyes, with their families for a week long train trip. They stayed at The Wyandotte three days then made a sweep up to St. Joseph, Missouri. From there they turned west through Nebraska before cutting down through Kansas to Oklahoma City and back to Tulsa.
Eli also took White Elk and his Cheyenne Council for a trip on the Crow Oil Limited. From Little Tree they rode up to Kansas City for two days, then east across the state of Missouri to St. Louis. He had already planned a different route back, and took them down to stay at their hotel in Memphis, Tennessee. From there they headed west to Fort Smith before returning to the Cheyenne Villages in Oklahoma Territory.
Before January 1, 1890, they had electricity connected in all the homes on Crow Ridge, the office, bunkhouses, the oil loading facility, and the ice house in Tulsa.
Crow Ridge
Tulsa, Oklahoma Territory
September 21, 1892
Pike L. Kidd and Cecily Faye Blasingame, though the youngest at 16½ years of age, were also to be married this day, having shown they were more than mature enough to wed.
The ten couples were excited about taking their honeymoons together. Kia and Michi Crow had decided to wait a year and marry on the same date as their brothers and sisters. They lived with Jere Joe and Jonny Bill in their new homes at Crow Valley before marrying. When the two sisters approached their dad about this plan, he agreed with the arrangement when they promised they would not get pregnant until after they were married.
“Will you girls stop fidgeting? We’re trying our best to get you dressed and downstairs in time for Judge Parker’s arrival,” Clarissa fussed at the ten young women who were about to wed.
They wanted to wed at Crow Ridge in order for Judge Parker to perform the ceremony. He wasn’t in the best of health, yet he’d already asked Eli if he could come to Tulsa to do the honors.
Jon David and the Little Bucks were at the train station awaiting his arrival early that morning. Judge Parker’s wife, Mary was accompanying him.
The men were downstairs with the ten grooms-to-be. Jud and Martha McClanahan were there to see his brothers marry two of Eli’s daughters. White Elk and four of his council members of the Cheyenne had traveled by train to be here. He was excited to see his grandsons wed two of Eli’s daughters.
Ward and Wade Blasingame, with their wives, Donna and Deanne, had arrived three days earlier to help with the preparations.
Iron Hammer, Iron Hand and Iron Eyes of the Cherokee People were waiting in the yard. They’d been friends of the Crow family for years and had seen their own children and grandchildren grow up, attend school and remain friends with Eli’s sons and daughters to this day.
Eli, Duncan, Moses and Jefferson had taken the six Young Bucks and the other four young men to the barn early on the morning of the wedding.
Eli told them he had made plans for the Crow Oil Limited to take them to New Orleans for a three day stay at the Los Hotel de Cuervo-New Orleans. From New Orleans they would go to Jacksonville, Florida. Included in their packet were directions to Los Hotel de Cuervo-Jacksonville where Jon David had already secured reservations for the large wedding party by telephone.
Eli gave each of the young men ten thousand dollars as a wedding gift and for spending money on their honeymoon. Duncan, Jefferson and Moses handed each of the ten young men ten thousand dollars as a wedding gift and to spend on their brides while on their honeymoon.
Eli was sparing no expense as he saw his sons and daughters wed. They had proven they were more than mature enough to marry and start families.
They had informed Eli and the other parents beforehand that there would be a total of thirty-four passengers on the honeymoon train. This came as no surprise to any of them. The families were already aware of the living arrangements for each homestead at Los Valle De Cuervos. Each of Eli’s sons and his daughters wanted a big family just like their dad.
They were landowners; they ran large prosperous beef cattle breeding operations at Crow Valley. They were young millionaires, they had planned their own lives and mapped their own futures. All of them were planning large families.
As the meeting with the men and the grooms was breaking up, Rose came out to the barn and she and Jefferson pulled Ezra aside to have a talk with him.
“Ezra, your mother and I wanted to talk to you before your wedding today.
“You and the other Bucks will be sworn in as Deputy U.S. Marshals on your twenty-first birthdays, and I told your mother a few months ago that it would be better if you changed your name to Ezra Whitehead Crow before you married, so you and Samantha would have the Crow name on your wedding day,” Jefferson said as he looked at Ezra, tears in his eyes as he talked in a strained voice.
“Dad, when Momma first told me about this, she told me that both of you had decided it would better for me to have the same last name as my brothers when Sam and I married. I’m not going to lie to you, I was excited about it, but I hope you understand that no matter what Samantha’s and my last names are, I still love you as my dad.”
“And I’ll always love you as my son, Ezra. Your mother and I talked this over at length before we said anything to you and we both agreed that you, Samantha and your children will benefit from this in the future. Your legacy that comes with the Crow name will be fulfilled and the name Crow will help all of you stand proudly beside your Crow brothers as U.S. Marshals. From this day forward, you will be known as Ezra Whitehead Crow, Blood Brother to the Young Bucks.
“Jon David already has the legal papers in his possession. You are now officially Ezra Whitehead Crow.”
“Dad, I want to do something for you in return. Momma told me a long time ago that your grandfather’s last name on your mother’s side was Kell. I’ve already asked Samantha that if we have a son, could we name him Kell W Crow, no middle name, no period, just Kell W Crow.”
“Ezra, you’re going to make me cry and I hate to cry,” Jefferson told him and held his arms out.
Ezra and Samantha Crow were married, along with her sisters and his brothers and sisters on this day.
During the wedding ceremony, each of the ten brides was attended by their constant companions, the young cousins of ‘Los Vaqueros del Valle de los Cuervos.’
Tom and Mildred McInnes were here to witness the special weddings of Eli Crow’s daughters and the Young Bucks. They too had more than a passing interest in two of the marriages.
McKenna and McKenzie McInnis were members of the wedding party, attending their best friends, Kit and Ruby Halloran. The McInnis sisters had made their homes at Crow Valley since arriving in early August 1889.
Their parents had finally realized there was no changing their daughters’ minds and agreed to their wishes. They met with Eli, Kit and McKenna in the fall of 1889 and talked openly about the young adults’ feelings for one another. When Eli told them that McKenna and their children would have the Crow name and be accepted as equals among the Crow families, the McInnises agreed to the arrangements. They also met with Isaac, Ruby and McKenzie that fall and were told that McKenzie and her children by Isaac would have his name with the same conditions.
Attending Kit were McKenna, Alba and Lupe. The attendants of the brides were each dressed as beautifully and elaborately as the brides themselves.
Kit and her three constant companions had already made special plans for their future. Little Eli was aware of their plans, which also included him. They talked openly about their life together and were even more excited now that Kit and Little Eli were about to be married.
Attending Ruby were McKenzie and Belèn, holding hands and smiling.
Neva and Perla were attending Lilly Beth.
Carmela was attending Lee Yu.
Samantha was attended by Ynez.
Conchita was Cecily’s attendant.
Attending Belinda was Tonia.
Jimena was Abigail’s attendant.
Attending Kia was Sancha.
Benito Attended Michi.
From that day forward, the Mexican girls and the McInnes sisters bore the same last name as the couple they lived with. That is the way it would be with the married couples as they made plans to live their lives in close unity at Crow Valley.
Crow Ridge Oil Loading Terminal
September 21, 1892
Judge Parker and his wife left by train for Fort Smith shortly after the ceremony.
Long before the Crow Oil Limited left Tulsa with the twenty couples and their companions, Eli and Jon David made sure that Big Eddy, Hat and Oaty knew the responsibility they were taking on ... Not only for the men, but their wives.
The three men assured both Eli and Jon David that as long as they were alive, nothing would happen to the young men and women on this trip.
The men were told to stay with the train at all times and whenever the honeymooners were off for a stay at the hotels, they were to make sure the entire train was secure.
They had been on enough trips with Eli, Jon David and the others that they knew about getting clearance on the rails before leaving one point and heading to another. They had railroad maps and they knew how to read them.
The kerosene headlamp on the Crow Oil Limited had been replaced with the new Westinghouse carbon arc headlamp and dynamo in preparation for this long trip. This new lamp could illuminate the railroad brighter than daylight for hundreds of yards. Even the rights-of-way were illuminated by the light.
This was the first trip Big Eddy, Hat and Oaty would make without Eli and Jon David Crow aboard, but they were very capable of handling the Crow Train.
The McInnes, the Blasingames, the entire Crow family and all their friends were present to see the newlyweds off.
As the Crow Train rolled off the sidetrack onto the mainline, Big Eddy was blowing the whistle. The men, women and kids were waving long after the train rolled down the ridge to cross the Arkansas. Each of them was wiping their eyes as they loaded up to head back to their homes.
Aboard the Crow Train, the party had already started. The thirty-four young people were excited about taking their honeymoons together. From the time they rolled out on the mainline headed south toward Muskogee, the young men and women were laughing and celebrating the fact that they were now married. It had been a long wait and though they were together most of that time, that was nothing compared to what they felt now.
Leander (Oaty’s wife) was helping Louella (Big Eddy’s wife) and Ida Mae (Hat’s wife) as they finished cooking the meal they’d been preparing. When the women had asked the brides what they wanted for their first meal on their honeymoon trip, the girls let the grooms decide.
The six Young Bucks wanted to have a Thanksgiving Dinner meal with turkey and stuffing and all the side dishes. After describing to the other young men what was included, they also voted to have Thanksgiving dinner a month early on the train trip to New Orleans.
They ran the five hundred miles to Houston in twelve hours, stopping three times for water and taking on coal once. They had only three delays when they had to wait for an oncoming train to pass.
Big Eddy pulled into the train yard at Houston to shut down for the night. It was another three hundred-fifty miles over to New Orleans, but they’d get an early start and be there by noon the next day.
America’s Railroads:
From the advent of the coal-fired steam locomotive, the speed along the rails of America’s railroads increased dramatically over the next two decades.
During the 1860s and 1870s, coal was accepted as the best fuel for locomotives, and all major railroads began abandoning wood. By 1880, more than 90 percent of all railway fuel was coal.
As railroads progressed west across the plains, coal was the only logical option.
There weren’t enough forests on the plains to supply the amount of wood needed to fire steam locomotives. Coal maintained thermal heat more readily than wood, and with the discovery of coal in Kansas, Indian Territory and Wyoming, coal-fired locomotives became the standard west of the Mississippi.
By the late 1800’s the speed of the coal-fired locomotives had increased from a lumbering twenty-five to thirty-five miles per hour pulling loaded trains to an amazing fifty to sixty miles per hour.
On November 18, 1883, The General Time Convention, a railroad trade group seeking to simplify train schedules, replaced local time with standard time in the United States and Canada; and four standard time zones went into effect:
Eastern—Central—Mountain—Pacific.
Prior to this, all trains had run on local times, with each community setting its time independently, which made scheduling connections virtually impossible.
There were 164,000 miles of railroad in the United States in 1890.
In 1890, Union Pacific’s Overland Limited ran on a 71-hour schedule between Omaha, Nebraska, and San Francisco, California.
The Atchison, Topeka & Santa-Fe Railroad introduced the California Limited in November 1892. The journey took 83 hours and 50 minutes from Chicago, Illinois, to San Francisco, California.
The Sunset Limited began running from New Orleans to San Francisco in 1894, operated by the Southern Pacific Railroad.
September 24, 1892
Los Hotel de Cuervo–New Orleans
New Orleans, Louisiana
Upon arrival at New Orleans Central Station, they hired six horse-drawn carriages to transport them and their combined luggage to the hotel downtown.
Eli, Kit, McKenna, Alba and Lupe were in the lead carriage. They were looking at the older houses, store buildings and shops as they laughed and talked. They turned down Canal Street and saw the streetcars on rails pulled by horses.
“Yas’suh, where all y’all from?” their driver asked as he leaned back over his seat to talk to Eli.
“We’re from up in Oklahoma Territory,” Eli said as he twisted around to look at him.
“What part of Louisiana is that?” he asked.
“It’s not a part of Louisiana. It’s a territory up above Texas on the map. We’ll soon be a state in a few years.”
“Oh, I see. Y’all gonna be here in N’awlins long?” he asked.
“Three nights is all. We’d like to see the city while we’re here though.”
“Them next five carriages behind mine are my brothers. We’d be glad to show y’all around.”
“Can you show us the best places to eat? We want to see the Mississippi River, the French Market, and Jackson Square too.”
“We can do dat. What time y’all want to start out?”
“How about waiting until we get our rooms, then taking us to the French Market Café today? Then we could start again at 9:00 in the morning to see the city, if that’s OK?” Eli said as he looked at Kit to see her and the others nodding.
“We can do dat,” the driver said when Eli slipped him two tens.
When they arrived at their hotel, the carriages lined the curb as the drivers began ringing their bells.
Suddenly, there was a brass band marching through the double front doors and down the steps of the hotel. There were twenty members in the band and they played loud, lively music with trumpets, trombones, tubas and clarinets while some members danced and played their horns.
A short fat man walked out the entrance door behind them. He wore a black top-hat and red coat with tails, and black pants as he smiled and marched right up to the carriage where Eli was still seated.
“Mr. Eli Crow, I presume?” the man said and bowed at the waist with his top hat in his right hand.
Eli looked at Kit and the others. They were smiling and he was too as he realized that somehow they recognized their party.
“Yes Sir. How did you know that?” Eli asked.
“Your brother, Mr. Jon David Crow himself called me personally and informed me that you and your party would be arriving today. He told me there would be thirty-four members in your party and that we were to cater to all your needs while you were here.”
The brass band was still playing, and as the members marched up and down the sidewalk, Eli stood in the carriage and looked back to see Isaac and Ezra standing in the next two carriages behind his. They were looking his way, waving, pointing and laughing.
Eli looked at the man, then smiled as he stepped down to the sidewalk. The man reached out his white gloved hand and Eli shook with him.
“Giles Ricard Montague, at your service, Mr. Crow,” the man smiled and bowed once more.
“Pleased to meet you, Mr. Montague. I’d feel better if you just called me, Eli.”
“As you wish, Mr. Eli. Please allow me to assist your lady friends from the carriage,” the man said, turning quickly to clap his hands toward the front entrance.
There were six bellboys dressed in top hats and red tails hurrying down the steps. Each of them ran to one of the waiting carriages to assist the girls as they stepped down from the carriage.
Mr. Montague turned in time to take Kit’s hand as she stepped to the sidewalk. He turned again and again as he steadied each of the young women stepping from Eli’s carriage.
For a group of young women, some of who had never seen a hotel, especially one of this size, they smiled and lifted their hands to be held while holding their long skirts up with their other hand like ladies when the young men reached out to steady them.
Kit and Ruby knew the procedure and were smiling when the other young women met them on the sidewalk where they stood laughing.
“Please follow me, Mr. Eli. We have the entire top floor prepared for your group. Your father, Marshal Eli Crow, and your brother, Mr. Jon David Crow, have instructed us to spare no cost and no effort to make your stay most memorable with us here at Los Hotel de Cuervo–New Orleans,” the man said and marched ahead of them to the feisty, fast music being played by the brass band following them.
The entire top floor was actually four large connecting suites. Each of the suites had private sleeping accommodations for three couples.
The suites were arranged so that each of them had connecting balconies facing east, overlooking the Mississippi River and the shipping wharf.
Jon David, Amanda, Sissy and Joe had filled them in on where to go, what to eat, and what to be sure to visit while here. First on their agenda was for the girls to change from their traveling dresses to more comfortable dresses without the bustles and the hoops.
Next on the agenda for the first day was finding the French Market and eating seafood at one of the cafés they were told had the best seafood in New Orleans.
Though they had all eaten fresh water fish, crawfish and turtle (tortuga the Mexicans called it), none of them had ever eaten seafood of any kind.
While the girls were changing, the young men sat on the balcony and looked down at the river and the wharf where there were ships being off loaded by huge steam-powered cranes with long boom poles, blocks and tackles.
“Eli, did you tell your driver we wanted to find a place to eat?” Ezra asked.
“I sure did. He said he and his brothers would take us to the French Market Café today then be back to get us at 9:00 in the morning. I gave him two tens, and we need to make sure we pay them good and tip them for staying with us.”
“All of us gave our drivers a ten. We’ll make it up when we go back down,” Ladd told him.
Their brides and their women came out on the balcony in a rush. They were excited about being in New Orleans and they were ready to try seafood for the first time.
At the French Market Café, the young women were the first to order Café-au-lait, strong coffee with thick steamed milk added. Sissy and Amanda told them they would like the taste, though it was very strong.
They ordered French pastries, beignets, a deep-fried fruit filled pastry that the young women loved and so did the men.
The men ordered a sampler plate of all the fried seafood on the menu. The women stuck with fried shrimp, fried oysters and fried clams.
No one was brave enough to eat raw oysters on the half shell, though Amanda and Sissy told them that Jon David and Joe had tried them and loved them with spicy hot sauce on them.
They walked through the French Market after they ate. The women bought beads and trinkets by the sack fulls.
Back at the hotel, they gave each of the carriage drivers an extra forty dollars and confirmed arrangements for them to pick them up at 9:00 the next morning.
As darkness fell across the city, the whole group sat on the balcony and watched the lights dance on the waters of the Mississippi and listened to the sounds of music playing far off in the distance.
When they went to their separate bedrooms, the women informed their men that beginning on this trip, there would be no condoms until each of them were confirmed with child. They had waited long enough and they wanted to start families while they were young.
The McInnes sisters and the young Mexican cousins were included in their plans to start big families.
At the end of the second day in New Orleans, they made plans for the carriages to come back the next morning at the same time.
This time, they rode back over to the train station where the Crow Train was parked on a sidetrack.
“Big Eddy, we want you, Hat and Oaty to take your wives and kids on a trip around New Orleans. I told Jermaine, the carriage driver to take you to the French Market first, then to a nice place where y’all can eat. Here’s a hundred dollars for each of you. Buy your wives and kids some things to remember this trip by. We’ll stay here with the train until you get back,” Eli told the three men.
“Eli, Jon David told us not to leave the train for no reason. I’d hate to go against him,” Big Eddy pleaded.
“I’ll make it alright with Jon David when we get back. We want all of you to see New Orleans, visit the French Quarter, the French Market and have some of the spicy Cajun food like we ate.”
“Jermaine, we want you and your brothers to take us back to the hotel when you return, so be sure they come back later too. Then we’ll need all of you back at the hotel by 9:00 in the morning to bring us back to the train so we can leave for Florida,” Eli told him.
“We can do dat.”
Before the other five carriages left, they gave each of Jermaine’s brothers forty dollars for any business they may have missed.
The morning they left, Ezra and Eli tried to pay their hotel bill but were quickly informed that Jon David Crow left strict instructions for all hotel and dining bills be sent to Crow Oil Corporation in Tulsa.
Jermaine and his brothers delivered them to the train yard where each of the six carriage drivers were given one hundred dollars for taking care of their travel needs while in New Orleans.
They were now on their way across Mississippi, through Mobile, Alabama, and on to Jacksonville, Florida — five hundred and fifty miles away.
Along the Gulf Coast, there were long stretches where two sets of rails ran side by side and Big Eddy let the Crow Train run. Even with the water stops and loading coal two times from the overhead coal bins, they pulled into Jacksonville at 10:00 that night.
Back in the Pullman coaches, the newlyweds decided to stay with the train and go to the hotel early the next morning.
It was midnight before Big Eddy, Hat and Oaty had the locomotive bedded down safely for the night and walked back to the caboose for a night’s sleep.
September 28, 1892
Los Hotel de Cuervo–Jacksonville
Jacksonville, Florida
Eli had talked to a conductor on a train in the rail yard that was waiting to be switched and the conductor sent word to the station that there were passengers on a private train that needed transportation to their hotel.
There was no fanfare when they arrived at this hotel like it had been in Kansas City and New Orleans. When they walked in carrying their luggage, the man at the desk looked up at the crowd of young people before him.
Eli and Ezra stepped up to the counter as the man continued to look them over.
“I’m Eli Crow and we have suites reserved. There are thirty-four of us and we’re supposed to have the entire top floor.”
“OH MY – OH MY! You’re the Crow party? How did you get here? We sent the carriages to the train station over an hour ago to bring you here!”
“We arrived by private train during the night and made arrangements for transportation here,” Ezra told the man.
“We had such a huge welcome planned for all of you. Would you please wait right here and let me gather the bellboys?”
“If you’d just show us to our rooms, we’ll each carry our own luggage,” Ezra told the man before he could leave.
“Yes, of course. Please follow me. I feel so embarrassed ... I apologize for the mixup and for not giving you the special welcome we had planned.”
“If you feel that it’s really important, you can still welcome us when we come down for dinner. We’ll need a couple of hours to bathe and relax,” Eli told the man as they entered the large elevator.
“Yes. Yes, please let us do that. When you say dinner, did you mean your noon meal?”
“Yes.”
“Would you be offended if I asked you to wait until later today when we have our dinner meal?”
“That would be fine. No need to feel embarrassed either; we didn’t let you know of our change in plans and we arrived late last night and just stayed on the train,” Ezra told the man.
“Mister, we saw the sign downstairs about dinner cruises on the St. Johns River. What would we have to do to get our names on one of those cruises while we’re here?” Lilly Beth spoke up.
“We already have plans for an exclusive private dinner cruise tomorrow evening starting at 7:00 and returning to the hotel at 11:00. Would that be satisfactory?”
“YES!” Each of the girls sounded off after looking around and agreeing.
“Mister, we’ve never seen the ocean and we’ve never seen a beach either. Is there any way you could arrange for us to be taken to the beach while we’re here?” Lee Yu spoke up just as they arrived at the top floor.
She was grinning and the other girls were too. They had talked of this among themselves since learning they were coming here.
“Yes Ma’am, of course we can. Would you like us to arrange a private party on the beach for your group? The hotel leases a large beach property with an option to buy and we sometimes arrange private parties for our celebrity guests.”
“YES!” The girls answered loudly as they laughed among themselves.
“Do you wish me to make arrangements now for your, uh, dinner meal?” the man asked.
“Yes, please do and make reservations for us at your dinner meal later also,” Eli told him.
“We will, Mr. Crow and we will have the welcome party as we had planned at that time also.”
The hotel rooms and suites here were nearly identical to the hotel in New Orleans. The entire top floor was made up of four connecting suites, with each suite sleeping three couples.
When they had put their luggage away and the girls had bathed, they once again met their men on the balcony. The connecting balconies overlooked the St. Johns River where steamboats and skiffs passed by far below.
“Look straight down and you can see the paddle wheeler with Hotel de Cuervos on the sides and on the sign between the tall smoke stacks,” Isaac told them when they joined the men.
“OH! I don’t like looking straight down like that. This hotel is really tall,” Cecily said as she stood next to Pike.
While the girls were getting their purses, the young men had a private talk that led to them talking about personal feelings.
“Eli, the girls say they want to walk down the street after we eat and visit some of the shops we passed on our way here. I told them it was fine with me as long as we stayed together as a group,” Lane told him.
“We’ll have all afternoon to shop and explore before our dinner and welcome party. I’d like to stop at that shop where we saw all the knives displayed outside, anyway,” Eli said and grinned at his brothers.
“I’d like to buy Samantha a new necklace with some of the money Dad and the others gave me. I saw one in a catalog at the other hotel and started to say something to all of you about it,” Ezra said as the young men gathered.
“That’s a great idea, Ezra. I want to buy something nice like that for Kia, too,” Jere Joe agreed.
The terrain was becoming rougher than they’d experienced so far. The fifty miles took them almost two days, as the trail twisted and turned, and back tracked through the jagged rocks of the first foot hills as they came closer to the Southern Rockies. By the mid-afternoon of the second day, they had ridden down into a big grassland that covered most of the valley. The horses were hungry for fresh grass and they stopped to let them graze near a cool, clear river. Juni and Tin Yu were naked...
Sissy and Joe came home while they were still sitting around the table. Joe was wearing a Deputy United States Marshal’s badge, grinning that crooked grin, and Sissy was hanging on him like she was shackled to him as she came in grinning. “We’re married, Daddy. I’m a wife now and I love my husband. Judge Parker married us and he cried, he was so happy that we let him. He told us not to worry about that trouble over in unassigned lands, he would take care of it.” “Momma, I’m taking my man...
Fort Smith, Arkansas October 12, 1883 When Eli, Duncan and Moses rode into Fort Smith, they went straight to the courthouse to tell Judge Parker about the flash flood, and finding no rustlers. Before they even got upstairs to his chambers, they were met by Jefferson, and told of a jailbreak. “Eli, it was that Larry Parkins kid, the one who hit Duncan. He was in the cell with L.W. Ward and Clyde Pickens, the ones you brought in from down toward Fort Towson when we got Kia, Michi, Lorene...
“Sundy, you put this shirt on and slide over here on my horse with me. We’re going up there and scout this trading post,” Eli said as he unlocked her shackles and pulled a buckskin shirt out of his saddlebag. “Marshal, you be watchful of Sundy if there’s shootin. We’ve took a liking to her and want to see her do good, now that her kin have been arrested,” Jessie said. “I’ll be alright, I know Marshal Eli will keep me safe,” she said as she hugged her thin body to his back. “Duncan, I’m...
“This big horse wants to run, Duncan. You want to make some time?” “Let him run, Eli. We have almost 700 miles due west to ride and I’m ready. It’ll take us over 2 days hard riding to get to Tulsey Town, over on the Arkansas River.” The two deputies rode hard for over an hour and then slowed their spirited horses to a long easy lope as they talked and laughed as friends, starting a partnership that would be remembered in Indian Territory and surrounding states for years to come. The...
Fort Smith, Arkansas November 2, 1875 Before Duncan had completely recovered from the injury to his head, he was laid up with pneumonia. He’d gotten caught in a heavy downpour and arrived home wet and chilled. He spent two weeks recovering, with the first week spent in bed the whole time. Eli and Moses were split up again, since they were short-handed. “Eli, which way you headed this time? It looks like I’m headed up toward Kansas where you ‘n Duncan come from when he got whacked on his...
Oklahoma Territory Crow Ridge Cattle Company August 4, 1889 Jon David, Amanda, Sissy, and Analisa told Eli yesterday that they needed to be at the office early this morning. They let Chane and Jon Jr. spend the night with Shawn, Karly Jo, Clara, and Maryanne. Eli stepped out on the front porch earlier than usual that morning since he had all his Little Bucks here for the day. He drank the last of the coffee from his mug and stood looking down at the river before turning to look over toward...
Doctor Harrod came out just a few minutes after Eli and Jefferson walked into the lobby and sat down. They both jumped up as soon as he came through the door, hurrying to meet him. “Doc?” Eli said as he looked at the young doctor. “Duncan is fine. He’s sleeping now and you’ll both be able to see him in a few hours. I drained the wound where the injury had become infected. There was a bone fragment just as I thought. It was wedged in a clump of hair that had pushed into the tiny skull...
Indian Territory June 15, 1884: “Eli, look at all them dark clouds down yonder south of here. I sure hope we don’t run into any bad weather on the way home,” Duncan said as they rode on into the late afternoon after getting Joe patched up. “I’ve been watching them too, Duncan. I hope they’re between us and home, I’d hate to know our place was being hammered by storms.” By nightfall, the dark storm clouds had moved east of where they were heading, but the air was still damp and heavy like...
With the arraignments and hearings coming up for the criminals that Eli, Duncan and Moses had arrested in the past weeks, they were all required to be in the courthouse most of each day for a week. After that, they were told by Judge Parker they needed to be on call for another week as the prosecutors, lawyers, and public defenders obtained information from them. Though this was a rough two weeks for the three of them, who were used to being out in the open. They did enjoy their time at...
The next morning early, the three had ridden no more than half a mile from camp, when Eli pulled his horse back. “We got riders coming in, hold up and get your guns ready,” he told them. They were suddenly surrounded by sixteen members of a cavalry patrol, handguns drawn and hammers backed. “Stand your position men, United States Cavalry here. You’re trespassing on government property,” a big sergeant in front of the troop yelled. “Mister, you best put them pistols away before we shoot...
As the three rode back to the courthouse, they felt good about the girls going to learn about nursing. They felt good about getting to ride out together again too. Jefferson had their warrants, since Judge Parker was already in court for the day. “Eli, this big horse wants to run some, let’s get stretched out and make some miles. It sure does feel good to be out here again,” Duncan said. They poked their horses up to a good hard gallop and let them run for miles before they pulled them...
They left the courthouse and headed straight home to see the family. Duncan, Moses, and Eli could hardly wait to see their kids. Moses was extremely proud of his and Suh’s boy. They’d named him Pike Longfeather Kidd in honor of Moses’ father. Duncan and Eli’s young’uns were seven, and the two marshals could hardly wait to get home from a trip. Pike was about six months younger than the other boys, but he felt he could do anything the others could – the other boys expected as much of...
It took another hour to get from the high knoll over to the far side of Fayetteville, but they were at the old trading post at last. Eli helped both women to the ground. They were about frozen from being on the trail most of five days. He tied their horses to the hitching rail and rapped on the solid wood door. “ELI IS HERE,” he heard a scream and the door swung wide as Tin Yu, Catt and Eva ran out to him, nearly knocking him over backwards as they grabbed him in a hug, jumping up and...
The next morning, when Rose and Mary came down to the kitchen to start breakfast, Jefferson already had a warm fire built in the cookstove. As they filled the big coffee pot with coffee and water, they heard a noise on the back porch. Jefferson stepped to the back door to see the two nannies and the two kids on the porch, with the billy standing in the yard, looking up at them. Corinne and Lorene were next down the stairs, carrying the two babies, since they had taken it upon themselves to...
The three marshals rode for two more days, pushing their horses, keeping them fed and watered, as they made their way toward the Cherokee Outlet, known all over this part of Indian Territory as no man’s land. The third day on the trail after they’d met the cavalry patrol at the mouth of the Chikaskia where it emptied into the Salt Fork of the Arkansas, they met another patrol headed east. Abraham Walker was the scout. “Marshal Moses Kidd, you have made good time. Lieutenant Carpenter is...
The trip back to Fort Smith took three days longer than the trip over to the Panhandle. Twice along the way, Eli killed a small deer late in the day, so they could cook it all night and be gone at daylight, eating the cooked meat along the way. The rest of the time, they only stopped long enough to feed and water the horses and relieve themselves. The prisoners were left to their own devices, as for relieving themselves. While riding on the boards of the rough, bouncing wagon bed, they...
The travelers broke camp at daybreak after an early breakfast. They were still most of a day’s travel from Pecan Ridge and the MacEagle brothers wanted their new friends to visit the Cheyenne Village and meet their grandfather on the way. The Young Bucks and the Crow girls knew White Elk and they were excited about going to the Cheyenne village to meet with him again. They were even more excited to be there when he welcomed his grandsons home after they’d graduated from the private boarding...
Saturday, May 3, 1884 Cherokee Lands Indian Territory Iron Hammer’s Lodge “Eli Crow, I see you have returned and now you bring all the marshals and little Crows to see me. I see my own brothers, the Barkleys, with you. How am I so honored this day?” “Iron Hammer, I came with my friends and young’uns to tell you of a cattle deal we made in Kansas City this week. My little Crows have gifts for your little Hammers and me and my friends are always happy to sit with Iron Hammer and his brothers...
Tulsa, Indian Territory Crow Ridge Cattle Company June 2, 1884 The big house on the hill was full of happy talk as they gathered in the kitchen to talk and catch up on the latest trip into the Territory. Clarissa was typing on her typewriter as fast as she could to keep up with all that was said. She was getting faster at typing and this was the first time she didn’t make notes to type from later. They let the ten youngest travelers talk first, each of them telling their version of the...
A week after the marshals returned from their last trip, Eli rode across the river to Tulsa with Little Eli and the other boys and girls. The young’uns thought they were almost grown now, getting to ride the big high stepping horses all the way across the river with him and going to the post office at Perryman’s. He gave them enough money to buy some candy and even some gum, for the first time in their lives. The boys saw some baseball bats, gloves, and balls and each of them wanted baseball...
December 27, 1884 Tulsa Depot Tulsa, Indian Territory Jon David and Joe were at the train depot when the train pulled in from Kansas City. Jon David had gotten a telegraph message that there would be twenty-one, young Negro women aboard the train arriving on the twenty-seventh. There were only two Pullman cars and a caboose connected to that train. The preacher from the Negro church in Kansas City had made the trip down to Tulsa, escorting the young women personally, since the young women...
Indian Territory October 5, 1884: As the light of dawn began to spread across the plains, they harnessed the mules and hitched the teams to the wagons. They were all ready to meet the others at Pecan Ridge Cattle Company and start the pecan harvest. They saw how the nearby trees were loaded with pecans and knew this pecan crop was going to be a big one. Eli and Moses had been out before dawn, riding the western perimeter. Duncan and Joe had also been riding the eastern perimeter behind...
Tulsa, Indian Territory Sunday, July 28, 1889 While Moses, Isaac and Little Eli were loading the horses, the engineer yelled and waved to Eli again just as he stepped down from the Pullman carrying Little Eli’s traveling bag. “Marshal, if we’re gonna make a fast run down to Abilene like you want, the fireman will need some help from your bunch to keep up the steam,” he yelled above the noise of the locomotive. “We’ll ride up here with you. I want to keep this this thing red hot and smoking...
Miranda turned and sat sideways on the top rail as she watched Little Eli run over to get on his horse. Lee Yu, Lilly Beth, Kia, and Michi were all waiting for him. They all waved to her when they saw her looking. She felt like getting off the fence right then and grabbing Eli Crow. She was so in love with him and his family. No matter if it was right in the middle of the cattle pens, and right in front of all the men, she could have thrown him to the ground and loved him right here. They...
Across the small hotel dining room, there were three well-dressed men wearing tall white hats, drinking coffee and smoking fat cigars. One of them moved closer to sit at the table nearest the Young Bucks. “Excuse me please, but did I hear you say you have an exceptionally fast horse bred from Cheyenne horse blood?” The man asked from behind Eli. Eli turned to look back at the man, “Yes Sir, we sure do. He’s never been beaten in about thirty races,” he told the man. “We’re here to meet the...
After their meal, they rounded the young’uns up and headed them back upstairs. The elevator had to make two trips to get them all to the top floor. By the time they had the younger ones settled and into bed, it was after ten o’clock and they had a busy day planned for tomorrow. The baseball game started at one o’clock and they were scheduled to play two games before dark. The grownups talked for another hour before heading off to their separate rooms and to bed. They still wanted to spend...
“Trapper, there are at least two dozen turkey-buzzards circling overhead back west of here,” Micah told him as they rode north. Trapper and the others turned their horses to look back to where Micah was pointing. “Looks like we could have a fresh one for you men to check out. Let’s get on over there,” Trapper said and spanked his horse with his reins. They topped a small rise to see at least two dozen more buzzards on the ground tearing into a dead calf. When they rode up, the buzzards...
After their performance on their first assignment in Colorado back in October of 1896, the six Young Bucks’ names became well known at the Western District U.S. Marshal’s Service office in Kansas City. During the next two years they were called upon time and time again to settle disputes. They were sent to the Missouri border town of Fort Scott, Kansas, to help settle a railroad union dispute that had already gotten out of hand with clashes of violence by the time they arrived. With strong...
“We’ve never been up this way before, Daddy. Where are we going?” Little Eli asked. “We’re going up the Arkansas to the rough country where the Pawnee and Osage Tribes join lands. We’ll camp on the Arkansas and we’ll have our own school for you boys out here.” They had crossed the Arkansas River in a northwesterly direction, then followed along the west side of the river until mid-day. The boys were told to bring nothing but jerky in their grub bags, they were going to survive on what the...
Kansas City, Missouri July 21, 1889 Eli and Isaac were up and dressed, after washing up from a wild time the night before when they’d had champagne sprayed all over them and made love on the balcony. They were sitting out on the balcony again, looking down on the sprawling city below as people began to stir and fill the streets. The girls came out laughing and talking about the fun, crazy time they’d had last night. They were bathed, dressed and ready for a day of shopping and sightseeing...
Upon their return to Tulsa from racing Cheyenne at Vinita, Little Eli had met with Bill and Jack Robertson that day, asking them about making a lightweight saddle just for Cheyenne. After measuring and fitting him with the special built saddletree and pad, they made a saddle with no high pommel and no saddle horn. There were no fenders, just leather straps that supported the small brass stirrups. This saddle was half the weight of the working and pleasure saddles they used on the ranch. As...
October 1, 1881 While Eli was getting his latest prisoners turned over to the jailers, Jefferson left the courthouse through the back door and ran out to saddle his horse. He rode hard up the back way, cutting across an open lot and through someones yard as he raced home. He didn’t take time to put his horse in the barn, he knew Eli would see it anyway. He jerked the saddle off and turned his horse in the cow pen. When Eli rode into the yard later, it was almost sundown and there was no one...
When they arrived in Durant, the sun had been up a few hours and Eli herded them to the hotel. The fireman and engineer went with them as the local railroad workers filled the reservoirs with water and oiled the locomotive for them. This was the first chance Eli had for more than a few words with his Bucks since they’d boarded the caboose in Abilene. Eli and Moses sat across the table from them in the dining room and looked at each of them as they talked to their brothers and their...
“Kit, would you and Ruby want to wear buckskins like we do?” Caleb asked as they all talked, ate, and became friends. “We sure do. Marshal Eli told us we could, and said he’d even give us our own horse,” Kit answered. “We’ll have to round up our horses in the morning and see how many we have now. Daddy may have to get more horses from our friend, Iron Hammer. He’s the main man in the Cherokee Tribe that owns all the lands around us,” Little Eli said. “Momma told me we could all go down to...
Crow Ridge Cattle Company Tulsa, Indian Territory Thanksgiving Day November 27,1884: “Here come the Buffalo Soldiers, they’re crossing the river now!” Isaac yelled as he jumped off the back porch, headed toward the barn where the men, the girls, and the rest of the Bucks were gathered. The women had run the men and younger ones from the house so they could finish cooking and get the dinner ready. This was to be the biggest feast and biggest celebration they’d had to date. The men, the...
When they finished unloading the flatcar, they headed back to the house. Smitty, Leon, James, and Albert were on the wagon and Eli drove. “Smitty, I need to have a talk with you. Want to walk down to the river with me?” Eli asked. “Sure Eli, let me get a drink from the pump and I’ll be ready.” “I’ll meet you out front.” Eli went through the house and into the kitchen where the women were fixing supper. “Corinne, come go with me,” Eli said. “Eli, I’m not sure about this now. Can we wait...
After an early start in the cold hours of morning, they rode hard and steady all day, stopping to relieve themselves twice and eat from the grub sack. They made Kansas City, Missouri late in the day as the sun was sinking behind the cold flat horizon, across the river in Kansas. They stopped at a big fancy hotel and registered as Eli and Rose Crow. The desk man was hesitant at first to let the two Half-Breeds stay in his hotel, but saw the Deputy U.S. Marshal badge and the Indian Police...
“ELI! You’re back. Did you get the last one? Dal said you thought there was a woman with them too,” Sam Connor greeted his grandson when he came through the back door, stomping the mud off his feet. Eli was soaked, his buckskins wet and clinging to his body, his moccasins filled with mud and water. He hadn’t even put his long coat on when he left Young’s Store. The back of his coat was shot out anyway. “They’re all taken care of, Grandpa. How’s Grandma? She alright after all this?” He...
When they reached the river’s edge, Kit laid the fuses and caps on a stump. Ruby handed Kit a stick of dynamite and picked up a cap and a short fuse. Eli and the others watched as she inserted the end of a fuse into the open end of the blasting cap, then put her fingers about an inch from the end of the brass. She stuck this short end of the exposed brass into her mouth with the extra fuse trailing down her chin. They could see her straining her jaws as she bit down on the brass, clamping it...
Eli had planned their trip himself and since he wanted them to stay a few days in Boones Crossing without being in a rush, he decided to take his dad’s advice and travel to Kansas City first then come back to Boones Crossing. Though he and Isaac didn’t wear their guns, they did have their knives on their hips, with their guns packed in their traveling bags. Both were dressed in buckskins and their girls dressed in finery like the other women traveling on the train. They ate one meal in the...
Saturday October 3, 1896 Crow Valley, Oklahoma Territory “Let me see that map again, Deuce,” Ezra said. He stood next to Eli and Isaac as they looked at the map. They had just gotten their first orders as Deputy United States Marshals two days ago, and the six of them were excited as they saddled up. They’d packed the night before and already had their two packsaddles loaded with tents, food and supplies for at least a two-week stay once they reached their destination. They were being sent...
Dal Hopkins had been half asleep, half-awake as he worried about his town. He heard a man whisper something behind him in the cell. Was he dreaming? Could it really be? HE KNEW THAT VOICE... He’d know that voice in the middle of a windstorm on the plains or in a howling snowstorm on top of a mountain. No matter where on earth he was, he would know that voice... Eli was here. He knew it was him! How – he didn’t know, but that was Eli Crow behind him, he’d bet his life on it. “Marshal,...
Eli knew he had a battle on his hands convincing the mommas of his sons and daughters that his plan was the best way to keep the Bucks, the Crow girls and the rest of them from having babies and still let them spend time with their friends. He figured the best way to handle this was to get them all at once and get it over with. Miranda, Clarissa, Tin Yu, Catt, Eva, Rose, Sissy, Suh, Juni, and Grandma were gathered together out away from the others. Eli wanted all of them to listen to what he...
Boones Crossing, Kansas July 23, 1889 Little Eli, Kit, Ruby, and Isaac arrived in Boones Crossing early, making the short trip from Kansas City in only a matter of two hours. They had accompanied their friends to the train station the evening before and watched as they boarded the train to Colorado. This was a tearful parting of new friends with all of them vowing to meet again soon. The McInnis sisters especially took it hard, sobbing as they sat on the train and waved out the window to...
Crow Ridge September 1, 1896 “Come on in, Ezra. Your dad and I wanted to talk to you before you head back to Crow Valley,” Rose told her son. Jefferson was sitting up in bed with the covers pulled to his waist. “Dad, are you feeling any better?” Ezra asked as he walked over to sit at his bedside and lay his hand on top Jefferson’s right hand. “I feel better today, Son. This has actually been one of my better days in the past few months. “Dad, I suppose I’ve always taken for granted that...
When the Buffalo Soldiers rolled in from Little Tree with empty wagons, all of them jumped in and loaded them as quickly as possible. There were fifteen more loads to ship after they held back the last three loaded wagons to take to Tulsa. Willis turned fifteen of his men right back around, telling them to get on back so they could all head over to Tulsa and start learning to be oil well drillers. The next morning early, Eli and Jon David were sitting by the fire outside, drinking coffee...
Eli knew he had to get over to the women as soon as he could. He saw them laughing and talking with Analisa, pointing now and then toward where he stood. Even Sissy, Miranda, and Grandmother were huddled with the young Mexican woman, whispering and laughing. When Catt and Eva pulled her aside, they were laughing aloud and Eli knew it was time to go. “I see all of you have met Analisa. I hope you’ll make her welcome. I’ve asked her to work for us when we get back to Tulsa,” Eli told them when...
Two weeks earlier, when Duncan and Eli had split as they arrived in Tulsa, Duncan felt alone as he rode north toward Kansas. Though he’d been a deputy marshal for over two years when he met Eli, he’d grown to like hid friend so well that he missed his company and the friendship they shared together on their trips into the Territory. He rode into southern Kansas two days later, after riding late like he and Eli often did when they first met. He wanted to hurry and do his law business, then...
The men of Crow Ridge Cattle Company loaded the second trainload of cattle bound for Kansas City and knew there wasn’t time to load another fifteen cars before dark. The first trainload would have to make it to the next sidetrack, near the Kansas state line, before the two empty trains could travel on down to Tulsa. They made plans to start loading at daylight the next day. The empty trains would arrive during the night and have to lay over. They gathered around after the first day of...
The Waco Kid never raised his head as he reached out to pick up a stick and thrash it across the bedroll nearest him. “Get your asses up, we got a score to settle this morning and I’m ready to get started!” he said loudly. The other men began to stir in their bedrolls and The Waco Kid rolled over to sit up. He had yet to look up as he pulled his boots on, then picked up his two pistols and shoved them down in his holsters. He stretched his arms over his head, wincing at the pain in his ribs,...
Crow Ridge March 29, 1889 The family was up before dawn to see the Crow girls and the Young Bucks off. Even their younger brothers and sisters were up. Eli cornered Little Eli and Ezra as soon as they came downstairs and pulled them aside. “I need to give you men something. I’ve been wanting to tell you about this, but never felt like it was the right time until now. “Eli, back when you told me that you Bucks wanted to have a place of your own and still wanted it to be near each other, I...
Union Station Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania June 19, 1885 Eli had been on the train for four days when he arrived in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. They had an hour layover there, one of many layovers they’d had on his long train ride from Indian Territory. After he’d found the toilets to relieve himself, he sat inside the huge train station and watched the hundreds of people coming and going. He’d never seen this many people in one place ever before, not even in Kansas City at the ballpark. He kept...
“This is absolutely beautiful. I just love the way the houses and barns look with all the pecan trees around,” Miranda said. “It does look good and shady back in them trees. We need to plant some pecan trees over at the other place to shade it a little, I reckon,” Eli agreed. “You boys get you some clean buckskins and go back behind the barn and get a bath,” Eli told the six boys. “Miranda, would you help Sissy get the girls back there and get them bathed?” “I will, but first we’re going...
There were snow flurries blowing in the wind, with a light blanket already covering the ground when the Bucks started out the next morning after saying their goodbyes to the family. They were dressed in their buckskins with their union suits underneath and heavy boiler overalls over their buckskins. Each had a leather fur-lined cap pulled down over their head and ears. They wore wool scarves backed with flannel over their faces, leaving only a slit with their eyes exposed as they rode...
Eli and Duncan headed out of town with their wagon load of prisoners. Bud Parkins drove the wagon, Duncan and Eli rode their horses. “Eli, I already like this horse pretty good. He’s as tall and long legged as that big stud you got.” “Yep, you got a good’un, Duncan.” They turned south at the creek crossing, and rode right by Noonan’s ranch. “You could at least let me see my wife before you take me back,” Noonan said. “I’ll go see if she wants to see you... “Duncan, you keep them headed...
“What can I do for you, Mister? You look to be part Indian. Are you?” The man behind the window at the train station said as Eli walked up to the window to send a telegraph message back to Little Tree. “I need to send a message over to Little Tree, Texas. Can you do that for me?” Eli said, ignoring the man’s remark. “I sure can. Who is it for and what name do you want on it?” “Put my name on it, Marshal Eli Crow. Send it to Hoke at the livery. Tell him I need him to get word to my folks at...
“Son, that was some race. We heard what Parkman’s jockey said. You did the right thing holding Cheyenne back, then letting him run away with the race after they’d tried to run him down like that. You’d think Sam Parkman would know better by now,” Eli said as he and Joe stood beside Little Eli when their picture was made. “Did you win big again, Dad?” Little Eli asked, knowing by his smile that he did. “We all won big on that race. I already have another big bet placed on the last race...