An old west gun-woman & my 2 "notorious" ancestors

Boolit Mold Join DateSep 2011Locationsan antonio, txPosts11

To All,

I've been reading the 'sticky thread" entitled OLD WEST GUNMEN and thought I'd tell you about my two "most notorious" ancestors, whose BLOODY reputation started during THE LATE UNPLEASANTNESS, 1861-65:

PVT WILLIAM J. (called: LITTLE THUNDER) FREEMAN, late of the 4th MO Partisan Rangers, MO State Troops. Joined the First Mounted Cherokee Rifles in February 1861, enlisting as a cavalryman in the Army of the Cherokee Nation from what is now Deleware County, at (probably) age 17. Nothing is known about his service in the Cherokee Rifles, except that he enlisted and served with the unit.
Sometime in 1863, he joined A Company of the 4th MO.
As best I can tell from the fragments of records, his squad leader in 4th MO was CPL Cole Younger and his company commander was CPT William (Bloody Bill)Anderson.
(There is nothing known, as to the identity of his platoon leader, IF there was a LT assigned to that platoon.)
Little Thunder fought in at least the following actions against the enemies of the Nation and of the CSA: Palmetto Springs, Pine Bottoms, Oak Tavern and many other ambushes, shootouts and "foraging expeditions" against the KS Militia, Jayhawkers, KS Volunteer Cavalry & the Redlegs, until he went home unsurrendered in late May of 1865 & returned to working on the family farm. According to his obituary from THE GROVE WEEKLY NOTICER (Now called THE GROVE SUN Of Delaware County, OK), in 1866, he was tried "in abstentcia"(sic) by KS state courtsmartial and sentenced to hang for war crimes, that he was accused of committing against "against Loyal Union Men". Shortly after that, he left the family farm and nothing is known of his whereabouts/activities (though he was said to have become "an outlaw and gunman in the locale of the Winding Stair Mountains") until some 6 years later, when he is listed as a Deputy US Marshal "in and for the Indian Territory".
(His Oath of Office as a DUSM is framed & attached to a wall at The Old Federal Courthouse in Ft Smith, AR.)
In the Spring of 1898, he was hired as the Operator of the Territorial Ferry across the Cowskin River and served in that job until his death "of advanced age" on 29DEC1914. He was buried in The Old City Cemetery at Grove Ok on the following Sunday afternoon.
Two other writings exist of Little Thunder:
1. A "Public Notice" from the KANSAS CITY STAR from May 1864, which states that, "A sum of 500 dollars in gold coin will be paid for the delivery of the person or the head of the blood-smeared Red Savage (sometimes known as James) Little Thunder Freeman, stealer of Army horses, bespoiler of government property and mercy-less killer of Loyal Union Officers, payable by the Kansas Volunteer Cavalry Officer Commanding at Olathe".
(A personal note: Did nobody tell the DYs that there was a "shooting war" going on in the USA/CSA?)
2. The body of a "letter home" dated 05NOV1862 (I have not corrected his spelling or grammar.):
My Beloved Sister Molly,
I tak pen to paper to tel you what is hapening here in camp. ---- We ar camped about 8 miles W of the pool where Mama was baptized by Pastor Collins. Everthin is alright now, as we took a yankee wagin loaded with power an shot yesterday eve. There was a great deal of foodstuf n the wagin so we will eat good for a goodly while. There was also whisky to-dont tell Mama that.
We kiled 4 yanks and I believe may have hit some others (ILLEGIBLE "smeared" place)
Ask Mama if she has a quilt or blanket or some other warm thing, as I lost the one that I had befor. - The night is cold now & i need one now, if you can send me one with the corporal.
My friend Fox has ast about you and he hopes that you will greet him warmly when we come on leve. - Fox is a good, Bible-reading man and would make a good man for you. He is brave and is good at getting foodstuf for us all.
I must close as the male is leaving. I will write again soon as I can.
Pray HARD for us , as we all want and need everbodys praying now. An read your BIBLE ever day.
Love from your bigest bro, LT

My other "notorious"ancestor was my G-G-G aunt, Elizabet Anne Parker, (called: SWAN FLYING), who was 15YO when the WBTS ended. Her "intended" was "killed while escaping from Army custody" in January 1865 & after that Swan "turned outlaw" and was "said" to have shot several yankee soldiers before the WBTS ended & afterwards, as well. She became a "shootist", bounty-killer, thief of KS livestock and helped rob at least one train in 1868. Swan was a notable horsewoman & was said to be "a dead shot with her Colt's pistol".
(There is much that I don't know about her next decade. Local lore says that she was a "sometime sporting woman", a "saloon girl", "gambler" and "associate of outlaws, robbers and killers of diver's sort." - She is listed in the GUIDE TO OKLAHOMA GUNMEN, OUTLAWS & GUNSLINGERS, published at Stillwater, OK in 1940.)
At Christmas of 1878, she returned to Delaware County to visit the family, met a young doctor, named D H Browning, from AL & married in 1879. They moved to Muskogee, OK, where he practiced medecine and they bought a farm to raise horses and mules for sale. Dr Browning died in the Winter of 1885 and Swan never remarried. They had two sons and a daughter, before his untimely death.
Swan continued to raise and race horses until her own death in The Spanish Flu Epidemic in November of 1918. She is buried beside her husband and infant son, in the Center Masonic Cemetery near Muskogee, OK.

note: When one "shakes the Family Tree" don't be surprized if a "bad apple" or 3 falls out. - As my 95YO Mother says: Swan & Little Thunder were either "dashing Southron cavaliers and freedom-fighters" OR they were "just pure trash". - It just depends on which side you believe was correct during the War.
(LOL)

yours, TN46

Last edited by texasnative46; Today at 02:51 PM. Reason: addends & corrected typos.

Thais is some pretty interesting history, especially the part about the redlegs. Ought ot be proud of that heritage, they both seem like fine folks to me!!

Boolit Mold Join DateSep 2011Locationsan antonio, txPosts11

TheCelt,

As a member of one of the "Old Rebel Families", I celebrate their deeds for "The True Cause".

yours, tn46

Its fun to go back into family history but not always easy to do. I knew many of the oldtimers around here, quite a few were family and the one thing most of them had in common was they were tight lipped. In studying the old west and a lot of what happened back then you quickly find out a lot of what happened then would not have been accepted today.
I did turn up a few indian contact stories with my Great Grandfather and in one case with one of his brothers, a Sheriff came out to for some reason, words were said and Conrad shot the horn off the Sherriffs saddle with a trapdoor Springfield and told him to " GIT". I was told he got and didn't come back. Try that today and you would have the National Guard coming after you !!!

You cannot enforce a law that goes against the will of the majority. For those who try, there is a name.
They're called tyrants.
Paladin

NRA Endowment Member
Life Member Colorado Gun Collectors Association
Life Member, Student Gunsmiths Rifle and Pistol Club
Cast Bullet Association

Boolit Buddy Join DateMay 2007LocationBetween Hondo and BanderaPosts73

Its fun to go back into family history but not always easy to do. I knew many of the oldtimers around here, quite a few were family and the one thing most of them had in common was they were tight lipped. In studying the old west and a lot of what happened back then you quickly find out a lot of what happened then would not have been accepted today.
I did turn up a few indian contact stories with my Great Grandfather and in one case with one of his brothers, a Sheriff came out to for some reason, words were said and Conrad shot the horn off the Sherriffs saddle with a trapdoor Springfield and told him to " GIT". I was told he got and didn't come back. Try that today and you would have the National Guard coming after you !!!When my Grand dad was 95 in 1955 (I was 5), my dad asked him if he wanted to watch an new show on tv called Gunsmoke. When Matt Dillon outdrew the bad guy on the opening scene, Granddad jumped up all agitated and was yelling " That ain't the way you did it. If you wanted to kill somebody, they got shot in the back with a shotgun." Since our family was here in Texas before the Civil War, I kind of figured he knew what he was talking about.

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