KNIGHT, W. F. INTERVIEW 73E5 - * 301 INDEX CAJRDS: Fort Gibson Fargo Overland Stage Apaches and Comanches

Transcription

1 KNIGHT, W. F. INTERVIEW 73E5 - * 301 a INDEX CAJRDS: Fort Gibson Fargo Overland Stage Apaches and Comanches

2 KNIGHT, I, F. INTERVIEW * 302 Bffie S. Jackson, Interviewer, August 25, Interview with W. F. Knight 825 E. First St. Tulsa, Oklahoma. I can only give you a brief synopsis of my life this evening as I am ninety-six years old, so I have to take it easy. I was born in 1841, on a Mississippi River packet. This packet, a side wheeler, carrying mail and freight, was owned by ny father, William frank Kni ;ht, Sr» I was born on the upper Mississippi, a out one hundred miles north of Saint Louis. My mother was Henrietta Vincennes Knight. She was of the Vincenness family, founders of Vincennes, Indiana. I spen* my early boyhood and young manhood in Pike County Missouri. I knew Samuel Clemens (Mark Twain) well, also the original Huckleberry Finn. But all of that is a story in itself. In 1Q06, at the age of twenty-five, I followed Horace Greeley^'&dvice, f Go West. 1 - I travelled. I was planning to tjo 'to southwest Texas,,. travelled as far as Fort Gifrson. It was just a. picket and a log house camp, half fort and half residence. It was here that I decided to line up with the Fargo Overland Stage in the >\ed River Division. You see, in 1866 Arlington, Missouri, in Pulaski County, twelve miles

3 Knight, W. F. Interview 7325 south west of where nolla, Missouri, i$ today, was the terminus of the Atlantic and 'acific Railroad (now the rriscbj. jprom there all mail and passengers to tan Francisco went by the Fargo Overland Stage. The route in..issouri was from Arlington, the.t6~lebaaon, ::arshfield, Springfield, Noel, intc/ Territory to Salina, to a place near where uskogee is today, called i«pee, to Fort Gibson then across the Wed River to uenison, McKinney, vanal8tine, Dallas, Grand.rairie, Fort Aorth, /.eatherford on through western forts to LI Paso, then on to San i?tancisco. Kl Paso is as far west as i ever went....y regular route was from" ort Gibson (Illinois River Division) on south to rted River. You understand of course that there were stage stands every twelve or fifteen miles, it would be interesting to trace those old stage stands and later I may help you to do that. The jrargo used the Old Concord Stage Coach, ^y the way, there is only one of these left in Oklahoma according to my knowledge. Pawnee tjill (Major Lillie) has it' at Pawnee, l believe there are two or three in Colorado. These stage coaches were drawn by from four to six horses. Helays were arranged according to the lay of the land, that is, prairie or hills. Hie horses used had to be the very best and ready for a dead run if necessary. The driver and two guards sat on the driver's seat or cfboot' 1* called it* ^ou see the ooach was built like a aled-runner, on sort of a roccer held by atraps,. This not only

4 ANIGHT, W. F. inra<viev« made it more comfortable (aiightly s^ir^ing), but thus balanced, was lighter on the horses. There were two wide seats inside, arranged vis-a-vis - which would hold six. They were made of leather and canvas, ^t the front and back were the boots that was :::e space oack of the front and rear se-ts. In the front boot we carried the nail and valuacles, in the rear boot, luggage, mostly carpet ba -s. When there was much registered mail and other valuables a place was :.\ade to put tr.is in saidle ba *s, and have the guard detour on horsebacl: and neet the sta -e at a designated place. This was especially necessary in bandit hideout reg ons. The saddle ba^s were arranged to hold packets about ei j;nt by ei ;ht by fourteen inches. I had a good Arabian horse alon ; with z:.e coach horses so that I was always read;, for a detour,»'*e had hold-ups and many exciting experiences, uur worst trouble WMS not the Indians, but half-breed wmtes. I had one ron-in with a band of.ipaches ano Comanches - I carry the mark of it on my neck. I rode twenty-six miles with an arrow in my neck.

5 KNIGBT, iv. F. INTERVIEW I knew tae "Qld-tiia-rs n. J met Pawnee..ill at the train in Jaldwell, Kansas^when he v/us only ei ;-teen years old. I knew General Ouster and I will tell you some of the inside story td-'shov, how unnecessary r.is death was, just a trick of that dirty rascal, :.lajor.-eno. Juster was - tall fellow with Ion: ye-low hair, a ver\ peculiar colar of yellow. He wore a goatee. he was some spirit. The Indians were afraid of him - tninking Zven in death they did net scalp him. The only other guard of the old overland sta^e living tha; I.know of is Captain June Peake, living at Dallas, the last I knew of him. After 1876 ± went in t:.e mercantile business in wester) Kansas and did not return to uklahona City and Tulsa. Although I air. ninety-six I an still on my own. I do gold-leaf lettering and sign jointing. I live alone. Our family is long lived. I have a sister, L'JTS. S. 3. Durham, living in Los Angeles, ninety-nine years old. My Aunt, Mrs. A. W. Jahiison of Dallas_,founded t. e /alien Woman's Eome there. She lived to be one hundred and three ye^rs old.