|
|
Texas Ghost
Town
BEN FICKLIN, TEXAS
Former
Tom Green County Seat, 1875-1882
Tom Green County,
Panhandle / West Texas
Historical marker
4 miles S of San
Angelo on Hwy 277
|
The former Tom Green County Courthouse, later used as a school
Photo from old newspaper clipping, no date or name of paper |
History
in a Pecan Shell
The short history of Ben Ficklin has many of the elements that other
counties have built legends upon. A county seat rivalry, a rowdy frontier
fort, friendship beyond the grave and a disaster that killed many
of the inhabitants - it sounds a little bit like a lot of places.
If it was not for the name Ben Ficklin sounding like a bearded hermit
or a Charles Dickens character, the town's story would be familiar
to all Texans.
The
Man Ben Ficklin
Born in 1827 and a graduate of the Virginia Military Institute, Ficklin
served as a Corporal in the Mexican War. He helped establish stagecoach
and mail routes across the U.S. and was involved in the creation of
the romantic (but short-lived) Pony Express. He served Virginia
during the Civil War where he became a European purchasing agent after
having served as the Virginia State Quartermaster. His involvement
in Texas started with his establishing a mail route from Ft. Smith,
Arkansas to California. He bought the land where the town Ben Ficklin
would later be. His untimely death in 1871 was the result of choking
on a fishbone at a dinner in Washington, D.C.
The
Town Ben Ficklin
In 1868 Major Benjamin F. Ficklin bought 640 acres around a spring
that supplied Fort Concho with its drinking water. This was
about 5 miles South of the fort. As the population of the area increased,
a growing number of people wanted to distance themselves from the
fort and especially the saloons and "businesses" that catered to it.
Since it is was common knowledge that it was difficult for drunks
to stagger more than 3 miles, the decent element felt they were safe
at the springs. It is reported that the place was so tough that the
officers of the fort would confine themselves to indoor activities
like board games and letter writing, rather than risk an after-dark
confrontation with the enlisted men.
The town throve as a stop on the San
Antonio to El
Paso Mail Route. Major Ficklin died (in the freak dining mishap
previously mentioned) in 1871 and left his interests to his friend
F.C. Taylor. Taylor moved the stage stop a mile away and filed
an application for a post office with the name of his friend and benefactor
Ben Ficklin. It was accepted and Taylor became the first postmaster.
The town became the county seat in 1875 and Taylor died four years
later. |
|
|
"The
stage coach at Ben Ficklin.
Mr. F. C. Taylor sitting with the driver. Mr. Taylor known as the
father of Tom Green County"
Photo circa 1887, courtesy Hiram Joel Jacques |
San
Angela (as the
town across the river from the fort was then known) thought that they
should be the county seat and they voiced their desire. The situation
may have turned into one of Texas' many "courthouse wars" but Mother
Nature settled the feud. She arranged a flooding of the local creeks
and rivers on the night of August 24th 1882. The ground had already
been saturated from a rare wet summer and a wave of water hit the
unsuspecting town while everyone slept. Most of the town was washed
away and 65 citizens - more than 10% of the population - drowned.
With the demise of Ben Ficklin, San Angela applied for a post office
and was told that authorities in Washington were appalled at their
bad Spanish. The postal authorities would accept Santa Angela or San
Angelo, but not San Angela. And so San
Angelo came into existence, even though it was named after Carolina
Angela, the wife of land developer Bartholomew J. DeWitt.
Ben Ficklin Today
A marker four miles South of San
Angelo on Hwy 277 designates the site of the former town.
F.C. Taylor and his wife had their caskets washed away in the flood,
but both are now resting on higher ground.
The former town is now a park and a popular place for picnics and
swimming. The park has its own historic marker.
Book
Your Hotel Here & Save
San
Angelo Hotels
© John Troesser
|
Ben Ficklin
Texas Forum
It
is with great interest that I recently read your article about Ben
Ficklin.
In 1879, my greatgrandparents settled in Ben Ficklin and lived there
until the flood in 1882. After the flood, they established a ranch
on Willow Creek in the northern part of the county which later became
Sterling City. Their names were Thomas and Ann Blezard Brennand.
|
|
Thomas
Brennand
Photo courtesy Ann Brennand Martin Williams |
|
|
Ann
Blezard Brennand
Photo courtesy Ann Brennand Martin Williams |
They
married in England in 1862 and came to America. They lived in Wisconsin
until 1879 when they moved to Ben Ficklin. Thomas had a ranch and
raised sheep and cattle. Thomas was the first County Commissioner
to represent Precinct No. 4 and was present as a member of the Commissioners
Court at its first sitting at the old Kildare Ranch in 1891.
I do not know where Thomas was the night of the flood. His son William
Henry Brennand, who was my grandfather, was in Midland. When he heard
about the flood, he got on his horse and rode all night to see about
his parents and sisters. When he got to Ben Ficklin, he found his
mother and sisters sitting on the roof of their house. The only thing
they were able to save was a pan of yeast. I guess they knew if they
survived they would need something to make bread to eat.
His sisters names were Jennie and Annie Brennand. I know this story
is true because it was told to my father by Jennie who was one of
the girls. - Very truly yours, Ann Brennand Martin Williams, February
25, 2004 |
|
|
"My
great-great-grandfather, Tomas Jaques de Salazar (1800-1880), moved
to Ben Ficklin around 1871-72 with his family."
Photo courtesy Hiram Joel Jacques |
|
My late father's
ancestors have deep roots in Ben Ficklin and Knickerbocker
history and also Tankersley.
My great-great-grandfather, Tomas Jaques de Salazar (1800-1880),
moved to Ben Ficklin around 1871-72 with his family.... - Hiram
Joel Jacques San Jose, CA , August 14, 2003
|
There's a house
out there used for the Stage Coach with stone walls 3 feet thick.
Are there any online pictures of that house? - Kelly A. Allison,
June 02, 2004
Good website.
I am a decendent of Francis Corbett Taylor and Charles
Metcalfe. My mother, Mrs. Simms still owns the cemetery in which
the bodies of family members who drowned in the Ben Ficklin flood
and from the original cemetery were interred. Thank you for preserving
history in this manner. - Margie E. Kiser, San Angelo, 14/Nov/2002
I was born
in San Angelo on Feb 6 1955. I enjoyed reading the story on Ben
Ficklin. I went there many times as I was growing up, and we had
a lot of family outings there. My parents are buried in San Angelo
and when I go to visit there graves, I always make a trip to Ben
Ficklin and remember the times we had there. I enjoy the website.
Thank you - Larry Kohutek, Grandview, Texas, 10/Mar/2002
We'll be happy to add photos of Ben Ficklin, the park, man, or even
the fishbone he choked on to the town page. Please contact
us.
|
|
|
