I Could Not Waltz Across Texas

First of all, it's a huge state. Texas has not gotten any smaller since the last time I drove across it, but there are signs of growth all along the I-10 corridor. El Paso is finally expanding the lanes through the city and there're plenty of indications that other roads are being improved as well.

An overlook in Texas someplace; I'd lost track of where.

But more disturbing is a Border Patrol 'incident' where one agent died and another lies in the hospital severely injured. We came upon a huge gathering of police and Border Patrol vehicles and assets at Milepost 151 east of Van Horn, Texas on I-10 about 10 a.m. Sunday morning as we were heading for Fort Stockton. It was clear to me that something was afoot, but no traffic was being stopped so we kept on at our 65 m.p.h. rate. It was only later in the day when I decided to look for more information that I even got some of the details.

At first all the media was saying one agent was murdered, but in later reports the story has been tamped down and all the intensity about illegal aliens wielding rocks in a murderous rampage has been defused. I would like the truth to be revealed, but perhaps it never will be. I'm only theorizing but it seems like it might have been some kind of accident which did not necessarily involve any folks from the south and after all the saber-rattling of the media, no one wants to admit they jumped to conclusions.

As you arrive in Fort Stockton from the west, this very
impressive metal art sculpture can be seen on the right hill.

As we drive through the lives of the folks in Oregon, Nevada, Arizona and now Texas, it is inevitable that we will see only portions of the fabric of their lives. It was one of the reasons I stopped being an EMT; I didn't like not hearing the conclusions of the events I was participating in.

Texas mountains just before sunset from Fort Stockton, TX.

We stopped in Fort Stockton because I wanted to see the reconstructed fort, read about the history of the area and make sure we didn't race across Texas like we had gone through Nevada.

We were able to get into the fort and also to see the Annie Riggs Hotel Museum with tons of interesting artifacts from settlers who were involved in making their home in Texas. It turns out that taking matters into one's own hands to achieve a particular result is not unique to this area, either.

Texas sunset in Fort Stockton.

"Buffalo Soldiers," so called because the Negroes' nappy
hair reminded the Indians of buffaloes, were key to helping
settle the region after the Civil War.

We saw the largest roadrunner in the U.S., the old pioneer cemetery which has fallen into such disrepair that almost no headstones remain readable, and a number of original buildings which are still being used today. But the downtown/main street is in a sad state of abandonment; the city of Fort Stockton has failed it's constituents by not giving benefits to those who want to have shops there.

It is not enough to have wonderful old historic sites and no main hub reinforcing that history.

However, we did enjoy the actual fort and grounds and some of the video presentations. We made our donation and hopefully along with those of other folks, the Historic Commission will find the funds useful to repair the video that wasn't working and to take care of other aspects of the site so that future visitors will get the full effect.

An artist's rendering of the original fort's site.

It is quite large, unlike the Lewis and Clark fort, and I could almost hear the ghost soldiers and their horses as I walked over the ground.

A building used as a kitchen still stands.

This fort was a key spot for travelers to receive refreshment and support as they wended their way westward. There was a huge natural spring offering fresh water and the troops offered protection from the indigenous tribesmen who didn't want the colonizing Americans on their lands. 

What a time it must have been for all concerned. As we were driving east from here, we discussed the distance and the time it would have taken riders to get from Fort Stockton to Fredericksburg, TX, the nearest bit of civilization in those days, some 270 miles away. We estimated that riding hard, it would have taken about five or six days... over ground that had rattlesnakes, badgers, foxes, wolves, coyotes, wild turkeys and other birds and rodents. We made it in about 4 hours. Grateful it was by vehicle!!

Buildings have been salvaged or reconstructed to give an
historical replication of Fort Stockton as it was in the 1860s.

Fort Stockton parade grounds and officers quarters today.