Hi Pat: Your query rang a bell for me, and sure enough, I am looking at two photos of their tombstone, with an article, A TRAGEDY OF THE CIVIL WAR, in REPRINT OF 100 YEARS IN
BANDERA by J. Marvin
Hunter, page 63. One photo is a close up with all the names legible, and other shows the tombstone behind a barbed wire fence.
“Inscribed on the tombstone are the names of the men as follows: “C. J. SAWYER, W. M. SAWYER, GEORGE
THAYER, WILLIAM SCHUMAKE, JACK
WHITMIRE, JACK KYLE, JOHN
SMART, MR.
VAN WINKLE. DIED JULY 25, 1863â€
Here is the complete article, which is undated.
“When the country was in the throes of internecine strife many tragedies occurred that did not reflect credit upon the communities wherein they took place. Almost every county in this state had its hangings and murders of men who did not espouse the cause that was lost.
Bandera county did not escape the stigma that attached itself to the perpetration of a crime that was wholly uncalled for and without reasonable excuse. However, it is in a measure gratifying to know that the perpetrators of the blackest crime that stained the pages of Bandera’s history were men who did not belong in this county, but were citizens of other sections, and therefore no blame can be placed upon the citizenry of this county which has always been of the highest order.
“In 1863 a party of men, who, not caring to take sides in the great struggle that was being waged between the North and the South, left their homes in
Williamson County,
Texas, and started to Mexico. They were well provided with good mounts, heavily armed, possessed of several hundred dollars in cash, and were fully equipped for the long journey to the neutral republic on the other side of the
Rio Grande. This party of eight men and a boy passed through
BANDERA and stopped here for a day or so, resting their horses and buying supplies as they needed for the trip. They did not make any secret of their destination or the cause of their going, but openly stated that they were on their way to Mexico, to avoid conscription.
“At the time there was stationed at Camp Verde, twelve miles north of
BANDERA, a force of cavalry. When it became known that this part of men were in the country and going to Mexico, a detachment of twenty five men under command of a Major Alexander set out to apprehend them. When the detachment reached
BANDERA the men had gone, but they were overtaken on
Squirrel Creek, below Hondo, and were promised a fair and impartial trial by court martial if they would surrender. They gave up their arms and in company with the soldiers started back, little dreaming that they would never see another sun rise. When the party reached the Julian, two miles east of
BANDERA, late in the afternoon they went into camp for the night. After supper some of the men suggested that they hang the prisoners right there. Others opposed such outrageous action, but those opposing were overruled, and some of them left camp, refusing to have anything to do with the crime, or even witnessing it. The officer in command seemed to give his consent and the unfortunate prisoners were hanged, one at a time, to a live oak tree. A hair rope was used and as each man strangled to death, he was cut down, the noose left on his neck, and another one pulled up to slowly strangle. One of the prisoners requested that he be shot, and his request was granted. He was shot through with a full charge, the ramrod being left in the gun and penetrated through his body.
Joe Poor, who lived over on Middle Verde, was camped near the scene of the murder that night, but did not hear the disturbance. Next morning he went out to look for his horses that had strayed away from his camp, and he came upon the bodies of the men. Seeing the ramrod protruding from the body of one of them he mistook it for an arrow, and thought they had been slain by Indians. He hastened to
BANDERA and gave the alarm, and a party composed of O.B. Miles, George
Hay, John
Pyka, Robert
Ballentyne, Amasa
Clark and others hastened to the scene of the murder, and found the bodies of eight men lying scattered about, just as they had been left. An inquest was held and a verdict rendered, attaching blame to the major and his party. A shallow grave was dug, the eight bodies, wrapped in blankets, were placed into it and covered with dirt and stones.
“The boy who was with this party of
Williamson County men, was taken away by the murderers, and was never heard of again. That his fate was no one knows.
“After the war ended and courts were again functioning, the men responsible for this crime were indicted by the grand jury in this county but all had disappeared. They were never brought to trial, although the case was continued from term to term. The
Court records of
Bandera county will reveal the names of the men who stood charged with the crime of murdering helpless prisoners.
“In after years a monument was erected over the g rave of the murdered men, and it stands there today in an out of the way place in the former Frank
Pyka pasture, now owned by J. M. Cornelison. Inscribed on the tombstone are the names of the men as follows: “C. J. SAWYER, W. M. SAWYER, GEORGE
THAYER, WILLIAM SCHUMAKE, JACK
WHITMIRE, JACK KYLE, JOHN
SMART, MR.
VAN WINKLE. DIED JULY 25, 1863.†In its seclusion the grave is never disturbed, while in the springtime wild flowers grow and bloom over the mound ,songbirds make melody in the nearby trees and the soft breezes that blow through the branches chant a requiem to the departed souls.â€