It was almost exactly 150-years ago that a small group of men gathered a few miles from San Angelo to open a new chapter in Texas history, as the giant new county created from the frontier Bexar District held its inaugural meeting.
“Be it remembered that on the 17th day of April 1875, among other things, that there was begun and holden a special term of the honorable County Court, in and for Tom Green County.”
First County Government
With that sentence, the first official acts of the Tom Green Co. Commissioners Court were set down, as Presiding Justice F.C. Taylor, Associate Justices J.L. Millspaugh, Don Pablo Alderette and Issac Mullins, along with Sheriff Frank LaMotte and County Clerk John Lackey transacted the first county business.
According to historical reports, they had no courthouse to begin with, so one of the first things they did was rent a place, as reflected in the minutes.
“It was ordered by the court that a contract be made with James D. Spears for the rent of a house in Ben Ficklin, situated East of the ditch and North of residence of W.S. Kelly, for the purpose of a courthouse, at $10 a month until the first of November, unless terminated by mutual agreement between the court and the rentor.”
Their next official act was to order record books along with an official seal, so the County Clerk could properly mark all instruments filed with the court.
According to the records, the seals were ordered and $28 was set aside to pay for them, which included the cost of freight.
The Original Geography of Tom Green County
At that time, Tom Green County was enormous.
roughly along the 100th Meridian West.
At first, the legislature neglected to include a northern boundary for the new division, so technically the county ran clear up the panhandle for a while, and way out west, ending at the east bank of the Pecos River.
This wide-open section of Texas, with only a few federal forts for law and order, was a known haven for bandits, and many indigenous nations still roamed the southwest freely.
Law Enforcement Comes to Tom Green County
Since they already had a sheriff, the next county officials appointed by the court were four constables; G.W. Jones, William Lightner, Faustner Holguin, H.D. Bannon and Samuel DeLong.
The sheriff had the most difficult job in the early days of the county, because in addition to being the chief peace officer, he was also the tax collector.
Adding to the degree of difficulty, there were very few maps in existence at that time that actually and factually showed the boundaries of the county. The county itself did not receive such a map for their own use until 1876 when the Land Office provided them with one.
That’s when they discovered the sheriff had accidentally taxed some land outside of his jurisdiction, which the Court corrected in the record.
First Marriage License
The first marriage license in the county was issued on Feb. 10, 1875, to Charles Smith, 25, and Mary McCumber, 20, and the pair were married by the Rev. Norman Badger who was the chaplain at Fort Concho.
According to local records, the bride and groom both lived at the fort. Smith was from England and a member of the 4th Cavalry band. McCumber was from Philadelphia.
The wedding was witnessed by Lt. L.P. Hunt and Mrs. M.E. Badger.
Also found in the early court records are ear-marks and brands used by the cattlemen. All stock transferred had to pass inspection by law, and the stockmen registered their brands with the District Clerk.
On April 10, 1875, the deed of a house on the south side of the main Concho River from George Appman to A.O. Doherty for the sum of $250 was recorded.
A good lot in Santa Angela cost about $20 at that time.
Trends Set Early On
According to local records, the first expenses for the county totaled $11,501.63 from 1875 to March 31, 1878. Their largest expenses were related to criminal justice. Costs to feed and guard prisoners and pay for the courts was just under 60 percent of the budget.
Marking a Major Milestone
The Tom Green County Sheriff’s Office was celebrated by the Commissioner’s Court on April 1 for beginning its 150th year.
To date, 23 men have served as sheriff in Tom Green County. There are portraits and photographs of each one on the Sheriff’s website.
- Frank LaMotte, 1875-1876
- C.T. Henderson, 1876
- Alden McIlvain, 1877-1880
- James D. Spears, 1880-1884
- J. Willis Johnson, 1885-1892
- Gerome Shield, 1893-1900
- J.B. Allen, 1901-1904
- J.S. McConnell, 1905-1910
- Hawley c. Allen, 1911-1920
- Frank M. Duckworth, 1921-1924
- J.R. “Bob” Hewitt, 1925-1932
- Frank Van Court, 1933-1936
- E.E. “Hesse” Lowe, 1937-1944
- J.B. “Buck” Bryson, 1945-1954
- Cecil Turner, 1955-1970
- Odell Wagoner, 1971-1978
- Ernest Haynes, 1979-1992
- Ule “Pete” Skains, 1993-1998
- Dan Gray, 1999-2000
- Joe Hunt, 2001-2011
- Truman Richey 2011-2012
- David Jones, 2012-2020
- J. Nick Hanna, 2020 to present
1 Comment
I love articles like these. Thanks for the research!