(Editor's Note: This is the first of a two-part series.  The second installment will appear in next Sunday's Daily Empire, Nov. 22.)

Approaching the town of Bluff Dale on U.S. Highway 377, one often wonders, as he looks south "what is beyond that low ridge of mountains?"  An air of mystery grows as you head southeast over a winding gravel road through the sparsely settled ranch country.

Mrs. Norton KEAHEY had accompanied us and, being familiar with the eastern part of Erath County, she could readily point its places of interest and call the names of the few people who lived along the highway.

Our destination was the Rock Church community, the old church being a landmark in this part of the country.  The road was good but it had no particular course, except that the general direction was southeast following one land line, then another, through the low mountains covered with scrub oaks, elms, a few mesquites, a motte of liveoaks here and there and grass lands between.  Occasionally there were glimpses of "bottom land" to the east which is really the Paluxy River.  The river flows around Bluff Dale to the north and east, then on to meet the Brazos River near Glen Rose.  A smaller branch, the South Paluxy, flows into the principal stream east of Bluff Dale.

The section we are describing is near the Hood-Erath County line and, en route to Rock Church, there is an insignificant looking little branch hardly wide enough for a bridge, which marks the boundary between the two counties.

Rock Church, the Paluxy community, Paluxy River, including near-by Richardson Creek, are all so interlocked until their history is almost one highly interesting story.  Rock Church, about six miles southeast of Bluff Dale, is very close to the river bank — so close, in fact, that you could almost toss a rock from the church to the water.  The church is in Hood County, but is so near the county line that churchgoers were from both counties — Erath, Hood and possibly some of them from the western edge of Somervell County.

In a way, this community and the surrounding area along the Paluxy and Richardson Creek is a little world of its own — a kind of Shangri-La.  At one time, in the earliest days of the white settler, it was even more self-sufficient.  They raised wheat and corn for food, processed at a grist mill on the river; trees were felled for logs with which to build houses and furniture was hand-made.  The people were self reliant largely for the reason that they were too far away from any source of supply, also for the reason that money was scarce.  The first white men, with any thought of settling rode into this valley in 1855.

The two men who formed the vanguard were Jesse CARAWAY and Isaac COWAN, followed in 1857 by Ben TENNIN [sic] and Andrew JACKSON.  They were from Tennessee.  However, CARAWAY and COWAN were natives of North Carolina.  No doubt they were drawn to the Paluxy valley on account of a certain similarity between this and Tennessee.  Both streams, Paluxy and Richardson Creek, are spring fed and, although the flow may be weakened to some extent, there is still a steady stream at almost any time of year.  In the valley lands the grass was belly deep to their horses.  No wonder COWAN wrote back to his wife that they had found the "flitter tree and honey pond." whatever that might mean.  No doubt, it was a colloquial expression equivalent to the "land of plenty."

After much preparation and four years later, the little caravan of four families arrived to settle their lands in [the] Paluxy and Richardson Creek valleys.  The families were: CARAWAYs, COWANs, JONES[es] and PATEs.  After about an eight weeks trip they arrived at their destination in October 1859.  A note of sadness marred their trip.  On the way a little girl five years of age of the COWAN family, died and was buried near Little Rock, Arkansas.

The original families have passed on but many of their descendants are still in the valley and adjacent territory.  They love the mountains and streams, their cattle and goats, their homes hid away from the frenzy of the crowd, their hunting dogs, riding horses, good neighbors — all of which go to make up their way of life.

Rock Church was built in 1871–1872 on land donated for a church, school and cemetery by Jesse CARAWAY, with the provision that it never be used for anything else.  However, Rock Church was not the first community nor the first place of worship.  There was an older community called Rock Falls down river a few miles and an older church at Shumate Flat.  The Shumate Flat combination church and school was near the confluence of Richardson Creek and the Paluxy and it was discontinued for a very unique reason — some of the settlers wanted to use the building for weekend dances and this was "too much" for a more sedate faction.  The result was the gift of land by Jesse CARAWAY and the erection of Rock Church.  It was built for a permanent structure, with walls of native rock 18 inches thick and to a height of 18 feet to take care of the Masonic Lodge hall on the second floor.

The building stands today, as shown by the accompanying picture as a monument to hardy pioneers.  It is regrettable that the building has fallen into disuse and part of the windows gone.

An interesting feature is the care with which the rock masons and carpenters did their work.  The walls are much thicker than customary and the carpenter work shows skill in fitting joints.  All windows had been of the old fashioned four light kind and originally, wooden blinds had been hinged to outside openings for protection.  Inside walls were plastered and troweled to a smooth finish, which was an invitation, after the building was partially abandoned, for boys and girls to etch their names.  For instance, on one blackboard are the names of G.E. FOSTER, Fred EWERS, John YEARWOOD, Beason D. JOHNSON.  On another blackboard Ann HAZELWOOD, Paula CANTRELL and Pattie CASHON.  Not to be outdone, the lovers made their bid for publicity as follows: "June loves Anthony and "James loves Donna."  The building had two massive fireplaces — not just for looks for they show years of wear and the sides are smoke stained.

School Vacated

Interested women had planted wild chinas near the walls and the ever-present iris plants were struggling along as a kind of link with the golden past.  The public school there has been discontinued and the students are being transported to Stephenville, Tolar and Cedar Point.  The loss of school funds, of course, has taken away the means of maintaining the building.

The community deserves great credit for the excellent upkeep of the cemetery.  It is likely the largest rural cemetery in this entire territory and is dotted with scores of handsome monuments.  The cemetery is a short walk from Rock Church.  Names on the monuments area review, in a way, of the ones who have made the community great, a partial list as follows: KEAHEY, JONES, BAKER, JACKSON, BUCK, CARAWAY, COWAN, TENNIN [sic], GREEN, WRIGHT and many others.  Among the number is the name of a departed service man, Frank TROUTMAN, who had served his country in World War One — he had been a member of Texas' S.F.C. Air Service.

Possibly one of the best informed persons on Rock Church and near-by communities is Mrs. KEAHEY of Bluff Dale.  She came to Rock Church as a school teacher and spent many years instructing their children, many of whom, as ... (Continued on Page Seven)

Erath-Hood County Settlement One of First in Area

... grown men and women still live in the valley and others who have successfully entered business and professional careers elsewhere.  In 1920 she married George Norton KEAHEY, a native son, who operated a cattle ranch about ten miles south of Bluff Dale.  He was known over West Texas as a breeder of fine cattle.  Actually his ranch was a continuation of one established by his father in 1875.  They raised Scottish Shorthorn, part of the original herd having been imported from Scotland.

"I joined right in on cattle raising," said Mrs. KEAHEY "and when it was necessary, I mounted my horse and rode right along with my husband in looking after the cattle."  She continued, "Our herd of Shorthorns was one of the purest strains to be found and cattlemen came from far and near to purchase bulls or foundation stock from us.  Often these men would come and stay several days with us, lodging at our spacious home, just taking their time in selecting the animals they wanted to buy."

"We experienced drouth years when times were difficult but Norton and I loved our pure-bred herd and managed to bring them through intact.  It was heartening, when conditions were at their worst, that Norton received telegrams from the American Shorthorn Breeders Association of Chicago offering him any financial assistance he might need to keep his pure-bred herd together."

"Norton had established a record for integrity as a cattle breeder and the Association offered to give him every support."

Ranching was a far cry from school teaching, just as Rock Church was a long way from Dallas, her former home, but, as Mrs. KEAHEY said, "I enjoyed every day of my new way of life."

Mrs. KEAHEY, a widow, has sold the ranch years ago and now lives in her comfortable home in Bluff Dale.

Leaving Rock Church, we drove across a bridge to the east side of the Paluxy River and were soon within sight of the Bruce CARAWAY farm-ranch home.  It is a large rock veneer house in a historic setting.  Some of the auxilliary buildings around the residence are the ones which have served the CARAWAYs for three generations.  A small four room house in the rear was there during the lifetime of his grandfather, Jesse CARAWAY.  Today, it serves as a play room for the grandchildren when they come on a visit.  Mr. and Mrs. CARAWAY preside over a lovely home, with all its conveniences and kitchen gadgets.  They own over 900 acres of what is termed "bottom land" along the east bank of the Paluxy — nearly all fertile farm land or set in grass for a pasture.  Stately pecan trees grow on their land near the river, thus completing a beautiful pastoral scene.

Marauding Indians

But it has not always been peace and quiet on the CARAWAY ranch.  This is the very land acquired by his grandfather, Jesse CARAWAY, when he and his friend Isac [sic] COWAN rode out into this frontier wilderness.  These first pioneers had hardly moved into their log houses when they were threatened by marauding Indians.  Genial Mrs. Bruce CARAWAY repeats a story as it was handed down to her family: "There were several of the CARAWAY boys (Bruce's father one of them), sons of Jesse CARAWAY, and one of the boys, together with a neighbor named MAYBERRY, had gone to East Texas for a supply of bois d'arc and other lumber for building wagons.  Other CARAWAY boys were out hunting wild hogs for the winter's meat supply.  The Indians took advantage of this situation and made a raid but Jesse CARAWAY and a few other men defended themselves.  In the succeeding battle Jesse was wounded by an arrow which pierced his shoulder.  They detailed one man to him, while others pursued the Indians and recovered stolen horses.  It may have been that the Indian's reason for singling out Jesse was that he rode a fine stallion, which would have been quite a prize for the Red Man.  One Indian woman was in the raiding party, riding a slow horse, and this very fact possibly led to the Indian's ill fate."

Bruce, in his quiet way, let Mrs. CARAWAY tell the Indian story, then led the way to the back yard dotted with small buildings, explaining each one and pointing to a certain location which had been the homes for slaves.  Then, indicating another direction, he said: "There was where the large corral was located when I was a boy.  At that time I thought no horse, not even the Mustang, was too tough for me — I rode them all"  "In fact, this is one way I earned some cash.  I broke horses at $5.00 a head, with the understanding that I could work them on the ranch for a while."

Pecan gathering time was near when we talked to the CARAWAYs and they expected the "pickers" to be all over the place when this work gets under way.  Bruce CARAWAY has claimed his present location as home all his life, with the exception of a six-month's period immediately after he and Mrs. CARAWAY were married.  They rented a home for this short period.

Raised Duck And Geese

But, with all the attraction of the home place "you can't keep the children on the farm."  One of the boys, Forrest, has a responsible place with Lone Star Gas Company; another, R. Bruce Jr. is a surgeon at Wharton, Texas and Charles is with the Health Department at New Orleans, Louisiana.  As we entered the CARAWAY living room, they had stopped the operation of a shiny new sweeper, to greet us.  In contrast to the conveniences they now have, Mrs. CARAWAY recounted the way of living when the first CARAWAY settled on this very land.  Said Mrs. CARAWAY: "They raised ducks and geese in grandmother's day — this was the source of feathers for filling pillows, as well as helping provide meats for the table.  They had sheep and used the wool for weaving cloth for the Confederate soldiers.  Dye for cloth was obtained from the sap of native plants."

"Jesse CARAWAY had a great number of Negro salves [sic] and, when he announced their freedom to them, they wanted to stay in their quarters.  He had always been good to them and, besides that, they had no idea where to go."

Re-crossing the Paluxy, our course was Southwest and, as we rounded a turn in the highway, there came into view the substantial ranch home of Wendell KEAHEY and, on the same location, were three log houses, evidently used for storage.  I knew "right off" that here in these log houses was a wealth of history.  The largest of the three had reached the venerable age of 95 years, but the middle sized one (pictured below) was older and, from the best information, was built before the Civil War.

Mrs. Wendell KEAHEY was at home, or rather, near the "South pasture" hunting Indian arrow heads and pieces of stone mortars used by Indians in preparing food.  Mrs. KEAHEY is interested in geology and Indian history and she found many stone articles on their ranch, indicating that Indians, in numbers, had been there in an early day.  A mountain ridge can be seen to the South and Mrs. KEAHEY said that Mr. KEAHEY's grandmother had watched Indians as they traveled single-file along the mountain top.  The two Mrs. KEAHEY had to explain to me how their husbands were related, which turned out to be distant cousins.

Wendell works as a carpenter part time but his real interest is in his ranch, which has belonged to some member of the KEAHEY family for almost a century.  Mrs. KEAHEY brought out a file of title papers relating to their ranch, which was acquired at different times.  Said she, "Mr. BRYANT, I thought these might be of some interest," and, indeed, she was right.  Among the papers the original copy of a grant from the State of Texas to Elijah J. KEAHEY for 160 acres of land, the grant signed by Governor John IRELAND.  It is not a fac-simile signature and has every appearance that Governor IRELAND signed in regular longhand.  John S. HYATT, grandfather of Mrs. Joe B. FREY of Stephenville, was County Clerk at the time and recorded the grant (or patent) on October 17th 1883.  In addition to being an actual settler, Elijah J. KEAHEY had served his State on the Ranger force.  But here is the interesting description: "Beginning 190 varas North of the Northwest corner of a survey for T.H. DIXON on a Pile Of Rocks for the Northeast corner of this survey, thence West 950 varas to a Pile Of Rocks for the Northwest corner and so forth.

On July 5th 1936 the Fort Worth Star-Telegram carried an article giving a brief history of the widow, Mrs. E.J. KEAHEY (also referred to as Mrs. M.O. KEAHEY) at the time 175 of her friends gathered at her home to celebrate her 87th birthday.  It had become a custom for the entire community to help celebrate her birthday each year.

Accompanying the article is a picture of Mrs. KEAHEY as she stands under the live-oak trees with a long rifle in hand "ready for any emergency" — just as she did when she and the country were young.

(Continued Next Week)

[ PHOTO CAPTIONS ]

BRUCE CARAWAY — CARAWAY stands beside another of the old buildings in the Rock Church community.  This particular structure was built by CARAWAY's grandfather Jesse CARAWAY, an Indian Fighter. (p. 6)

HOOD COUNTY LANDMARK — Old Rock Church and school house stand six miles southeast of Bluff Dale.  The well-built, still useful structure was built in 1871-72. (p. 6)

1869 VINTAGE — This log house is on the Wendell KEAHEY ranch two miles southwest of Rock Church.  The log house was built by his grandfather Elijah J. KEAHEY in 1869. (p. 7)

SOURCE:

Claude W. Bryant, "Rock Church Community Presents Picture of Early Frontier," Stephenville Empire-Tribune, Friday, 20 Nov 1964, pp. 6-7.  Microfilm copy of newspaper, Dick Smith Library, Tarleton State University, Stephenville, Texas (generously contributed by Cindy Shipman, Stephenville, Texas).

~ Go here for Part II ~

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This page last updated 14 Sep 2006.