Remembering Captain McNelly

By Ronnie Stanley

The Alamo is probably the most recognized facade in the world and the great losses at the Alamo and Goliad started the revolution for Texas’ Independence from Mexico, this of course occurring in 1836. A chain of events would soon unfold including the runaway scrape, in which Texans fled from the advancing Mexican army as it chased the rag tag Texicans right though our own Washington County. This same mighty Mexican army would literately be caught with there pants down just beyond the modern day Houston at San Jacinto, as General Sam Houston and his make shift army routed the slumbering Mexican army in one of the biggest upsets in history. While Mexican general Santa Anna did sign surrender, it was soon recanted and for the next 39 years numerous clashes took place between the two entities.

In 1875, the area between the Nueces River and the Pecos River was again under assault by Mexican marauders, raping, pillaging and stealing cattle.

The new Texas Governor, Richard Coke, had enough of the violent unrest from both the Indian uprising and the invaders from south of the border. For this, he created two special Ranger units with the one assigned to the south headed up by Burton resident, Leander McNelly, and the second, the Frontier Battallion, led by Captain John B. Jones assigned to the Indian detail.

In the spring of 1875, Mcnelly asked for able-bodied men to muster three miles south of Burton, under a mott of live oak trees, and from here they would head south. One young man to join this bunch was George Durham. He had made his way from Georgia and happened to meet McNelly at the drug store, (this building is now the Nesting Company flower shop in Burton ) and from this started an adventure that would last a lifetime. Richard King, owner of the King Ranch, had written the governor and told how cattle thieves were destined to break his ranch if nothing was done. The King and Kennedy ranches in south Texas are bigger then some states!!

McNelly taught his men how to ride hard and long and when confronted with a face-off of equal number of Mexican bandits, he instructed his men to not fire till he gave word. Then they should pick out one bandit, stay on him till he was done for, and then find another. While heading towards one other, the bandits started to fire with bullets, for the most part, missing their mark. Once in range, McNelly gave the word and the fight was on. McNelly went after one big bandit who hid in the tall salt grass, McNelly yelled, “help me, I am out of bullets.” At this time, the big bandit stood up and uttered, “me got you now” at which point McNelly planted a slug between the teeth of the bandit. He was very clever in these tactics. Many more of these confrontations took place, squelching the border-crossing cattle thieves and finally putting and end to the disputed land between the Pecos and Nueces rivers, known as “The Nueces Strip.”

McNelly was a sickly, small man and soon died at the age of 33. He is buried just outside of Burton, at the Mt. Zion Cemetery, near the intersection of Highways 390 and 1948. Richard King gave a 16 foot monument for his grave, as he felt he had saved the King Ranch. George Durham married one of Richard King’s nieces and in 1933 he was interviewed at his camp on the King Ranch, from which the book, “Taming the Nueces Strip” was written.

McNelly had many more adventure in his short life span and many books include him or are written about him.

On Nov. 13 we will again muster three miles south of Burton at the La Bahia Hall for a day of remembrance of Captain Leander McNelly. Hope to see you there.

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