This story appears in an unbelievably dense book of genealogy about the Miller family of central Kentucky where I was born. We have a copy of "The Miller Book" which I used long ago when compiling our family tree, and I later discovered the book is available online, having been digitized by someone I never identified. It is not searchable and was obviously done with zero editing, but it is a rich repository of names and stories for anyone patient enough to drill around to discover them. This is one such story. Incidentally, there is a Wikipedia article about this character.
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William Wallace, born in 1816, emigrated to Texas, and the same person known in Texas as Big Foot Wallace. (See Chap. 1, Sec. 37.) A sketch of whose life dictated by Captain David McFadden, a veteran of three wars, and a personal friend, chum, and comrade of Wallace, now living at Waco, Texas, is here given, towit:"Sketch of William Wallace."
"I became acquainted with Big Foot Wallace in 1849. I think his real name was William, but am not certain as to that. He was from Virginia to Texas, in the year about 1835. He had a brother and cousin who were in Fannin's massacre at Goliad* and he came to Texas to avenge their death. He spent his life understanding their mode of fighting best.
Maier [?] prisoners of Mexico, while in prison he drew a white bean. Mexican's shot their prisoners in those days, except those drawing white beans. Every tenth bean was white (black) and every one who drew a white one was spared. He being one of the lucky ones. He served through the Mexican War, belonging to Ben McCulloch's Company and Jack Hay's Regiment of Texas Rangers. I understand he was a descendant of the Wallaces of Scotland. He was about six feet, two inches tall, weighed about 200 lbs., raw bone, and a powerful man.
My first association with him was at Austin, Texas, our Capital where he was camped under a big Live Oak Tree. He was fond of hunting and there being plenty of game he kept himself in amunition in this way, and was always ready to go for the Indians. While in camp at Austin, he fell in love with a girl, he made up his mind the next time he called on her, he would propose to her, but he was called out, and before he got back he took fever and all his hair came out, so he decided not to go back until his hair grew out again, as he was a hard looking customer anyway. He went up on the Colorado river to a cave in which he had stayed often, this cave being on an Indian trail. Then he greased his head with bear's oil, thinking that would grow hair, but it failed to do the work, and while he was in this cave, they made up a scout in Austin and he went with them upon the Llano river about 150 miles above Austin, Texas. They wanted him with them because he was a good scout and Indian trailer. When they reached the Llano river the Indians began to shoot up smokes, which could be seen for miles around, these smokes were signals used by the Indians as their knowledge of the enemy being in the country. So Wallace and his men struck camps for the night. Wallace told the Captain of the scout that he wanted to get up the following morning about two hours before day, prospecting and looking for signs of Indians, as he knew there were plenty of them in the surroundings.
The Llano river is a tributary of the Colorado river, which is surrounded by a very rough and mountainous country and exceedingly deep gulches. On the morning he was awakened and started for a trail and while he was rounding the bend in one of these gulches which made a very short and narrow bend, he found himself face to face with a very large Indian, being too close to each other to use their fire arms, and also, being somewhat surprised, they each stood eyeing the other for a minute and then they made a dash at each other and clinched.
Wallace stated that he could throw his enemy very easily, but on account of the Indian being naked and greased with bear's oil, which made him so very slick that he could not hold him on the ground. After throwang him several times repeatedly and finding that he was not accomplishing much, he decided he must try some other means of conquering his enemy, or else he would never peruse the smiling countenance of his lovely maiden in Austin, Texas, again: after clinching once more his breath coming short, he made a desperate effort to throw the Indian as hard as possible, and in this he succeeded, throwing him very hard with his head upon a rock, which rendered him unconscious, this affording Wallace an opportunity to get his knife, he did so, and stabbed the Indian a death blow, but the Indian revived for a little, and stood throwing himself upon Wallace once more, he drew his knife, but being too weak by this time, he fell dead with the knife in hand which planted
its point in the earth.
Wallace stated that he buried him to the best of his ability with chunks and rocks, and then returned to camp with a report of his mornings adventures. The scouting party remained in this camp for about one week, but accomplished very little, as the Indians had discovered them and fled. Wallace said afterwards that on account of his hair being so slow in growing out that he lost the pride of his heart, as some other man had captured her during his absence. He afterwards was captured by the Indians who were very much afraid of him. and at their Chief's command he was tied to a stake to be burned alive.
The Indians then begun to bring their wood and fuel, piling it around him when an old Indian squaw interferred by begging for his life, pleading with the chief not to kill him, but turn him over to her. She succeeded in her pleadings and Wallace remained with her and chumned with one of her sons who was near his own age for about six months, but all the time he was watching his chances of escape, so finding an opportunity he left them and returned to his own Texas settlements.
Wallace died in Freeo County, Texas, south west of San Antonio, Texas, on his ranch last February two years ago, 1904, having reached the age of eighty years and never was married, but lived the lonesome life of a bachelor. Wallace was a fearless, but kind hearted man, spending the earliest and best days of his life on the frontiers of Texas, protecting the many helpless settlers therein.
I have given you the history of Wallace to the best of my remembrance from first acquaintance with him, but I am sorry to say that most of the dates I have forgotten. The other parties you refer to I have either forgotten, or else was never associated with them. I forgot to state that on one of his scouting trips with a company he killed a very large Indian who had an enormous foot, hence his name Big Foot Wallace.
Yours Truly,
January 11, 1907. D. McFadden.
Captain McFadden, the veteran of three wars, was a comrade, associate, and chum of Wallace, and he himself had had many thrilling experiences on the Texas frontiers, and had many engagements with the Comanches and Mexicans, and was no mean scout. He is now resting at his home in McLennon County, enjoying the comforts of home, peace and happiness, the reward of the services of such men as himself and Wallace.
Additional sketch, furnished by Mrs. Rebecca J. Fisher, President of the William B. Travis Chapter, Daughters of the Republic of Texas, Austin, Texas, Capital "State Librarian."
"William A.. "Big Foot" Wallace."
William A. Wallace was born in Lexington, Rockbridge County, Va., in the year 1S16. He went to Texas in 1836, a few months after the battle of San Jacinto, for the purpose, he says, of taking pay out of the Mexicans for the murder of his brother, and his cousin. Major Wallace, both of whom fell at "Fannin's Massacre." He landed first at Galveston, from Galveston. Wallace went to La Grange, then a frontier village, where he resided until the spring of 1839, when he moved to Austin, just before the seat of Government was established at that place.
He remained at Austin until the spring of 18-10, when finding that the country was settling up around him too fast to suit his notions, he went over to San Antonio, where he resided until he entered the serivce. He was in the battle of Salado, in the fall of 1842. In the fall of 1842, he volunteered In the "Mier Expedition." After his return from Mexico, he joined Colonel .Jack Hays's Ranging Company, and was with it in many of those desperate encounters with the Comanches and other Indians, in which Hays, Walker, McCulloch and Chevalier gained their reputation as successful Indian fighters.
When the Mexican War broke out in 1846, Wallace joined Colonel Hay's regiment of mounted volunteers, and was with it at the storming of Monterey, where he says he took full toll out of the Mexicans for killing his brother and cousin at Goliad in 1836.
After the Mexican War ended, he had command of a ranging company for some time, and did good service in protecting the frontiers of the state from the incursions of the savages. Subsequently he had charge of the mail from San Antonio to El Paso, and though often waylaid and attacked by Indians, he always brought it through in safety. He is now (1870) living upon his little ranch, thirty miles west of San Antonio.
Sketch of Wallace's life in "The Adventures of Big Foot Wallace, The Texas Ranger and Hunter, by John C. Duval."
Wallace paid a visit to his old stamping ground, Austin, in 1889. For a longer sketch see "Early settlers and Indian Fighters of South west Texas. By A. J. Sowell" pp. .53-88.
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