At a grove of mesquite and wild china trees by a creek near here, Capt. R. B. Marcy's expedition camped Oct. 7, 1849, while blazing the famous Marcy Trail. They saw nothing deadlier than quail and wild turkeys in the area, but the next day, tragedy struck.
Lt. Montgomery Pike Harrison (1826-1849)—grandson of President Wm. Henry Harrison and older brother of later President Benjamin Harrison—left camp alone to scout a ravine. When he did not return by dark, the company fired a Howitzer to signal him, but received no answer. Searchers the next day found signs that Harrison, always friendly to the Indians, had stopped and smoked with two Indians, believed to be Kiowas.
He was disarmed, however, taken one mile south and then shot with his own rifle. The Indians scalped and stripped the body and threw it into a ravine on Canyon Creek. They were pursued, but never captured.
Marcy later reported that when his men heard of Harrison's death, many hid their faces "to conceal their tears." The body was packed in charcoal and taken in a coffin made from a wagon bed to Ft. Smith for burial.
Despite this tragedy, Marcy's Trail became a major wagon road, taking gold seekers to California and troops and supplies across the West Texas frontier.
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