Freestone County, Texas
Reflections



Freestone Past/Present
J.R. “Sonny” Sessions

Silver Treasure

       Every area has lost treasure stories, here’s one of ours.
 Before the Texas Revolution, Mexicans sometimes brought
Silver by pack trains to New Orleans for minting. The route was 
Along the old Antonio Road to Nacogdoches, then to New 
Orleans. On one of these trips, a train of sixty pack mules 
discovered before arriving at the Trinity River, that it was being 
followed by warlike Indians. In order to avoid the savages, the 
Mexicans turned northward through Freestone Co. for a river
Crossing. Burleson Hill and Pilot Knob two conspicuous 
elevations served as landmarks guiding them toward the river 
crossing at Pine Bluff.  The Indians discovered the detour and 
followed. Hastily the silver was buried this side of the river 
between Pilot Knob and Pine Bluff in the vicinity of the big cave 
Shortly thereafter the Indians attacked and killed all but two of the 
Mexicans.
  Years later an old Mexican came to Pilot Knob and hired himself 
to a planter whom he told of the tragedy. He sought the silver but 
claimed he never found it because the country was grown up so. 
The late Captain W.B. Waldrom who heard the story in l879 stated 
that the neighboring Malone’s and Oliver’s searched for the 
treasure over a period of years without success.
  In l976 Jack Alexander who now deceased told me that as young 
Teague Boy Scout that he along with Emory Collett and a Porter
Boy spent one summer trying to find buried treasure from old tales.
He said there was a marked trail from Pilot Knob near the Trinity
River to Burleson Hill. There were marks in sandstone rocks with 
arrows or turkey feet like figures and some writing in Spanish. A
Mexican man had gone ahead of them by a few weeks and they   
found where he had been digging,
  Another version of the Mexican pack train is that it was hiddne in 
the water at Lake Port, a small natural body of water east of Butler.
  Avery McKinney tells he found a big rock with turkey tracks 
engraved, also large empty place under the rock where someone 
had dug.
  There are many more treasure stories in our history. Some may be 
true and the treasure still there-if it ever was.

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Salt
  One of the absolute necessities for life is salt. This could be a big
problem for early settlers as usually few places available, there no 
corner stores to go and get some for a quarter. It could be very 
expensive and hard to come by. Remember the old saying “not 
worth his salt”.
  In the early days our area blessed with natural salt-water springs
or seeps and salt licks in eastern Freestone and western Anderson
Counties. In the area near   the salt domes   used for propane and 
other storage today early settlers came for their salt. The salt water 
was boiled in large cast iron pots similar to cast iron wash pots 
until nothing left but the salt which not pure but usable. 
  This salt used for cooking, preservation of meat especially pork.
Mrs. Beth Coleman Christian still has some of the boiling pots
used by her Carter ancestors. This probably a time consuming task
and travel there and back a big problem as there no real roads and 
wagons pulled by oxen probably used. Feel like this a big trip from
our area and being so near the river a little fishing done too

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Grandpa’s Report
         The Teague Historical Assn. Sponsoring a large Treasure
Sale to raise funds in the preservation and restoration of the 
historic old Teague Hotel located next door to the Museum.
Items are needed for this sale. The sale will be Saturday, 
September 27th. Anyone with donations please contact any member 
of this group or Betty Allwine.

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