Google Remembers The Truth About Jesse James Fossil Rim Lake Grapevine With Mom & Dad At The Cotton Bowl

Today, December 7, a date which has lived in infamy ever since this date in 1941, the Google Memories for this day, which show up daily in my email, are things I mostly remember, which does not happen too often.

The top left is from Fossil Rim Wildlife Center, located near Glen Rose and Dinosaur Valley State Park. The drive through Fossil Rim is one of the funnest things I've done in Texas. The good folks at Fossil Rim liked the webpage I made about that visit, so they mailed me an annual pass and extra tickets, so as to take someone with me. 

I never got around to going back to Fossil Rim and using that annual pass.

Top right, that is mom and dad wearing the cowboy hats I gave them when they visited Texas in January of 2009. I don't know why Google would have this as a memory of today. Hard to believe it is 13 years since mom and dad had their last visit to Texas. Seems like it was yesterday. I was able to drive mom and dad all around the Texas State Fair fairgrounds, and up close to the Cotton Bowl, due to nothing much happening on the fairgrounds on a weekday in January.

Under mom and dad is another Fossil Rim Wildlife Center photo. I think this is the entry pavilion.

Bottom right is a gravestone alleging to be the burial location of Jesse James. If I remember right, I made a webpage of this and the claim that Jesse James is buried in a cemetery in Granbury, Texas.

Just checked, yes, I made a Jesse James webpage, titled The Truth about Jesse James. 

The lower left looks to be Lake Grapevine, a location I used to frequent frequently when I lived in the DFW zone. There are miles of fun mountain bike trails at Lake Grapevine.

Seems like I made a webpage about Lake Grapevine. Yup, and it is called Lake Grapevine.

Well, that is it for today's Google memories that I actually sort of remember...

The Ongoing Search For The Truth About Jesse James

Several years ago rumor had it that Jesse James had not been killed by Bob Ford, but had escaped, living out his life in the Texas town of Granbury.

This rumor ran so far amok that at one point in time somehow an exhumation order was issued with the grave in a Granbury cemetery, thought to be Jesse James, was dug up. It was quickly determined that this was a mistake, with the digger claiming the wrong grave had been opened, but no further exhumation orders were issued, so no further grave digging was done.

Earlier in this century I made a webpage titled "The Truth About Jesse James" on my Eyes on Texas website.

The webpage about Jesse James has generated some interesting feedback over the years, including an email this morning from someone named Jsradan Radan. I have no clue how one might pronounce that first name.

Below is the email from Jsradan, followed by a couple other interesting emails I've received regarding Jesse James....

My grandmother was Gladys Parker, married name, her maiden name was Biggerstaff.  She died in 1985 in Newport, Washington. The closest birth record had her born around 1889.  Before she past away she said she had a letter from Jesse James after he supposedly died.  But shortly after she said something she "past away" at the old folks home and all of her stuff was taken and "sold" to pay for what they said she owed.  History is written by the winners or what the government wants you to know.  Think about the lies that are told as fact even in your own lifetime.  I think he escaped the tyranny of Pinkerton and the government.  GOD bless the USA, but condemn the socialistic government. If you have anything you can share with me about my grandmother so I can find my own history I would appreciate it. 

If you have anything to share with Jsradan you can email him here.

And then there was the following from Doug Bigelow...

I found your website "Eye on Texas; The Truth About Jesse James" and thought you might be able to help me with a few questions. 

As you are certainly aware one of the stories / legends about Jesse James is that Charlie Bigelow was killed in his place. Although there has been much said about the life of Jesse James and his history I have not been able to discover much about the supposed Charlie Bigelow. 

I have read that he may have been from Bigelow, MO and that the town was named after his family. I have also found that the town may have been named after a wealthy English businessman that invested in the railroad. This leads me to believe that there may have not even been Bigelows in the small town. 

With all of the alias that the outlaws used I wonder if “Charlie Bigelow” might have been one that Jesse James used thus confusing who was actually murdered. They say that Charlie looked liked Jesse, maybe it WAS Jesse? 

My hopes are that you can help me with my research on Charlie Bigelow. Did he even exist? If so, where was he actually from? If Jesse was the one actually killed by Bob Ford then what happened to Charlie? Was he even a Bigelow or was it an alias that Jesse or some other outlaw used at one time? 

Any light you can shed on this mystery would be greatly appreciated. I hope to write an article for the Bigelow Genealogical Society’s newsletter, Forge. 

Thanks for your time and efforts on this matter.

Sincerely,
Doug Bigelow

If you can shed any light on this mystery you can email Doug Bigelow here.

And then there was the email from a lady married to the great great great granddaughter of Geronimo...

The man known as deacon reminds me of some of the Jennings. They were in Kansas City, Missouri at that time, left in 1869. Albert A. Jennings, who is a cousin of the James Brother, as well and the Youngers, he was there in Missouri for while since he left Reddish River North Carolina after his marriage to his wife Mary Pollyanna Muse. 1853, the son of John Thomas Jennings and Nancy I. Irving or Irvin, one of the founding people probably founded the place between Fort Worth and Dallas. I suspect Albert A. Jennings was a member of the James gang. For some reason he changed his last name from Jennings to Gennings or Gennins, like he was on the lam.

Also have you heard the story were Jesse James sold the rifles and ammo to the Lakota Sioux that ended in the destruction of another cousin, General George Armstrong Custer, even though he really deserved what he had did to my red brothers?

Guess I would classify myself part Indian, for interest sake, i am married to the great great great granddaughter of Geronimo, through his second wife and daughter Tosey, who married Jose Ramirez. Of course my wife was born in a place called Idabel, Oklahoma.

On your page you should have the photo of Jesse James when he was there, took with some sheriff or somebody of that time.

The above email with the connection to Geronimo, plus the reference to Custer and what he did to the red brothers, may be my all time favorite feedback email I've received from my Eyes on Texas website.

This Morning I Heard From A Relative Of Geronimo About Jesse James

I get a lot of comments to my various blogs. They are often interesting. Or amusing. Or both.

But it is not my blogs that usually get the best of the comments, it is my Eyes on Texas website that usually gets the best of the comments, only on that website, I call the comments "Feedback."

Years ago, after a local bit of nonsense sprung up in Granbury about Jesse James, I added "The Truth About Jesse Jame" to my Eyes on Texas website.

This morning I got "Feedback" from a relative of Geronimo, asking me about Jesse James.....

The man known as deacon reminds me of some of the Jennings. They were in Kansas City, Missouri at that time, left in 1869. Albert A. Jennings, who is a cousin of the James Brother, as well and the Youngers, he was there in Missouri for while since he left Reddish River North Carolina after his marriage to his wife Mary Pollanna Muse. 1853, the son of John Thomas Jennings and Nancy I. Irving or Irvin, one of the founding people probably founded the place between Fort Worth and Dallas. I suspect Albert A. Jennings was a member of the James gang. For some reason he changed his last name from Jennings to Gennings or Gennins, like he was on the lam.

Also have you heard the story were Jesse James sold the rifles and ammo to the Lakota Sioux that ended in the destruction of another cousin, General George Armstrong Custer, even though he really deserved what he had did to my red brothers.

Guess I would classify myself part Indian, for interest sake, i am married to the great great great granddaughter of Geronimo, through his second wife and daughter Tosey, who married Jose Ramirez. Of course my wife was born in a place called Idabel, Oklahoma.

On your page you should have the photo of Jesse James when he was there, took with some sheriff or somebody of that time.

Looking At The Tandy Hills Periwinkles Thinking About The Paradise Center Scandal, Jesse James & Elsie Hotpepper's Murderous Worrying

I saw several new wildflowers for the first time this wildflower season, starting to work at coloring up the Tandy Hills.

I believe the blue wildflowers I saw today are known as periwinkles.

The Hills needs to amp up its coloring operation because it is one month to go til the 2011 Prairie Fest.

Hiking the Tandy Hills at noon today was overcast and windy, just like yesterday.

And now, just like yesterday, a couple hours later blue sky returns.

The Paradise Center Scandal, also known as MHMR-Gate, keeps giving me blogging fodder.

Go to today's blogging on The Paradise Center Scandal Blog to read an interesting email from the man who has been behind all the Paradise Center woes, Jim McDermott.

I just got email from Doug Bigelow asking for my assistance in finding out if a relative of his, Charlie Bigelow, might have been a Jesse James alias.

It's always something and it's usually perplexing.

Meanwhile, Elsie Hotpepper wants to know who I murdered in my nightmare. I don't really know. But I am fairly certain the victim was not Elsie Hotpepper.

Thursday Morning in Texas Going Swimming & Thinking About Jesse James

Starting off the 3rd Thursday of the 2nd month of 2011 31 degrees above freezing in formerly frigid Fort Worth, 30 degrees warmer than Seattle is right now, which is the reverse of a week ago.

The sky is bluer than what is indicated by the picture taken from my viewing portal.

I got a strange email this morning. I'm assuming it was generated in response to a webpage I long ago made about Jesse James, titled "The Truth About Jesse James," which I made when someone in Granbury was trying to prove that Jesse James was buried there.

This is what the emailer had to say...

If you did your research, you would know that Stella James, Jesse's son's wife disproved J. Frank Dalton claim, Jesse James wore a size 6 1/2 boot J. frank Dal tons foot was a lot larger! Also a forensics expert compared Jesse's known photo to J. Frank Dalton, there a somethings that change with age and somethings that don't, example Jesse's receding hair line, the spacing between his eyes, width of his forehead compared to J. Frank Dalton did not match! Jesse's mother was not a Dalton, her 2nd husband was related to the Dalton's not Zerelda!

All I got out of the above is Zerelda is an interesting name I'd not heard before.

And now it is time to go swimming.

The James Gang & Grandpa Higginbottom In Oklahoma

I got an email some time ago from Elaina Haws. I had intended to blog about what Elaina was asking me.

But I forgot about it until now.

Do you recognize any of the men in the picture?

Elaina believes her great-great-grandfather, James Buchanan Gardner is one of the men in the picture. The photo was among Elaina's great-great-grandfather's possessions.

Grandpa Gardner was associated with the Jesse James Gang. Elaina did not say if Grandpa Gardner participated in in James Gang activities. But, she did say that Grandma Gardner moved to Oklahoma where he changed his last name to Higginbottom.

Elaina says she is just trying to find out about her family history and would thank you very much if you can help identify the men in the picture.

Hiking The Hot Tandy Hills & Expecting Jesse James Great Great Great Nephew Casey James To Come To Fort Worth Tomorrow

As you can see, by looking at the stunning skyline of beautiful downtown Fort Worth, it is a bit overcast today. Semi-HOT at 84 and a bit muggy.

I had no giant lizard encounters on the Tandy Hills today.

Today may be the last I am on the Texas Prairie for awhile. BIG STORMS are in our forecast, with a lot of wet stuff, thunderstorms and possible tornado action predicted.

Tomorrow, Jesse James' alleged great great great nephew, Casey James, is coming to town, to the Fort Worth Stockyards, at 4pm to ride in a parade, where all his American Idol fans will, supposedly, scream like rabid fans. On cue. The parade goes down Exchange Avenue, the same route the Fort Worth Herd moves at the exact same time.

Nothing, except for Christmas and extreme weather, stops the Fort Worth Herd from being on the move. Maybe Casey James will be riding with the herd. He did say, on Wednesday, that he was missing Texas. You can't get much more Texas-y than riding with the Fort Worth Herd. He also said he was longin' to be back where he would hear y'all, a lot. And play with his puppy dogs.

I don't know if I'll be fixin' to head to the Stockyards tomorrow to see the manufactured brouhaha over Casey James. Though, I do find that type stuff to be amusing.