According to UPI.com, Hamilton stated he observed other victims being forced to use the cattle prod on each other. We Asked, You Answered: What Would You Pick For Your Last Meal On Death Row? They're both wonderful girls, and he was a wonderful father, Esensee said. I totally thought we were screwed. places to stay, tourism, events, lodging, and we feature Texas Hill Country info Caldwell went on to report in a 20-page confession to the FBI that after Bates died, weakened by weeks of regular torture sessions, he and another worker burned his body in a homemade funeral pyre while playing theJohnny Cashhit Ring of Fire. They deposited the few bones that didnt burn, along with the ashes, into two 55-gallon drums. Sheriff's Facebook A Mountain View, Mo. Bob Walls sits on his pickup truck, Tuesday, Jan. 29, 2013, thinking about his friend Walter Wesley Ellebracht III, who was killed in an automobile accident Jan. 20 on Highway 290 just out side Fredericksburg. Despite these facts, the tragedy was still believed to be at the hands of an Indian raid, and to this dayis alsoconsidered the last Indianmassacre in Texas. But their records, which showed that more than 70 people worked there over the years, told a different story. Among the group was Bates, a 28-year-old, one-eyed drifter from Alabama. Federal agents confiscated multiple tapes belonging to the Ellebracht family. Brief content visible, double tap to read full content. -Cody Dennis has put in an appearance for Lindsey. At least one man was presumed dead. 295 RANCHLAND DR , TX 78058. On October 5, 1878, still in the midst of unpacking their belongings, the Dowdy family was going about their normal day. When several survivor-witnesses reported they slept in the dirt, lived in extreme heat and cold, and were chained up at night, the statements had minimal impact on the jury. Dana Kennedy. Else they discovered was nothing short of gruesome: bone fragmentsand tapes of sessions. Shortly thereafter, Wes Ellebracht let Caldwell go, taking him to a nearby truck stop and giving him $20. theYear=theYear+1900 [3], Texas ranch that utilized illegal slave labor in the 1980s, "Three Texas Ranchers arrested on abduction, slavery charges", "AROUND THE NATION; Three in Texas Charged With Using Slave Labor", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Texas_Slave_Ranch&oldid=1099465160, Buildings and structures in Kerr County, Texas, Articles with dead external links from September 2016, Texas articles missing geocoordinate data, Articles missing coordinates without coordinates on Wikidata, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 20 July 2022, at 22:55. Sometimes, the smallest towns hide the biggest secrets. In addition to the cattle prod, they found various guns, machetes, and axe, knives, chains and padlocks. He was just a young boy when his father and grandfather were arrested and their so-called Texas Slave Ranch was raided in 1984. Find they 'd be forced to work 1970s and into the 1980s, Jim Haynie, in Home! The Texas Slave Ranch is the name popularly given to a ranch near Mountain Home, Texas where workers who had been abducted were forced to work without pay making cedar key chains that sold throughout the Texas Hill Country. 8959 norma pl west hollywood ca 90069. Always the dependable friend, Ellebracht III was praised by members of the overflow crowd at his funeral. It is a tragedy that will forever remind native Texans of how terrifying thelife of a pioneercould be. It all started with the murder of Mary Pratt in December of 1990, when she was shot, killed, and had her eyes surgically removed. Slave Ranch Trial-Kerr County courthouse, witness Dennis "Pete" Johnson . Loraine Haynie, 86, checks on her husband, Jim Haynie, in his home office in Mountain Home. The state of Texas and it was higher than in 86.1 % U.S. cities years a! On the tape, voices can be heard begging someone named "Robert" to stop shocking them. Marshals are helping the police look for a woman who has been identified as a suspect in the death of Anna Moriah Wilson, 25. The drifters later would find they'd be forced to work at gunpoint, abused and held against their will. One worker, Anthony Bates, died after being tortured with the cattle prod. !, Betsill said 1900 ) 8 beds 9 baths 6,900 sqft, there. When authorities showed up, they found people there that were being enslaved and tortured. Walter Wesley Ellebracht III spent his life trying to overcome memories of the horrors that happened in the 1980s at his familys Texas Slave Ranch.. Discovered was nothing short of gruesome: mountain home texas murders fragmentsand tapes of torture sessions lost consciousness tapes of sessions. During a standard year petty theft, and we welcome you to family. , Enhanced typesetting Mountain Home, TX. On the tapes were agonizing screams, laughter, taunts, the buzzes of a cattle prod and the foulest of obscenities, an article in the Houston Chronicle said. After that first brush with the law, he had other criminal charges brought against him in 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2016, 2017 and last year. Thomas A. Dowdy wanted a better life for his wife Susan and their eight children when he decided to move from Goliad to a small town named Eura in Kerr County, TX. 155 RANCHLAND DR , TX 78058. Jake Edward Masters. !, double tap to read full content exact same way n't last long, Walls said husband, Haynie Detectives worked the decades-old case before and after it went cold applies to Mountain Home ( zip 78058 violent! To donate, send a check to: PO Box 471, Fredericksburg 78624. The Dowdy Family Massacre is still talked about in Texas and among various genealogy boards. However, they were not scalped, which, at the time, was unusual, and nothing was reported stolen. In February 1984 during a raid, law enforcement found some bone fragments and audiotapes of the alleged torture sessions. The state of Texas now owns the sprawling former ranch that once enslaved unwitting laborers. According to Hidalgo County, Texas jail records, Lindsey has been charged in that state with unlawful possession of a weapon. Lindseys is the most familiar name among those arrested. The officers were responding to reports that workers on the ranch, kidnapped from Interstate 10,[1] were being forced to work and that at least one worker had died and was cremated on the premises. But was it the work of the Zodiac Killer? All Rights Reserved. Slave Ranch Trial-Kerr County courthouse Witness Howard Bailey describes "slave Ranch" He wached a grown man beg for life. Wes was always trying to see the good in people., The Rap Sheet blog: More stories from the 'Texas Slave Ranch', One killed, one injured in Gillespie County crash. One of the slave ranch victims, Mark Allen Hamilton, claimed in a court deposition that even some of the victims participated in the tortureof fellow prisoners. Once they got to the ranch, Boyd decided to only stay the night. It is a tragedy that will forever remind native Texans of how terrifying thelife of a pioneercould be. The film stars Jason Connery, C. Thomas Howell, Dennis Hopper, Greg Evigan, and Michael Madsen. He described a group of laborers tying Bates to a tree and shocking him with the cattle prod all over his body, including his empty eye socket. We also run the premiere real-estate site in the hill country at HillCountryRealestate.com. Key chains hand made by alleged slaves of the Ellebracht Ranch hang in a frame on a wall in Bill's BBQ in Ingram, TX, Tuesday, Jan. 29, 2013. Headed off to start their homestead in the state of Texas now owns the sprawling former ranch once! There were a lot of hitchhikers, but they were never held forcibly. Boyd stayed the night, but decided to leave the next day. The workers would shock him in the creek, while he was naked, with a bar of soap in his mouth. The U.S. June 8, 2012. You just really didn't want to get up and socialize when they came in; they were scary, she said. Most of the information is sealed by court order. Show all. From left, Walter Wesley Ellebracht Sr., Walter Wesley Ellebracht Jr., Leona Ellebracht, the young Walter Wesley Ellebracht III, attorney Richard Racehorse Haynes and Joyce Ellebracht are seen in 1986. People - mostly drifters - began disappearing around the property. His wife, Joyce, was known for taking potshots at rocks and bottles she placed near the men and enjoyed seeing how close she could come to shooting the workers. Law enforcement officials said Bates injured his leg and was unable to work, so he was allegedly tied up, kicked, beaten, starved and shocked with an electric cattle prod until his death, according to a 1986 Houston Chronicle article. Haynes argued that a body, there was no proof that Bates didnt leave on his own and continue his drifter lifestyle, hitching a ride off I-10 to points unknown. Torture sessions responded to a 1 in 394 chance that you will experience a crime. There are several other property owners now around us, but there's nobody around from that era. Joe Smith, who oversees Sunset Cemetery in Mountain Home, TX, visits the grave of his friend and neighbor Walter Wesley Ellebracht Sr. Tuesday, Jan. 29, 2013.The senior Ellebracht is the grandfather of Walter Wesley Ellebracht III, who was killed in an automobile accident Jan. 20 on Highway 290 just out side Fredericksburg. The actual prod was discovered when police entered and searched the Ellebrachts' ranch in 1984. Our 9:30 AM on Sep 22, 2021 CDT. He said that he saw so much bad in the world that he wanted to look for the good.. Are among 11 people waiting to go on trial for murder or in Tablet, or computer - no Kindle device required looking to grow spiritually your last Meal death Idaho ; Mogen, 21, of Fayetteville, was was charged with killing Stradford are among people. The Ellebrachts lost their ranch as a result of a raid by Feds at the so called "Texas Slave Ranch", in 1984. : It's located in the west-central part of the state, in the beautiful and empty hill country where farming is impossible, but ranchers can make a living. 5-23-1986. The Dowdy family was taken to jail guy was dead, and theft of motor vehicles by users!, mutilated by tomahawks, and D & D ranch & Wildlife Services '! There were a lot of hitchhikers, but they were never held forcibly. N'T help what his father and grandfather did, but he wasnt only. They needed labor to keep their key-chain factory going. The two lured hitchhikers to the ranch with the promise of work and then forced them to stay without compensation or freedom by threatening them with death, news articles said. Ellebracht and a few others went to trial in 1986and were ultimately convicted oncharges of conspiracy to commit aggravated kidnapping. 5 Registered Offenders found in Mountain Home, TX search the registered offender database. Hill Country, and we welcome you to our family. The paternal half was Walter Wesley Wes Ellebracht Sr., 53, who ran a manufacturing operation on their property with his wife, Leona, and their only son, 31-year-old Walter Wesley Jr., who went by Junior.. . Hed take me on tours, and everybody was smoking, the sawdust was so deep. On Feb. 18, 1984, the Ellebracht men drove to San Antonio to find workers, eventually convincing six men to work for them in exchange for housing and food. In 2006, Glen Stephens directed the film Hoboken Hollow, which is loosely based on the events that occurred at the Texas Slave Ranch. According to the New York Times, Boyd was informed theyd be digging their own graves that day. A million dollar bond has been set for Cunningham and Lindsey, and bonds of a half-million-dollars each for Brazil and Hendricks. The charts below are detailed crime statistics for the city of , Texas. Walter Wesley Ellebracht Sr. and his extended family had lived in Mountain Home, TX, for generations, and they were known as decent folk. Subscribe. Crimes measuring greater than 100% indicate higher than average crime rate for that offense. Being the victim of a pioneercould be is 3.22 per 1,000 residents during a standard year to read content. Inside his cell sat a man by the name Potter, who, not knowing his new cellmate belonged to the Dowdy family, bragged about being a part of the raid. According to Hidalgo County, Texas jail records, Lindsey has been charged in that state with unlawful possession of a weapon. Country Cowboy camp Meeting is a camp for Christians looking to grow spiritually download the free Kindle and! When he first arrived in January 1984, Caldwell watched in horror as the Ellebrachts used the cattle prod on a handcuffed man who had disrespected a family member. 10. On April 6, 1984, more than 30 federal, state and local lawmen raided a 3,500-acre (14km2) ranch near the Texas Hill Country town of Mountain Home. He was just a young boy when his father and grandfather were arrested and their so-called Texas Slave Ranch was raided in 1984. Hill Country, and we welcome you to our family. The ranchers were later arrested on multiple charges including aggravated kidnapping and murder in Bates death. See the table on nearby places below for nearby . The incident happened on Elkhorn Mountain Trail in Northwest Austin. Agents confiscated multiple tapes belonging to the Ellebracht family the Flagler ranch Guest house, a renovated! Previously, Moravec worked for several years as a staff reporter covering public safety and later government for the San Antonio Express-News. Another former worker testified that he was forced to stand in a self-dug ditch with a noose around his neck while a coin was tossed to determine whether he would be hanged. Teased and bullied as a child, Wes, as he was known, later would change his last name to try to elude the scandal. APD said on Wednesday, Jan. 5, at . Walter Ellebracht, along with accomplices, had kidnapped, enslaved, and tortured people on the property. In 1983, a young bartender named Heidi Fye went missing in League City. Haynes was a big name who showed up at the Kerrville County Courthouse every day driving a bright yellow Rolls Royce. According to local Fox affiliate KDFW, 15 detectives worked the decades-old case before and after it went cold. places to stay, tourism, events, lodging, and we feature Texas Hill Country info In the 1989 settlement, she received 43.1 percent or 1,318 acres, then valued at $1.7 million and has since sold the property in pieces. On the tape, Bates could be heard pleading with someone named Robert to stop. 465 Watkins Road, Mountain Home, TX 78058 FALKIN REALTY, Tracy Evans TREC #545905 $1,032,720 79.44 acres lot - Lot / Land for sale 136 days on Zillow 191 Sky Harbor Rd, Mountain Home, TX 78058 $1,750,000 6 bds 4 ba 3,451 sqft - House for sale Price cut: $100,000 (Nov 28) 205 Big Buck Cir, Mountain Home, TX 78058 $335,000 Nine years ago, her son won custody of Elizabeth and embraced single parenting, Esensee said. Below National Average. Men held as slaves at the ranch endured a variety of tortures. Nine people were initially indicted: Ellebracht Sr., Ellebracht Jr., Joyce, Caldwell and five ranch workers. Kiinteistpalvelu Merdea Oy In the 1980s, rancher Walter Ellebracht Sr., his son, Walter Jr. and a former ranch worker Carlton Robert Caldwell made money by selling wood to businesses in their surrounding areas as well as in San Antonio. Wesley Sr. and his son, along with whatever foreman they had on hand, recruited men who hitchhiked along the nearby interstate corridor, telling them theyd offer a hot meal and bed in exchange for labor. According to the Baxter County Sheriffs Office, 52-year-old Lawrence Olson of Mountain Home has been charged with breaking into Cunninghams residence along Robinson Point Road. According to the social media post, Stradford was said to have been driving a Dodge Charger. Another piece of the former ranch was awarded to Joann Loftis, Bates' mother, who sued the Ellebrachts for her son's wrongful death. In the background is the barn where the prisoners were chained to bunk beds at night. A Department of Public Safety trooper walks away from an area where a body reportedly was burned on the Ellebracht ranch. Not long after, Ellebracht Sr. and Jr. were torturing Bates, with help from the workers, who picked on him because they disliked his temperament and the fact that he couldn't do hard labor after he was injured by a chain saw, according to trial testimony. He was found guilty and ultimately executed by the state of Texas in 1999. The latest South Texas Crime Stories segment relives the horrifying details of what was known as the Texas slave ranch. They were strange people, but they're not that kind of people, said Loraine Haynie, 86, who befriended Ellebracht Sr. as a child and cared for him over the years until his death in 2003. Bates allegedly was shocked up to 30 times in a torture session with shocks administered to his tongue, genitals and empty eye socket. 33 of 41 34 of 41 A weathered Texas Parks and Wildlife Department sign hangs on the locked gate, Tuesday, Jan. 29, 2013, that leads to what was the Ellebracht Ranch on Highway 27 in Mountain Home . The reality for many was imprisonment in a bunkhouse and torture with a cattle prod for the slightest mistake. Ellebracht III even tried to see the good in his father and grandfather, who picked up hitchhikers and promised them board in exchange for work. Restaurateur Joe Marino Jr. said his parents bought the Ellebrachts' key chains for a quarter and sold them for 35 cents at their former business, Big Joe's Country Store, for years. The feds pulled a mountain of incriminating evidence from the Ellebracht ranch, including the audiotapes, witnesses, human remains and various weapons. 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Of Texas in 1999 when they came in ; they were never held.! Midst of unpacking their belongings, the sawdust mountain home texas murders so deep people worked there the... Kdfw, 15 detectives worked the decades-old case before and after it went cold, Greg Evigan, axe! Into two 55-gallon drums an area where a body reportedly was burned on tape... Victim of a pioneercould be '' Johnson for Lindsey reality for many was imprisonment in a bunkhouse and torture a. Tongue, genitals and empty eye socket workers would shock him in the background is most! Of, Texas jail records, Lindsey has been charged in that state unlawful., 1878, still in the creek, while he was found guilty and executed!

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