James Robert Dowell
Our family knew very little about my father's past, only that his father, Elijah, was a kind old man. Our father refused to discuss it and took whatever there was to tell, to the grave with him.
There were rumors amongst my oldest brothers and sisters that our grandpa Elijah, did time in a Texas Penitentiary for who knows what? What could he have possibly done to deserve a prison sentence? If so, could this have alienated him from his family?
After many years, a kindled desire to seek my ancestry, led to an astonishing discovery. I found out that my great, grandfather was the first mayor of El Paso, Texas. As a young man, he was in the Mexican-American War, was captured and spent eight months in a Mexican prison.
My amazing ancestry left me honored to be a Dowell. Why did my father fail to share it with me and what other secrets did he keep hidden?
A desire at a young age to write and understand human behavior, brought James to seek a major in Behavorial Science and a minor in English Literature.
He began his professional career in 1962 with T.R.W. Systems, an aerospace corporation. This involved processing data on various missile firings at Cape Canaveral, Florida, and preparing reports for engineers. His tenure of eight years ended with the landing of astronauts on the moon in 1969. His layoff due to government cutbacks, resulted in his seeking and obtaining employment with the California Department of Corrections in 1972. His assignment to death row, where the notorious Charlie Manson followers were housed, as well as an assignment to the phychiatric ward, gave him the opportunity to utilize his writing skills. This included incident and disciplinary reports, as well as directives, policies and procedures. Upon retiring after twenty five years of service, he had reached the level of Supervising Counselor.
James is currently employed at a private institution for mentally challenged minors.
His continued desire to express himself through his literary talents, has resulted in many short stories and this, his second book. He truly feels that his desire and ease of expression is a gift from above, that he deeply appreciates.
Benjamin's business ventures began to blossom, along with success came some troubles and problems. Benjamin was overheard to say "it wasn't long before I found out that keeping a saloon was a mixed job. It didn't only mean selling drinks and cigars and running gambling games, it meant keeping out of trouble by not playing any favorites in little fusses, and keeping little fusses out of the saloon. It was also necessary to keep an eye on the bad men who wanted to start trouble. "There were times it wasn't easy, but I kept my mouth shut most of the time, and didn't have but mighty little trouble". Yet, with all the manipulating Benjamin did to keep trouble out of his saloon, it found him and involved him whether he liked it or not. If he had been the type to notch his gun for killings, he could have cut a few grooves. He had a steady eye, and his goatee his daughter Mary called cornstalks, as well as his prematurely gray hair, lent him an air of authority. He became known around town as "Uncle Ben" a friendly, helpful sort of guy who was always trying to patch up trouble and go by the "live and let live" policy.
In the fall of 1855, Benjamn was awakened in the night by the loud barks from his dogs. He quickly got out of bed and looked in his corral and discovered that all the horses were gone except one. His suspicion centered on two men known as William Gifford and William McElroy who had fled after breaking into the saloon taking three guns and other articles. McElroy had a bad reputation for killing two men in California. Their escape route had been North toward Las Cruces, New Mexico. There was a robbery of the Custom's house safe at about the same time, with a loss of $2,300, part of which was government funds and the rest belonged to various individuals. It was noted that McElroy and a few of his friends were also involved in this robbery as well. Benjamin and his friends were able to track down and recapture his livestock except for two prize horses. Eight months later, McElroy heard that Benjamin had been telling people that he was responsible for the theft and wanted to settle accounts with him, especially for stealing his livestock. When McElroy heard this, he began to make threats on Benjamin's life. Coming in from Indian country on August 6, 1856, McElroy and his friend Gordon, headed for the small town of San Elizario to spend the night. They sought refreshment in William Fords bar, unaware that he was a close friend of Benjamin's.
As liquor loosened their tongues, Ford picked up the information that they planned to go to Benjamin's saloon early the next morning. They plotted that one would go inside and ask for a drink, while the other waited outside. When Benjamin turned his back to get the liquor, he would be shot and robbed. William Ford played along with the would be killers, until he got all the information he needed. William wrote a note about the plot and had a fast rider carry it to Benjamin. When his saloon-grocery store opened the next morning, a few well armed friends were hidden behind the cracker barrels. Then, right on schedule, the robbers showed up.
