THE BATTLE OF PIRATE ISLAND
The Shootout at Tres Jacales: 30th June 1893
As readers will know by now I have a fascination with the true stories of the Old West and in the history of Texas in particular. Part of that history is the story of the Texas Rangers about whom so many myths have been formed, including the phrase “One Riot, One Ranger”. In reality this was a misquote from a statement made by Ranger Captain William “Bill” Mcdonald in Dallas in 1896 where he had been sent to prevent an illegal boxing match. When asked by the town’s Mayor where the rest of the rangers were he said “Hell ain’t I enough, there is but one prize-fight”.
From their reinstatement as a force in 1873 the Rangers gradually evolved from Indian fighters to lawmen, and the process was completed in 1891 when the frontier battalion was disbanded. From then onwards the Rangers prime role would be law enforcement supporting local lawmen such as County Sheriffs. The sparsely populated south west of Texas was a particular hot spot for the Rangers. Here many American outlaws and Mexican bandits operated as the proximity of the Rio Grande made it easy for them to cross the border into Mexico when the law got too close. Between 1894 and 1895 alone the Rangers helped local law officers on over 160 occasions, arrested nearly 700 suspects and recovered nearly 3,000 head of stolen live stock. However, they did not always triumph over their outlaw opponents as the Battle of Tres Jacales or Pirate Island shows.
THE BACKGROUND
In the 1880s and 1890s one of the key locations for outlaw activity in the south west was the so called Pirate Island. Near to the west Texas town of El Paso this 15,000-acre “island” was an anomaly. Following the American victory in the Mexican–american War of 1846 to 1848, the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo and the subsequent International Boundary Commission had confirmed that the bed of the Rio Grande formed the boundary between the United States and Mexico. Thus anything on the northern bank was part of the United States and anything on the southern bank was part of Mexico.
When the border had been set the “island” had simply been a piece of land which fell wholly into Mexico. However, over the intervening years the Rio Grande had changed its course and had swung around the island, leaving one side bounded by a dry river bed and the other the Rio Grande. As a result the bulk now fell into Texas although some fell across the border into Mexico. This meant that law enforcement on the island was difficult as, although it now fell into US jurisdiction, criminals could easily evade US laws by simply crossing into Mexico. Equally the Mexican authorities were loath to cross over into what was now American territory. In effect the island had become a sort of no man’s land.
It is estimated that by the 1890s nearly 300 people, mostly of Mexican descent, lived on or around the island. The main group of outlaws were the Olguin family who lived on a little ranch called Tres Jacals or Three Huts. They were also known as the Bosque Gang, named after the Mexican word for a wood as the island lay within a wooded area which lined that part of the Rio Grande.
THE CAST
The patriarch of the gang was Clato Olguin who in his prime had been known as a “Malo hombre” or Bad Man although by 1893 he was quite elderly, so leadership of the gang had fallen to his three sons, Jesus Maria, Antonio and Pedro, along with Jesus Maria’s son, Severio. At the time of the shoot out Antonio was in hiding having escaped from Yuma prison after being convicted of rape. The Gang was well known for stealing cattle and horses and then smuggling them across the border into Mexico and it was reported that when necessary they could call on many relatives and neighbours to boost their strength. According to Sergeant John Hughes of the Texas Rangers, “the gang grew stronger and stronger and they laughed the gringos to scorn.”
Indeed so powerful had they become that just six weeks before the shootout Ranger Captain Frank Jones requested more men to fight them. In his letter he wrote, “If I am sent back to El Paso County I hope you will allow me more than four men, as local residents say that four men will simply be murdered and will do no good, for there must be fifty of the gang that has caused so much trouble”. Unfortunately, his request was denied and his letter proved prophetic.
THE SHOOTOUT
In June 1893, El Paso County officials issued a warrant for the arrest of Jesus Maria and Severio for “horse and cattle stealing and assault with intent to commit murder.” Captain Jones was ordered to seek out the two men, serve the warrants and arrest them. In order to do so he gathered a group consisting of himself, El Paso Deputy Robert Edwards “Ed” Bryant, and four other Texas Rangers: Corporal Carl Kirchner, Privates T. F. Tucker, J. W. “Wood” Saunders, and Edwin Dunlap Aten. They would be accompanied by a young Mexican known only as Lujan as some of the stolen horses were his and he would be able to identify the stolen stock. The story of what followed is taken from the report written by Corporal Kirchner after the shoot out.
On 30th June 1893, Captain Jones and his detachment reached Pirate Island. After searching several houses in the area including rancho Tres Jacales, where they found only old Clato “some women and a boy”. The detachment was on their way back to El Paso when they spotted two Mexicans on horseback. On spotting the Rangers the two men swiftly changed direction and raced away galloping back down the road to a small village, which was described as consisting of four houses, three on the right of the road and one on the left. Having recognised the two men as their wanted felons, the Rangers set off in pursuit, but before they could catch up they saw the two men dismount and enter one of the houses. By the time the Texans caught up they saw five or six fully armed men had gathered outside the house.
As the nearest two Rangers, Corporal Kirchner and Private Saunders, called on the two fugitives to surrender they were fired on by all of the Mexicans and one bullet hit the magazine of Kirchner’s Winchester rendering it useless. From around thirty feet way Captain Jones returned fire and was quickly followed by the other members of his party who blazed away at their attackers forcing the Mexicans to seek refuge inside the house and behind its surrounding walls.
The Texans then dismounted to carry on the fight but Captain Jones was hit in the thigh knocking him over in the open road. After straightening his leg he carried on firing and when Private Tucker tried to rescue Captain Jones he was told by him to save himself. Shortly afterwards Jones was hit in the chest crying out “Boys, I am killed” just before he died. Then Lujan
advised Kirchner that they had unknowingly crossed over the border into Mexico and they should leave the area as the villagers had sent word to the Mexican Army based at the nearby Mexican town of Ciudad Juarez to came and fight the Gringo invaders.
Unwilling to leave their Captain’s body the Texans fought on for another forty-five minutes before they realised that – if they did not retire before Mexican reinforcements arrived – they would be surrounded and they could all be killed. As a result they remounted and fought their way back to the United States side of the border reaching the small town of Clint, where news of the engagement was relayed to Sheriff Frank B. Simmons in El Paso.
Given the amount of shooting which must have taken place during the nearly one hour fire fight, the number of casualties was remarkably low. Captain Jones was the only casualty on the American side. As for the Mexicans there were no fatalities reported although Jesus Maria had been shot in his right hand and Severio had been hit in one of his arms, breaking the bone.
AFTERMATH
When the Rangers returned to the island with reinforcements they demanded that the Mexicans turn over Captain Jones’ body and his personal effects. Initially the Mexican authorities refused but after direct negotiations between Sheriff Simmons and Rafael
Garcia Martinez, the Mexican jefe of Ciudad Juarez, they did so together with most of his personal items including his Winchester although his revolver was never recovered.
A few days later, a posse under Sheriff Simmons supported by Mexican Army soldiers succeeded in capturing Jesus Maria and Antonio near Pirate Island and they were taken to Ciudad Juarez where they were put in jail. However, because the Mexican authorities had been angered by what they saw as the American’s violation of Mexico’s sovereignty, they refused all requests to extradite them and they were subsequently released.
Most Texans were infuriated by this and – over the next few weeks – three residents of the island were found dead. The first died of unknown causes, the second was found dead from “apoplexy” near the location of the shootout and a third was found hanging from a tree. Although the latter’s death was ruled by the U.S. courts to be a case of suicide most Mexicans believed he was lynched by the Texas Rangers. However, after these incidents much of outlaw activity in and around the island died down.
As for the Olguin brothers, well... they disappeared into the mists of history, leaving only the story of the shootout behind.
The last words are probably best left to Captain Jones. Five months before his posting to El Paso, he had written complaining about proposed budgets cuts to the Ranger service which were about to be introduced by the Texas State Legislature. He felt that fewer Rangers would lead to an increase in violence stating, “Of late years the Rangers have been compelled to do killing simply because they were so few in number that it
emboldened fugitives. During the first years of my Ranger service we never went out except there were 8 or 10 men and we never had to kill anyone.” Perhaps had his warning been heeded his death could have been avoided, but then hindsight is a wonderful thing!
TOGS & WEAPONRY
Texas Rangers had to provide their own firearms and a “good “horse but were provided with wages, ammunition and supplies. They did not wear a uniform and most photos of rangers of the 1890s show them wearing a mix of town clothes and working clothes. In the photos they wear white or light coloured shirts, although some seem to be wearing dark shirts, some with narrow stripes. Over these are worn what the Americans call ‘vests’ and UK readers call ‘waist coats’. They are wearing dark, checked or striped trousers, often over riding boots, although in some photos the trousers are tucked into the boots which are knee high. Hats are universally wide brimmed, usually Stetson types, but pictures also show rangers in Mexican style hats, often made of straw.
As for the Mexicans, they would have worn wide sombreros and their own choice of clothing – often Charo suits with the traditional short jacket and flared trousers. These were worn over boots or encased in “breed” leggings. Some may well have worn skin tight trousers which buttoned up the side instead. They also often wore a coloured blanket draped over one shoulder or worn as a serape. However, looking at photos for the early part of the Mexican revolution which started within a few years of this incident, many can be seen wearing longer suit type jackets and more town clothes, so the Mexicans involved in the fight might have worn something more like these.
Both Rangers and Mexicans are often pictured with revolvers in holsters worn high on the hip although some Mexicans seem to have worn two. Most are seen carrying a lever action or repeating shoulder arm of some type, usually a Winchester rifle or carbine. The photos show many wearing two cartridge belts one for their revolver and the other for their shoulder arm as not all ammunition would fit both weapons thus needing different calibre cartridges. In the photos of the Rangers these are often both worn around the waist, one above the other whilst many of the Mexicans are pictured with one around their waist and the other draped from one shoulder to the opposite hip.
SHOOT OUT AT TWO PINES
Inspired by the shootout – but not wanting to recreate it exactly – I have created la Isla de la Dos Pinos or the Isle of Two Pines. Originally this was a spit of land which was joined to Mexico but the Rio Grande has now cut a channel behind it and it now sits directly in the middle of the river thus straddling the border between the United States and Mexico. As such the US and Mexican authorities have been loath to enforce the law as when challenged its inhabitants can simply cross the boundary into Mexico when necessary and vice versa As a result it has becomes a haven for all sorts of lawbreakers.
The island has a few scattered houses and Jacals and is centred around a larger building which has been converted into a cantina and general store, ironically called Los Ganado Perdido (The lost Cattle).
Apart from its more peaceful residents, a band of ruthless Mexican rustlers and raiders lead by the notorious El Lobo has taken up residence using the cantina as their base. The Texan authorities have finally had enough and have sent a patrol of Rangers with arrest warrants for EL Lobo and his gang: they have orders to use all and any means to apprehend these outlaws and have been told they can use their discretion in pursuing the bandits across the border into Mexican territory if necessary.
SET UP & FORCES
Using a 4’ by 4’ table, set up the island using five buildings, one larger than the others to represent the Cantina. Add in irrigation ditches, low walls and scrub as desired so that there is plenty of cover for the participants to use. One possible layout is shown below:
OBJECTIVE
The objective of the Rangers is to arrest or kill El Lobo, whilst the Mexicans want to drive the Rangers off causing as many casualties as they can.
ADDED COMPLICATIONS
Players may want to add in one or more of the following complications either to make the game more interesting or add in additional forces which can be played by them or other players.
This is our Village! The village of Dos Pinos does of course have a population. Its residents are all of Hispanic heritage and, whilst not active supporters of El Lobo, nearly six decades of “Anglo” bias means that they have come to hate the Rangers and what they stand for. They may therefore opt to join in and fight alongside El Lobo’s men to drive the Rangers out of their village.
Place a card to activate the villagers in the pack and then place between 6 and 10 figures in and around Dos Pinos. Once violence breaks out roll 1D6 for each villager to see what they do
REINFORCEMENTS
In the original battle of Pirate Island the locals sent to the nearest town for Mexican soldiers whilst after the shoot out the Rangers sought help from other law men to recover Captain Jones’ body. If players want to use either of these options then after turn 4 roll 1D6
RULES FOR THE SHOOTOUT
The rules we used for these were our own Quick on the Draw rules and the forces charts are orientated for that system. These rules can be downloaded for free on the magazine’s web site. However, the games can equally be played with any set of western gunfight rules which concentrate on individual characters and their abilities, such as Fist Full of Lead, Dead Man’s Hand, Legends of the Old West, Gutshot, The Rules with No Names and Dracula’s America (if you ignore the fantasy stuff).
WHAT FIGURES TO USE
These scenarios require less than thirty figures so, even if you don’t yet have any Old West figures, the outlay to get some is not huge. We play our Old West games in both 54mm and 28mm. 54mm figures can be found in the UK from suppliers such as Steve Weston Toy Soldiers, but toy shops and E-bay are also a good source. There is a plentiful supply of 54mm Old West figures available in the US which can be imported but check out the postage and any import costs.
Assuming that most players will choose 28mm they have a wide selection of manufacturers to choose from. Obviously players can use any western figures they want for the games but Artizan Designs have two packs specifically called Texas Rangers wearing clothes suitable for the latter period of the Old West.
Other manufacturers to consider are Wargames Foundry, Black Scorpion, Blue Moon Manufacturing, Dixon and Great Escape Games: all produce figures which are suitably dressed. Probably the best range at present comes from Knuckleduster’s Gunfighters Ball range. These figures are all characters, some of which are modelled on historical figures and others on recognisable characters from film and TV. Their faction packs are excellent value.
Great Escape Games, Sarissa and other manufacturers produce a wide selection of suitable adobe or Jacal buildings or you can try and scratch build them as we do. Adobe buildings are not that difficult to construct using foam board and a little filler: once painted up they can look great.
So will the Rangers get their men or will the Bandittos succeed in driving them off? If the reinforcements arrive will that tip the balance? Only you and the Gods of the Dice will decide: Happy Gaming. ■