LAST Man Killed in Conflict with Native Americans in Runnels County - Maverick, TX
N 31° 50.042 W 100° 12.426
14R E 385774 N 3522675
A 1967 Texas Historical Marker at the final resting place of W.H. Brown in Maverick Cemetery notes his service as a Texas Ranger, and that he was the last man killed by Native Americans in Runnels County, back in 1875.
Waymark Code: WM12P93
Location: Texas, United States
Date Posted: 06/25/2020
Views: 8
There's not much left of Maverick in western Runnels County, TX. Today, it is a scattered rural community, not too far from where Fort Chadbourne once stood. This cemetery is certainly not abandoned, but its few burials could use some TLC. Mr. Brown's final resting place is marked by a damaged -- probably by cattle -- faux crypt, and the inscription reads:
In memory of
[...] Brown
[Born]
Oct. 21 1853
Died
Sep. 19, 1875
-----
The historical marker stands atop a granite slab in front of the grave site, and it reads:
(Oct. 21, 1853 - Sept. 19, 1875)
Born in Georgia. With his parents came to Texas 1857. He and a brother, John, were Texas Rangers -- W. H. ("Billy") serving June - December 1874.
Billy Brown was the last man killed by Indians in Runnels County, in a fight to regain stolen horses.
Understanding that this marker was placed in 1967, in Texas, a reference to "Indian" in this context refers to Native Americans and not natives of the country in Asia. An update would probably refer to "Comanche". Mr. Brown's Findagrave page (see below) notes him as the son of an area pioneer (whose own Texas Historical Marker references him among multiple sons lost to such conflict), and it elaborates:
William Henry Brown was killed in an Indian battle on September 19 1875 in Runnels County. William was the son of William Franklin Brown who came to Brown County in 1856. He was bushwhacked by a Comanche Indian and was buried by two of his nephews at the site of the fight. The grave is in the Maverick Cemetery in Runnels County.