Seminole, Texas

Quanah Parker, the last chief of the Quahada Comanche Indians, son of Peta Nocona and Cynthia Ann Parker , was born about 1845. According to Quanah himself, he was born on Elk Creek south of the Wichita Mountains in what is now Oklahoma, but there has been debate regarding his birthplace, and a Centennial marker on Cedar Lake northeast of Seminole, Texas, in Gaines County, claims that site as Quanah's birth location. He was a major figure both in Comanche resistance to White settlement and in the tribe's adjustment to reservation life. Nomadic hunter of the Llano Estacado , leader of the Quahada assault on Adobe Walls in 1874 ( see RED RIVER WAR ), cattle rancher, entrepreneur, and friend of American presidents, Quanah Parker was truly a man of two worlds. The name Quanah means "smell" or "odor." Though the date of his birth is recorded variously at 1845 and 1852, there is no mystery regarding his parentage. His mother was the celebrated captive of a Comanche raid on Parker's Fort (1836) and convert to the Indian way of life. His father was a noted war chief of the Noconi band of the Comanches. Despite his mixed ancestry, Quanah's early childhood seems to have been quite unexceptional for his time and place. In 1860, however, Peta Nocona was killed defending an encampment on the Pease River against Texas Rangers under Lawrence Sullivan Ross . The raid, which resulted in the capture and incarceration of Cynthia Ann and Quanah's sister Topasannah, also decimated the Noconis and forced Quanah, now an orphan, to take refuge with the Quahada Comanches of the Llano Estacado. By the 1860s the Quahadas ("Antelopes") were known as the most aloof and warlike of the various Comanche bands. Among them Quanah became an accomplished horseman and gradually proved himself to be an able leader. These qualities were increasingly in demand when, as a consequence of their refusal to attend the Medicine Lodge Treaty Council or to move to a reservation as provided by the treaty, the Quahadas became fugitives on the Staked Plains. There, beyond the effective range of the military, they continued to hunt buffalo in the traditional way while raiding settlements. For the next seven years Parker's Quahadas held the Texas plains virtually uncontested. Attempts of the Fourth United States Cavalry under Col. Ranald S. Mackenzie to track and subdue the Indians in 1871 and 1872 failed. Not only was the army unable to find the Indians but, at Blanco Canyon on the morning of October 9, 1871, the troopers lost a number of horses when Quanah and his followers raided the cavalry campsite. Afterward, the Indians seemingly disappeared onto the plains, only to reappear and attack again. Mackenzie gave up the search in mid-1872. But time was on the side of the army. As buffalo hunters poured onto the plains, decimating the Indians' chief source of subsistence, Parker and his followers were forced to take decisive action. Determined to maintain their independence, or at least their survival as a people, the Quahadas, under the guidance of Quanah and a medicine man named Isa-tai , formed a multitribal alliance dedicated to expelling the hunters from the plains. On the morning of June 27, 1874, this alliance of some 700 warriors-Cheyennes, Arapahoes, Kiowas, and Comanches-attacked the twenty-eight hunters and one woman housed at Adobe Walls. From the Indians' point of view, the raid was a disaster; their planned surprise was foiled, and the hunters' superior weapons enabled them to fend off repeated attacks. In the end the hunters suffered just one casualty, while fifteen Indians died and numerous others, including Parker, were wounded. Defeated and disorganized, the Indians retreated and the alliance crumbled. Within a year Parker and the Quahadas, under relentless pressure from the army and suffering from hunger, surrendered their independence and moved to the Kiowa-Comanche reservation in southwestern Oklahoma. While most Quahadas, indeed most Indians, found adjustme

Cedar Lake is a large salt lake in the southern half of the Llano Estacado , twenty-five miles from Seminole in the northeast corner of Gaines County (at 32°49' N, 102°16' W). Its Spanish name was Laguna Sabinas. Its English name came from the gnarled scrub cedar that once dotted its edges. It is located in a semiarid region once considered part of the Great American Desert. The lake was a gathering place for wildlife as well as a stopping place for travelers as they moved from water source to water source across the region. In 1875 an official United States Army report described this strategic lake as being six miles long and four miles wide, as well as having "plenty of good water in numerous wells or rather dug springs in a ravine at the north end, and several large wells at the south end, of slightly brackish water but fit for use of men and animals." Wood and stone for building, the report continued, could be gathered in the bluffs. Both prehistoric and historic Indians often used the lake. It was a favorite camping place for the Comanches who traded there with the Comancheros ( see COMANCHERO ). Some writers believed that Cedar Lake was the birthplace of the last Comanche war chief, Quanah Parker . After the Civil War this vital water source was frequently used by White buffalo hunters as they systematically destroyed the last of the southern herd. The famous cowboy-detective Charles A. Siringo went there in the late 1870s and found the "camps black with genuine buffalo hides." It was there, too, that the famous hide hunter George Causey killed 200 buffalo in 1882, believed to be the last sizable herd on the Staked Plains, if not in the larger southern High Plains ( see BUFFALO , BUFFALO HUNTING ). The United States Army used Cedar Lake in its forays against the Comanche Indians. Col. Ranald S. Mackenzie made an all-night forced march to the site in December 1874 but failed to catch the large group of Comanches he believed to be camped there. The following year Col. William R. Shafter , who later gained fame in the Spanish-American War, covered over 2,500 miles of the Llano Estacado during three scoutings for Comanches. He used Cedar Lake as his headquarters. During that campaign the able Indian fighter Lt. John L. Bullis led his Black Seminole Scouts in a dawn attack at the lake and scared off a large band of Indians. With the Indians on reservations, Cedar Lake continued its important role in the region as a ranching center. By the late 1870s cattleman C. C. Slaughter had established his huge Lazy S Ranch adjacent to Cedar Lake. By 1920 cotton farmers had surrounded the lake, and in 1935 the first productive oil well in the area was brought in. In 1936 the Texas Centennial Commission placed a historic marker at the north end of Cedar Lake identifying it as Quanah Parker's birthplace. In 1990 farms dominated the scene, and pump jacks dotted the edge and center of the lake.

The Gatlin Brothers—Larry Wayne (born May 2, 1948, in Seminole, Texas), Steven Daryl (born April 4, 1951, Olney, Texas), and Rudy Michael (born August 20, 1952, Olney Texas)—were raised in a musical family, sons of Curley and Billie (Doan) Gatlin. Their father played guitar, and their mother played piano. The gospel harmony singing of the Blackwoods and the Statesmen Quartet were early major influences on the brothers’ singing style. The Gatlin Brothers made their public debut in the 1955 Cavalcade of Talent at Hardin-Simmons University in Abilene when Larry was six, Steve was four, and Rudy was two. They also appeared on the Slim Willet Show on KRBC-TV in Abilene. They often sang in their local church, performed on local radio and television shows, and recorded an album for the gospel label, Sword and Shield. Later the Gatlin trio became a quartet with the addition of their sister, La Donna Gayle Gatlin (born in Abilene, Texas, August 18, 1954). Larry Gatlin briefly joined the gospel group the Imperials and performed with them in Las Vegas. A fortuitous meeting with Dottie West in Las Vegas set him on his successful solo career as a Nashville recording artist and songwriter. With West’s help and that of Kris Kristofferson, Gatlin secured a contract with Monument Records by 1973. He had his siblings sing backup on his first two albums, The Pilgrim (1974) quickly followed by Rain Rainbow (1974). While Larry worked as a solo artist, his brothers earned degrees at Texas Tech University and pursued their own musical path. With their sister La Donna and her husband, Tim Johnson, they formed Young Country, working with Tammy Wynette and providing background vocals. Steve, Rudy, and La Donna, made their first appearance on a Larry Gatlin album, Larry Gatlin with Family & Friends , in 1976. Subsequently, they won a Grammy for Best Country Song for “Broken Lady.” All three brothers were inducted into the Grand Ole Opry in 1976. At this point La Donna left the music world and eventually became a Dallas-based motivational speaker. Larry Gatlin gained another Number 1 hit with "I Just Wish You Were Someone I Love” in 1977. Rudy and Steve were featured on some of Larry's other hits during the late 1970s, notably "I Don't Wanna Cry," "Love Is Just a Game," and "Statues Without Hearts." He continued his successful career until 1978, when he released his last solo album, Oh Brother , which featured the Top 10 hits "I've Done Enough Dyin' Today" and "Night Time Magic." Larry Gatlin decided to designate his brothers officially part of his band. In 1979 Larry signed with Columbia Records, and his brothers were billed on his singles and on his albums. From then on, they were known variously as Larry Gatlin & the Gatlin Brothers, with Larry and Rudy on guitar and Steve on bass. They recorded an album that same year, Straight Ahead , which went gold. From this collection came the classic single "All the Gold in California," which became their biggest hit as a trio, making the Number 1 spot on the country music charts. Larry Gatlin was awarded Top Male Vocalist of the Year by the Academy of Country Music that year. Straight Ahead won Album of the Year, and "All the Gold in California" won Single of the Year. The group's next big hit, "Take Me to Your Lovin' Place,” peaked at Number 5 in 1980; they followed up with "What Are We Doin' Lonesome," which went to Number 4 in the country charts. They continued getting hits with songs such as "In Like With Each Other" (1981), "She Used to Sing on Sunday" (1981), "Sure Feels Like Love" (1982), "Almost Called Her Baby By Mistake" (1982), and "Denver" (1983). Their successful Houston to Denver album generated another Number 1 hit, "Houston (Means That I'm One Day Closer to You)," in 1983. Their song "She Used to Be Somebody's Baby" went to Number 2 in 1986, and "Talkin' to the Moon" (1987) and "Love of a Lifetime" (1988) both made it to Number 4 on the country charts. The Gatlin Brothers were also one of the f

(Dec. 2, 1868 - May 16, 1937) A native of Tennessee, Dan Cobb designed and constructed the first Gaines County Courthouse in 1906. He also built the second courthouse in 1922, as well as a First Baptist Church sanctuary, a schoolhouse and other significant early structures of the area. He and his wife Aurelia (Metcalf) (1869-1953) built a home at this site in 1906 for their family of 6 children. A charter member of the First Baptist Church and the Seminole School Board, Cobb had a federal mail contract for a 3-county area. His pioneer efforts and leadership were vital to the early growth of Gaines County. (1982)

The first oil lease in Gaines County was in 1912 and the first drilling occurred in 1925. Ten years later the Landreth Co. brought in the first producing well. In 1936 Amerada Oil Co. opened up the Seminole Pool, a major field that yielded 350 wells within a decade. Less than 50 years after that discovery, Gaines County had produced over one billion barrels of crude oil. With several active fields, Gaines ranks as one of the top oil producing counties in Texas. The petroleum industry accounts for much of this area's prosperity. (1979)

Clifton Martin Armstrong (1888-1951) was instrumental in the early growth of northern Gaines County. He was involved in several significant area land deals, including the sale of town lots when Seagraves was founded in 1917. He served as mayor for twelve years and, with his wife Carobel, daughter of pioneer Texas rancher Col. D. H. Snyder, was active in community activities. In 1926 Armstrong built this structure to house his Seagraves Motor Co. After a fire destroyed other buildings on the block in 1928, a bank and the post office were temporarily located here. (1981)