The Texas Rangers - Were they Heroes or Villains?

Figure 1https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/deed.en
 Background History of the Texas Rangers

In 1835 some soldiers of the Texas revolution formed a small force to serve as scouts and messengers during the
war. These men and others eventually became known as the Texas Rangers. They received little pay from Texas, had to
provide their own horse, food, and guns. Most were inspired to serve by their patriotism, or they just plain wanted the
adventure.

After the Revolution, The Rangers’ primary duty became protecting settlers on the frontier from attacks by native
Americans and protecting ranchers from cattle thieves (Texan and Mexican cattle thieves). In the early years, President
Houston’s peace policies limited their activities. Once the Rangers finished their contracts, they usually returned home;
few signed up to be Rangers again.

In the beginning, the number of Rangers was initially set at 25 men, then it increased to 35 and eventually grew to
150 to deal with outlaws and Native Americans. They were still being paid low wages and were always on their horse,
patrolling the vast expanse of Texas.

Below, you will find 5 documents (Documents A - E). While examining each
document, you will consider the question: Were the Texas Rangers heroes, villains, or
both? You will consider the point of view for Anglo-Americans or Texans, Tejano,
Mexican, and Native American. Annotate and highlight passages in yellow for the heroic
perspective of the Anglo-American and green for the villain or unjust from the other
perspective.
 Document A
Historical Marker Text near San Manuel, Texas.
On September 27, 1915, Jesus Bazán and his son-in-law, Antonio Longoria – both recognized Tejano
community leaders and the latter a Hidalgo County commissioner – traveled to a local Texas Ranger camp on
the Sam Lane ranch to report a horse robbery that occurred a few days prior at their ranch north of the Rio
Grande in Hidalgo County. Although Bazán and Longoria should have had the law on their side, anti-Mexican
violence in the region was persistent. After a seemingly uneventful conversation with Ranger Captain Henry
Ransom, the two men left on horseback. When they were about 300 yards from the campsite, laborers on Sam
Lane’s ranch witnessed Captain Ransom, and two civilians climb into a Model T Ford and follow the men. One
passenger reached outside a window and shot both men in the back. Bazán and Longoria fell from their horses
and died on the side of the road. Unfazed by the shooting, it was reported that Captain Ransom returned to the
campsite to take a nap, leaving the bodies to decompose. Several days later, a family friend and neighbor buried
the men where they fell. Neither the Texas Rangers nor local law enforcement investigated, explained, or
reported the murders. In 1919, as a result of the Bazán and Longoria murders and many other incidents of
violence against Mexican Americans, the Texas Legislature conducted a formal investigation into state and
local law enforcement practices. Many law enforcement groups were reorganized as a result. Memories of the
murders continue through oral tradition, reflecting this violent yet pivotal time in Texas history.

Student Directions – – Consider if the actions of the Texas Rangers were heroic, or were
they merely wrong and considered to be actions of a villain? Using the graphic
organizer below, you must consider both points of views. You must write in complete
sentences while using evidence from this document to support your positions.
Document A

A Hero’s Perspective from an Anglo-American A Villain’s Perspective from a Tejano

. The Texas rangers (captain and 2 men) killed innocent

civilians who only went to the Captain because their horses

were stolen, but the Captain killed them, left them to

decompose and took a nap.

 Document B
PORVENIR MASSACRE.

“In January 1918, the residents of Porvenir were landowners and farmers, who raised livestock, grew
produce, and raised their families in an arid desert climate. They were making a life in arguably the most
challenging environment in Texas.” Porvenir was a small village situated in Presidio County near the Rio
Grande River.
“In the early morning of January 28, 1918, Texas Rangers of Company B and four local ranchmen—
surrounded the residents of Porvenir. With the help of soldiers from the Eighth U.S. Cavalry Regiment, the
Rangers and cattlemen woke up the residents and separated fifteen men and boys from their families and
neighbors. The unarmed group was taken into custody, denied due process, and executed. The victims included
Antonio Castañeda, Longino Flores, Pedro Herrera, Vivian Herrera, Severiano Herrera, Manuel Moralez,
Eutimio Gonzalez, Ambrosio Hernandez, Alberto Garcia, Tiburcio Jáques, Roman Nieves, Serapio Jimenez,
Pedro Jimenez, Juan Jimenez, and Macedonio Huertas.”
One of the widows, Benita Flores, said the bodies were so disfigured; it made identifying their loved
ones stressful. “When they found them dead, they thought that [the vigilantes] had got them with a machete and
chopped them up...But it wasn’t a machete; it was guns.”
“Following the massacre, the Texas Rangers and the ranchmen submitted reports and statements
attempting to justify the massacre. They described the residents of Porvenir as “thieves, informers, spies, and
murderers. They accused the victims of being suspects in a raid on the Brite Ranch a month earlier.” The Brite
Ranch raid took place on Christmas day. “They provided an account that suggested they came under fire from a
group of unknown men hiding in the brush and that they returned gunfire in the dark.”
“Investigations by Mexican consuls, U. S. soldiers, and the United States State Department found that
the victims of Porvenir did not die in a shootout, but were killed while they were unarmed and in Texas Ranger
custody. The Texas governor responded to the mounting evidence.” On June 4, 1918, Governor Hobby
disbanded Company B of the Texas Rangers, firing five rangers, and transferring seven to another Company C.
He also pressured the captain of Company B, James Monroe Fox, to resign. “Despite the damning evidence,
however, no participants in the massacre were prosecuted for their involvement.”

Student Directions – – Consider if the actions of the Texas Rangers were heroic, or were
they merely wrong and considered to be actions of a villain? Using the graphic
organizer below, you must consider both points of views. You must write in complete
sentences while using evidence from this document to support your positions.
Document B
A Hero’s Perspective from an Anglo-American A Villain’s Perspective from a Mexican

. They separated fifteen men and boys from their families,

and the men were taken into custody and executed. In

Document B, one of the widows, Benita Flores, said “the

bodies were so disfigured; it made identifying their loved

ones stressful.” “When they found them dead, they thought

that [the vigilantes] had got them with a machete and

chopped them up...But it wasn’t a machete; it was guns.” The

Texas Rangers framed the dead men as thieves, informers,

spies, and murderers.

 Document C- Postcard

Figure 2 Source: Bullock Texas State History Museum

A 1915 postcard, ‘Dead Mexican bandits,’ shows three Texas Rangers on horseback, posed behind the bodies of
four Tejanos killed, evidently at random, as retribution for a raid.

Student Directions – Consider if the actions of the Texas Rangers were heroic, or were
they simply wrong and considered to be actions of a villain? Using the graphic
organizer below, you must consider both points of view. You must write in complete
sentences while using evidence from this document to support your positions.

Document C

A Hero’s Perspective from an Anglo-American A Villain’s Perspective from a Mexican

The Texas Rangers did something on account of the raid. The Texas Rangers were just randomly killing the Tejanos,

saying that they did it because of the raid.

 Document D
Painting - Delaying Action: The Battle of Plum Creek

Figure 3 - Delaying Action: The Battle of Plum Creek, 1978 Artist: Lee Herring

View of a band of Penateka Comanche mounted on horses and dressed in full battle regalia; the warriors are
encircling the foreground; in the distance is a tree line with the distinct view of soldiers and settlers emerging.

“The battle of Plum Creek was an aftermath of the Council House Fight, in which many of the
Comanche Indian chiefs, their women, and warriors were killed. In the summer of 1840, the Comanche swept
down the Guadalupe valley, killing settlers, stealing horses, plundering, and burning settlements.” The
Comanche surrounded the second largest port city in the Republic of Texas of Linnville in Calhoun County.
The Comancheros raided the stores in the town of Linville, and while plundering the town, they could be seen
wearing many of the clothes from the stores of Linnville. It was quite an odd sight to see the Comanche wearing
clothes such as parts of a wedding dress while raiding and burning the town. Many of the residents of Linnville
had no choice but to flee to their small boats and watch the Comanche’s raid their town while they sat in their
canoe or boat just off the coast. After hours of stealing and burning, the Comanche started on their retreat north
back to their home territory. The Texans near the Gulf coast town organized a volunteer army with Texas
Rangers and a day later overtook the Indians at Plum Creek in the vicinity of the present town of Lockhart on
August 11, 1840. There the Texas Rangers and the other Texans handed the Comanches a decisive defeat on the
following day and pushed the Comanche westward.

Student Directions – – Consider if the actions of the Texas Rangers were heroic or were
they merely wrong and considered to be actions or an act of a villain? Using the graphic
organizer below, you must consider both points of views. You must write in complete
sentences while using evidence from this document to support your positions.
Document D

A Hero’s Perspective from an Anglo-American A Villain’s Perspective from a Comanche

Since the Comanches were destroying the city, the Texans As stated in document D “The battle of Plum Creek was an

organized a volunteer army with The Texas Rangers and aftermath of the Council House Fight, in which many of the

overtook the Indians at Plum Creek. Comanche Indian chiefs, their women, and warriors were

killed.” The Texas Rangers pushed the comanches westward.

 Document E-Video

Who are the Texas Rangers?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nzis2Xi1dNU

Student Directions – – Consider if the actions of the Texas Rangers were heroic or were they simply wrong and considered to be actions or an act of
a villain? Using the graphic organizer below, you must consider both points of view. You must write in complete sentences while using evidence
from this document to support your positions.

Document E

A Hero’s Perspective A Villain’s Perspective

The Texas Rangers were heroic in only some actions, not all, The Texas rangers also murdered Tejano civilians and

they did catch criminals. framed them for something they didn’t do, just to get rid of

the Tejano ( Mexican ) population in Texas because the

Anglos wanted to.

Rough Draft
 Take a position: Were the Texas Rangers Heroes or Villains?
In some cases they were heroes but mostly villains.
Why did you take this position? (Be specific in your thinking, use the documents to support your thinking.)
I took this position because the Texas Rangers did do a lot of villainy, they also did some good stuff, like
capturing criminals and bringing law and order.
List all facts to support your decision –
These are the facts : (1) As stated in Document B, One of the widows, Benita Flores, said the bodies were so
disfigured; it made identifying their loved ones stressful. “When they found them dead, they thought that [the
vigilantes] had got them with a machete and chopped them up...But it wasn’t a machete; it was guns.” (2)Also
as stated in Document A, “Unfazed by the shooting, it was reported that Captain Ransom returned to the
campsite to take a nap, leaving the bodies to decompose." These facts definitely show that they are villains
but here are some heroic facts . As stated in Document D “ The Texans near the Gulf coast town organized a
volunteer army with Texas Rangers and a day later overtook the Indians at Plum Creek” The Texas Rangers
fought Native Americans who brought havoc and mayhem.

Put it all together by writing an introduction paragraph that includes the thesis paragraph with two points that support your argument.
It is followed by two paragraphs each supporting your position that provides evidence that backs up your argument. You must write
in complete sentences. Citations using the documents. Example: “We know this because ...(Doc A).”

Paragraph 1: Introduction - The Texas Rangers were heroic…. only in some cases though. They did bring
law and order, but they also killed, murders and framed inoccent lives… like the tejanos.
Thesis Statement - The Texas Rangers were heroic, but they also had a VERY bad side.
Point 1 supporting the thesis: Texas Rangers were heroic because they did catch criminals and maintain law.
Point 2 supporting the thesis : But the Texas Rangers were also very cruel and villainous, they killed Tejanos
because the Anglo population didn’t like the fact that the Tejanos still lived in Texas.

Paragraph 2 –
1. Main Idea for Point 1: They were heroic at times.
2. Supporting evidence #1 : Like for instance, after a comanche raid of killing settlers, stealing horses,
plundering, and burning homes and farms, stated in Document D “ The Texans near the Gulf coast
town organized a volunteer army with Texas Rangers and a day later overtook the Indians at Plum
Creek”
3. Supporting evidence #2- They also were brave enough to catch criminals and arrest and kill those
criminals. Like when tracked down and caught Bonnie & Clyde.
 4. Reason that supports the main idea : These are facts that support their heroic side because they were
brave and heroic, but also… merciless.

Paragraph 3 -
1. Main Idea for Point 2 : The Texas Rangers are also villains because,
2. Supporting evidence #1 : for example, like when they killed 15 Tejanos and as stated in Document B
“They described the residents of Porvenir as “thieves, informers, spies, and murderers. They accused
the victims of being suspects in a raid on the Brite Ranch a month earlier.” Also as stated in Document
B “ One of the widows, Benita Flores, said the bodies were so disfigured; it made identifying their
loved ones stressful. “When they found them dead, they thought that [the vigilantes] had got them
with a machete and chopped them up...But it wasn’t a machete; it was guns.”
3. Supporting evidence #2- They also, as stated in Document C “A 1915 postcard, ‘Dead Mexican
bandits,’ shows three Texas Rangers on horseback, posed behind the bodies of four Tejanos killed,
evidently at random, as retribution for a raid.”
4. Reason that supports the main idea: These are more than enough reasons to say that they killed
innocent people when they were supposed to be protecting them, and the worst part was that the way
they killed them was inhuman and monstrous.

Paragraph 4, Conclusion -
1. Restate your thesis statement: So I think the Texas Rangers were heroes sometimes, but mostly
villains.
2. Summarize how you determined whether the Texas Rangers were heroes or villains: After reading the
article, my opinion was based on the actions that they made, so in conclusion I believe that the Texas
Rangers weren’t good or bad, evil or heroic.

Final Draft : The Texas Rangers were heroic…. only in some cases though. They did bring law and

order, but they also killed, murdered and framed innocent lives… like the tejanos. The Texas Rangers were

heroic, but they also had a VERY bad side. Texas Rangers were heroic because they caught criminals and

maintained law. The Texas Rangers were also very cruel and villainous, they killed Tejanos because the
Anglo population didn’t like the fact that the Tejanos still lived in Texas.

The Texas Rangers were heroic sometimes. For instance, after a Comanche raid where they killed

settlers, stole horses, plundered, and burned homes and farms, as stated in Document D “ The Texans near

the Gulf coast town organized a volunteer army with Texas Rangers and a day later overtook the Indians at

Plum Creek”. They also were brave enough to catch, arrest and kill criminals. For example when they

tracked down Bonnie & Clyde. These are facts that support their heroic side because they were brave and

were protectors, but also… they were merciless.

The Texas Rangers are also villains. For example, they killed 15 Tejanos. As stated in Document B

“They described the residents of Porvenir as “thieves, informers, spies, and murderers. They accused the

victims of being suspects in a raid on the Brite Ranch a month earlier.” Also as it states in Document B “

One of the widows, Benita Flores, said the bodies were so disfigured; it made identifying their loved ones

stressful. “When they found them dead, they thought that [the vigilantes] had got them with a machete and

chopped them up...But it wasn’t a machete; it was guns.” As stated in Document C “A 1915 postcard, ‘Dead

Mexican bandits,’shows three Texas Rangers on horseback, posed behind the bodies of four Tejanos killed,

evidently at random, as retribution for a raid.” These are more than enough reasons to say that they killed

innocent people when they were supposed to be protecting them, and the worst part was that the way they

killed them was inhuman and monstrous.

So I think the Texas Rangers were heroes sometimes, but mostly villains. After reading the article,

my opinion was based on the actions that they made. In conclusion I believe that the Texas Rangers weren’t

good or bad, evil or heroic.

 Works Cited
AGUILERA, JASMINE. "'I Cry All the Time.' A Century After 15 Mexican Men and Boys Were Massacred in Texas, Their Descendants
Want Recognition." TIME, 27 Sept. 2017, time.com/5682139/porvenir-massacre-descendants/. Accessed 4 Dec. 2019.
Anderson, Adrian N., and Ralph A. Wooster. Texas History. Columbus, McGraw-Hill Education, 2016.
"JESUS BAZÁN AND ANTONIO LONGORIA." REFUSING TO FORGET, refusingtoforget.org/historical-markers/jesus-bazan-and-
antonio-longoria/. Accessed 4 Dec. 2019.
Martinez, Monica Muñoz. "Porvenir Massacre." Handbook of Texas Online, 15 June 2010,
www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/jcp02. Accessed 4 Dec. 2019.
Onion, Rebecca. "America's Lost History of Border Violence: Texas Rangers and civilian vigilantes killed thousands of Mexican-
Americans in a campaign of terror. A century later, will the state finally acknowledge the bloodshed?" Slate, 5 May 2016, slate.com/news-
and-politics/2016/05/texas-finally-begins-to-grapple-with-its-ugly-history-of-border-violence-against-mexican-americans.html. Accessed 4
Dec. 2019.
"PLUM CREEK, BATTLE OF." Texas State Historical Association Online Handbook, Texas State Historical Association, 4 May 2019,
tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/btp04. Accessed 4 Dec. 2019.
Pruitt, Sarah. "8 Famous Texas Rangers." History, 18 Sept. 2018, www.history.com/news/8-famous-texas-rangers. Accessed 4 Dec. 2019.
Sandlin, Michael. "A New History Tears Down the Myth of the Texas Rangers." Texas Observer, 4 Sept. 2018, www.texasobserver.org/a-
new-history-tears-down-the-myth-of-the-texas-rangers/. Accessed 4 Dec. 2019.
Smith, Christina. "The Battle of Plum Creek." Texas Ranger Dispatch Magazine. Texas Ranger Hall of Fame and Museum,
www.texasranger.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/History-The-Battle-of-Plum-Creek.pdf. Accessed 4 Dec. 2019.