Frank Hamer, Border Wars and the Sacredness of the Law
by Russell Cushman
From 1908 until 1911, Frank Hamer, US lawman, tamed probably the wildest town in Texas for its day, setting it on the road to stability and respectability. That town was Navasota. Hamer’s most noteworthy accomplishment after Navasota was in 1934 when he tracked down and killed, in a bloody shoot-out, the notorious duo Bonnie and Clyde. Between these events, this remarkable Texas Ranger exhibited obedience to the law unrivaled in the history of law enforcement in Texas.
From 1910-20, Mexico was in the midst of a social revolution with repercussions reaching into border areas of the United States. In the middle years of this struggle, the Texas Rangers were called to the Texas border country to address an insurgency launched in the wake of the “Plan of San Diego.” Supposedly written in the Texas border town of San Diego in January 1915, the plan called for Mexican-Americans, African-Americans and Japanese to ignite a rebellion meant ultimately to return the American Southwest to Mexican control.
Several factions in Mexico were vying for control of that country. In October 1915, the United States recognized Venustiano Carranza and placed an embargo on aid to his rivals. However, certain elites behind the scenes in the US and Texas felt that their interests were better served with Carranza’s competitors for power. Accordingly, the Rangers were given the word to act as though they were policing the smuggling of arms, but in reality to ignore such practices.
This finessing of the law, Frank Hamer could not abide. Consequently, he was left virtually alone to patrol hundreds of miles of the border country. Finding his task impossible, he took the initiative to cross the border and work with the Mexican forces with whom the US was officially allied, to counter the clandestine arms trafficking from the US.
For Frank Hamer, the law would be upheld, even if it meant defying his own government.
Russell Cushman may be reached at RCush403@aol.com
From 1908 until 1911, Frank Hamer, US lawman, tamed probably the wildest town in Texas for its day, setting it on the road to stability and respectability. That town was Navasota. Hamer’s most noteworthy accomplishment after Navasota was in 1934 when he tracked down and killed, in a bloody shoot-out, the notorious duo Bonnie and Clyde. Between these events, this remarkable Texas Ranger exhibited obedience to the law unrivaled in the history of law enforcement in Texas.
From 1910-20, Mexico was in the midst of a social revolution with repercussions reaching into border areas of the United States. In the middle years of this struggle, the Texas Rangers were called to the Texas border country to address an insurgency launched in the wake of the “Plan of San Diego.” Supposedly written in the Texas border town of San Diego in January 1915, the plan called for Mexican-Americans, African-Americans and Japanese to ignite a rebellion meant ultimately to return the American Southwest to Mexican control.
Several factions in Mexico were vying for control of that country. In October 1915, the United States recognized Venustiano Carranza and placed an embargo on aid to his rivals. However, certain elites behind the scenes in the US and Texas felt that their interests were better served with Carranza’s competitors for power. Accordingly, the Rangers were given the word to act as though they were policing the smuggling of arms, but in reality to ignore such practices.
This finessing of the law, Frank Hamer could not abide. Consequently, he was left virtually alone to patrol hundreds of miles of the border country. Finding his task impossible, he took the initiative to cross the border and work with the Mexican forces with whom the US was officially allied, to counter the clandestine arms trafficking from the US.
For Frank Hamer, the law would be upheld, even if it meant defying his own government.
Russell Cushman may be reached at RCush403@aol.com