DUANE
Duane's take
The official marker tells it this way, and I'm just here to make sure you hear every word of it. Now settle in, because this one's got ranches, railroads, a town that blinked out of existence, and one of the great revenge chases in Texas history. The man at the center of all of it is J.
Frank Norfleet. Born in 1865 in Lampasas County, son of a rancher and a Texas Ranger, Norfleet came up with little schooling and a whole lot of ranch work ahead of him. He served as foreman on the Spade Ranch for twenty years.
Twenty years. That's the kind of tenure that tells you something about a man. In 1894 he married Mattie Eliza Hudgins, and together they had four children.
Then in 1905, after years of frugality — and I want you to notice that word, frugality, because it matters later — the Norfleets moved onto their own land, sitting right on the east boundary of the Spade Ranch. In time, their holdings grew to twenty thousand acres. That same year, 1905, the Panhandle Short Line Railroad was begun, running from Vega to Lubbock, and it passed through a new town named for Norfleet himself.
The site lay ten miles west of Hale Center. A school called Norfleet was moved in, and houses and stores appeared, and for a moment it looked like something real was taking root. But due to competition and lack of funds, the railroad was abandoned, and the town died soon after.
Just like that. Now here is where the story turns. In 1919, while in Dallas, J.
Frank Norfleet was swindled out of forty-five thousand dollars by a bunco gang. Five thieves. Forty-five thousand dollars.
Those years of frugality I mentioned — gone. And Norfleet was enraged. Not quietly furious.
Not grudgingly bitter. Enraged. So he did what apparently came naturally to the son of a Texas Ranger.
He went looking. He spent almost five years searching the United States, Mexico, Canada, and Havana, Cuba, hunting down every last one of those five men. That kind of relentless pursuit will earn you a nickname, and his was the Little Tiger.
After the capture — which reportedly netted about seventy-five other confidence ring members along the way — Norfleet wrote a book about the whole adventure. He called it simply Norfleet. The man was born in 1865 and lived until 1967.
Mattie Eliza Hudgins Norfleet was born in 1871 and lived until 1972. A town named for him came and went. But the Little Tiger himself?
He outlasted just about everything.
What the marker says
(1865 - 1967) Son of a rancher and Texas Ranger, J. Frank Norfleet was born in Lampasas County. With little schooling, he grew up working on ranches. He served as foreman for 20 years on the Spade Ranch. Norfleet married Mattie Eliza Hudgins (1871-1972) in 1894 and they had four children. In 1905 after years of frugality, the Norfleets moved to their own land located on the east boundary of Spade Ranch. In time their holdings grew to 20,000 acres. In 1905 the Panhandle Short Line Railroad from Vega to Lubbock was begun through the new town named for Norfleet. The site lay 10 miles west of Hale Center. Soon a school called Norfleet was moved in and houses and stores appeared. Due to competition and lack of funds, the railroad was abandoned and the town died soon after. In 1919, while in Dallas, Norfleet was swindled out of $45,000 by a bunco gang. Enraged at losing his savings, he spent almost five years searching the United States, Mexico, Canada and Havana, Cuba, for the five thieves. His determination won him the nickname of "Little Tiger". After the capture which reportedly netted about 75 other confidence ring members, he wrote "Norfleet", a book about his adventures. (1978)