Pelham Park

Duane's take

Here's my telling of what the official marker has to say about Pelham Park in Montague County. Now, before Bowie was even a town, before there was a city charter or a courthouse or anything you'd call incorporated, a Confederate Captain by the name of John J. Carter went and purchased 160 acres out there in 1878.

Bowie wouldn't be incorporated until 1883, so Carter was working with open country and an idea. As early as 1879, veterans of the Confederate Army were already gathering on that land. The Carter property sat near the new cemetery, which made it a natural place to congregate before or after a burial.

Men who had lived through the same war, finding each other again on the edge of a fresh-dug grave. There's something in that worth sitting with. Captain Carter died on January 29, 1882, before Bowie was even officially a town.

But his wife, Charlotte Jane Carter, she permitted the veterans to keep using the property. That quiet act of permission matters more than most people would notice. By 1895, those gatherings had a name and a number.

The Bowie Pelham Camp, No. 572, United Confederate Veterans, was organized that year with over a hundred members. And in 1901, the veterans purchased 26.5 acres directly from Charlotte Carter for four hundred and fifty dollars. Now that purchase came with stipulations, real ones, written in: the property would always be dedicated to veterans, past, present, and future.

Always. They meant it to outlast them. By 1905, the camp had built a pavilion in the park, dug three water wells, put in a barbeque pit, a mess house, and a long dining shed.

A whole little world for men who wanted to gather and remember. The land was paid in full by 1910, and by then the group had grown to over three hundred members. But time has a way of thinning a crowd.

Membership declined, as it does, and the remaining camp members made a decision. They transferred the property to the city of Bowie, finalized on August 14, 1923. Then on January 6, 1931, the city fathers made it official: the park was named Bowie Pelham Park.

In 1936, the Confederate monument that had been located elsewhere in Bowie was moved to the park, and the WWI marker came along with it. The park kept collecting history. The first Jim Bowie Days celebration and rodeo, held to promote the community, came in 1967.

And a beloved old tradition called Second Monday, a popular meeting of farmers and ranchers who'd barter livestock and goods near the railroad tracks, that eventually found its way to Pelham Park in 1970. Then in 1989, the city of Bowie purchased 28 adjoining acres from the Hill Family to expand the park further, keeping that original promise alive. The one Charlotte Carter and those veterans wrote into a deed in 1901: this ground is for veterans, past, present, and future.

Bowie just kept adding to the meaning of the word future.

What the marker says

Before Bowie was incorporated in 1883, Confederate Captain John J. Carter purchased 160 acres in 1878. As early as 1879, veterans of the Confederate Army would meet on land owned by Captain Carter. The Carter Property was situated near the new cemetery and was a place to congregate before or after a burial. Captain Carter died on Jan. 29, 1882, but his wife, Charlotte Jane Carter, permitted the veterans to continue using the property. Bowie Pelham Camp, No. 572, United Confederate Veterans, was organized in 1895 with over 100 members. The veterans purchased 26.5 acres from Charlotte Carter in 1901 for $450 with stipulations that the property would always be dedicated to veterans, past, present and future. In 1905, a pavilion was built in the park along with three water wells, a barbeque pit, mess house and a long dining shed. Land was paid in full by 1910 and the group grew to over 300 members. Over the years, membership declined and the remaining camp members decided to transfer the property to the city of Bowie, which was finalized on August 14, 1923. On Jan. 6, 1931, the city fathers officially named the park Bowie Pelham Park. The confederate monument located elsewhere in bowie was moved to the park in 1936 as well as the WWI marker. The first Jim Bowie Days celebration and rodeo to promote the community was held in 1967. "Second Monday," a popular meeting of farmers and ranchers to barter livestock and goods near the railroad tracks, was eventually moved to Pelham Park in 1970. In 1989, the city of Bowie purchased 28 adjoining acres from the Hill Family for expansion of the park to continue the historical and community legacy of Pelham Park.