Ellen Liddy Watson was born on July 2, 1861 to Thomas Lewis
Watson and Frances Close Watson near Arran Lake, Bruce County, Ontario, Canada.
Ella, as she was called, was the oldest of ten children, six of which were also
born in Canada before the family moved to Kansas in 1877. Settling near Lebanon
in Smith County, Kansas, Thomas homesteaded the land.
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| 18 year old Ella Watson |
Before long, Ella, as she was called, met a young man by the
name of William A Pickell who lived on a neighboring farm. On November 24,
1879, the 18-year-old Ella and 21-year-old William were married. But within
just a few short months Ella found that her husband was both a heavy drinker
and an abusive man. Often, he would verbally abuse her then escalate the
violence to physical blows and striking her with a horsewhip. By January 1883,
she could take it no longer and fled to her parent’s home. Later, she moved to
Red Cloud, Nebraska, 14 miles north of her parent’s farm to put even more
distance between herself and her estranged husband. On February 14, 1884, she
filed for divorce.
Against her parent’s wishes, Ella moved to Denver, Colorado
after filing for divorce. Seeking better opportunities, she lived with a
brother for a short time, but didn’t stay long. Ella then moved again, first to
Cheyenne, Wyoming, then to Rawlins, Wyoming in late 1885 or early 1886. She
found employment at a boarding house called the “Rawlins House” as a cook and
domestic for about two years. Watson has often been misidentified as a
prostitute because the Rawlins House was erroneously thought to have been a
brothel.
On February 24, 1886, she met a handsome young man named
James Averell, who was in Rawlins to file a claim on his homestead 60 miles
east of Rawlins near the Sweetwater River. Immediately, the two fell for each
other and began to court.
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| James Averell |
James Averell was born on March 20, 1851 to John and Sarah
Ann Averell in Renfrew County, Ontario Canada. The youngest of seven children,
his father died shortly after his birth. At the age of 20, Averell, now in the
U.S., joined the military and was initially assigned to Fort Douglas, Utah and
later transferred to Fort Fred Steele, Wyoming, 15 miles east of Rawlins. In
1876 he was discharged but he soon re-enlisted, this time assigned to Fort
McKinley, Wyoming, near Buffalo.
In Buffalo, Averell shot and killed a man by the name of
Charlie Johnson, a known drunkard and bully. Averell claimed that Johnson had
threatened him many times with a knife. The killing occurred when Johnson
threatened Averell again and Averell shot Johnson in the leg and again in the
back when the shot to the leg swung the huge man around. James was held in jail
at Rawlins for a time while two grand juries were convened, but he was never
convicted and was eventually released.
Averell established a homestead on Cherry Creek at the north
base of Ferris Mountain and married a young woman by the name of Sophia Jaeger
on February 23, 1882. On August 23, 1882, Sophia gave birth to a three-month
premature baby boy who lived for only a short time. Soon thereafter, Sophia
took sick with what was called “child bed fever” at the time and she also died.
The homestead carried too many sad memories for Averell so he sold it and
established another about fifteen miles north, between Horse Creek and the
Sweetwater River.
In addition to homesteading, Jim started a general store and
tavern on his land. The businesses were successful due to the close proximity
of his land to the Oregon and Mormon trails.
After Jim met Ella, he convinced her that she should move
with him to his homestead. Inviting her to fix meals for the hungry customers,
he suggested she could charge 50 cents per meal and keep the money. He also
suggested that she might be able to homestead her own piece of land, a tract
that was adjacent to his own. Ella agreed and was soon living in the Sweetwater
Valley.
Ella’s divorce was finally official in March 1886 and just a
few short months later, James and Ella applied for a marriage license in
Lander, Wyoming. It is unclear if the couple ever did actually marry, as the
completed application was never returned. Some said the two planned to get
married after Ella proved her own homestead (only one claim per family was
allowed.).
On June 29, 1886, Jim was appointed as the postmaster of his
newly created community, as well as being made the Justice of the Peace. Living
with Averell at his home, Ella worked for him in the general store and cafe.
Ella saved her money and eventually purchased some cattle with her earnings.
Settling on the adjacent land in August 1886, she built a two-room log house
and began digging irrigation ditches. Ella tried to get a brand registered for
her cattle but was refused due to what was known as the Maverick Law, passed in
1884.
This law provided that unbranded calves, found on the open
range, could not be legally taken off the range by just anyone. They were to be
branded on the neck with an “M” and became the exclusive property of the
Wyoming Stock Growers Association, a powerful group of men that controlled the
cattle industry in Wyoming at the time. The Wyoming Stock Growers Association
was also appointed as the official law enforcement agency for the Wyoming
cattle industry.
The law also provided that those young calves be auctioned
off to the highest bidder only by appointed representatives of the association
and that the proceeds went to the association to cover the costs of policing
the range. In 1886, a provision was added to the law that no one could brand
calves except those receiving registered brands from the state. Further, small
cattle ranchers or homesteaders were not permitted to bid on mavericks, unless
they had a registered brand.
It was a combination of the Maverick law and the requirement
of a registered brand which would put both Ella and Averell into the direct
sights of the powerful Wyoming Stock Growers Association—but, that’s next month’s
post.
