RAILROADS, THEN (1869) AND NOW (2010)

On May 10, 1869, the first transcontinental railroad in the United States was completed with a golden spike driven in Promontory, Utah. Dreams, planning, dedication and hard work accomplished this event. One book in the Bullis Collection that was published by the United States War Department between 1855 and 1861 tells of the beginnings of this monumental project. It's spine title is: Report of explorations and surveys for economical route for a railroad. The full title reads:

Reports of explorations and surveys to ascertain the most practicable and economical route for a railroad from the Mississippi River to the Pacific Ocean / made under the direction of the Secretary of War, in 1853-5, according to acts of Congress of March 3, 1853, May 31, 1854, and August 5, 1854.

This book is available online (and in the Bullis Room, of course) and we recommend it to you for your reading list, as it gives a greater appreciation of the Utah event and of railroads in general.

And speaking of appreciating railroads, the engineers in the Bullis family in 1869 would have been interested in the news from Promontory, Utah because it fulfilled the hopes inherent in their library book. Today, they would be equally interested in this country's talk of high speed rail as well as a local county rail line that was officially opened this week on May 10, exactly 141 years after the driving of the Golden Spike.

THE WHIRLWIND

John Lapham Bullis's military career spanned 43 years. During that time he received countless recognitions and promotions for his bravery and loyalty.

However, when he served as "Chief Scout at Fort Clark (Bracketville, Texas), he engaged in some of the most exciting and least known battles in the annals of American history." As a result Brigadier General D.S. Stanley stated that, "Bullis...has the most successful career of an Indian fighter that has ever been recorded in the history of the American Army." (True West Magazine, October, 1981, pages 12 & 13)

This True West article titled "John Bullis" documents battles in which Bullis and his Fort Clark scouts fought in the Indian Wars in southwestern United States and Mexico. This group of scouts (who called Bullis "The Whirlwind" or "Thunderbolt") consisted mainly of Seminole-Negro troops who greatly respected their leader not only for his military skill but also for his fairness and regard for those who served with him.

"The Seminoles' feelings for Bullis are best summed up in a statement years later by a former scout, Joseph Phillips: 'The scouts thought a lot of Bullis. Lieutenant Bullis was the only officer ever did stay the longest with us. That fella suffer jest like we all did out in de woods. He was a good man. He was a Injun fighter. He was tuff. He didn't care how big a bunch dey wuz, he went into 'em everytime, but he look after his men. His men was on equality, too. He didn't stan' back and say "Go yonder;" he would say, "Come on boys, let's go get 'em.'" (True West Magazine, October, 1981, page 13)

Space does not allow us to share all of the battles led by John Bullis. However, the "last conflict by Seminole scouts is credited by many historians as being the last action with hostile Indians in the state. Bullis' scouts literally saw the end of the Indian wars in Texas." (True West Magazine, October, 1981, page 18)

This last battle involved an attack by Lipan Indians on a home near the head of the Frio River in which two people were killed. Twelve days later the scouts were given instructions to follow and destroy the raiders. Although the trail was "cold," then-Lieutenant Bullis and his scouts successfully tracked the Lipans and spotted their camp less than a week later. They attacked the camp at daybreak and although four braves were killed and others captured, Bullis and his men suffered no casualties.

John Bullis was rewarded for his gallant actions by being breveted a Captain and a Major on the same day, February 27, 1890. Following that, "he relocated to New Mexico territory as Agent for the Pueblo and Jicarilla Indians." Then in 1897 he was appointed to U.S. Army Paymaster....."His days of action were finished." (True West Magazine, October, 1981, page 19)

His military career ended in 1905, but John Lapham Bullis--the Whirlwind--is still remembered and admired more than one hundred years later.

THE LOCAL BOY WHO BECAME BRIGADIER GENERAL

Two weeks ago our post was about a boy born in Kentucky who rose from humble beginnings to be our sixteenth president. Today we focus is on a boy born in Macedon who rose from a conservative small-town environment to be appointed a brigadier general by President Theodore Roosevelt in 1904.

John Lapham Bullis's biographical information is in two previous posts on this blog (see February 5 and 12, 2009). Our focus today is on his family's (and hometown's) reaction to his military and business achievements.

Since he received a standard Quaker education, questions have been raised about his family's feelings toward his military career. We have no record specific to these questions. However, we do have excerpts of letters Mr. Bullis wrote his mother while he was serving in the Civil War which indicate mutual love and support. We also have Christmas letters he wrote to his aunt, in which he enclosed a generous monetary gift and expressed his affection of her. As for his business achievements, his nephew Charles Bullis spoke about his Uncle John "always trying to earn money and get ahead...," indicating admiration for his uncle's apparent driving force and ambitions.

Again, we have no record of his community's reaction. However, Bullis family neighbors and friends must have felt proud as stories circulated in the local press and area grapevines about this hometown boy's accomplishments in the Civil War and, later on, in the Texas frontier as leader of the Black Seminole Indians. And we can imagine that after hearing stories of John Lapham Bullis's many acts of bravery, local young people may have been inspired to set higher goals and work harder to achieve them.

Next week we'll post excerpts from a 1981 article in True West titled "John Bullis."

EARTH DAY

CHARLES ROGERS BULLIS

(1891 - 1974)

In this garden

Each day of his life was Earth Day to Mr. Bullis.

May the rest of us follow his example.

THE PIONEER BOY WHO BECAME PRESIDENT

Today, on the one hundred forty-fifth anniversary of Abraham Lincoln's death, we searched the collection and found numerous volumes that focus on our sixteenth president's life. Distinguished authors of well-known titles include Ida M. Tarbell, Alexander K. McClure, and Charles Wallace French.

We chose to highlight William Makepeace Thayer's The Pioneer Boy and How He Became President (Boston: Walter, Wise and Company, 1863), however, because of its timeless inspirational message. We recommend Mr. Thayer's book as a source of encouragement to all readers, but especially to young people who aspire to greater things.

You can read the online version of this book, or stop by the Bullis Room when one of our volunteers is on duty and ask to see our copy. We're always happy to assist you.

CUSTOMS, MYTHS, GREEK THOUGHT, AND MORALS

This week we focused on the religion and philosophy section of this collection. Since it covers two full shelving units, it's difficult to choose which books to recommend for your consideration. Here are a few that especially caught our attention:

Custom and Myth, by Andrew Lang (1885)

Studies in Greek Thought: Essays Selected from the Papers

of Lewis Packard, by Lewis Richard Packard (1886)

A Preface to Morals, by Walter Lippmann (1933)

History of the Conflict Between Religion and Science,

by John William Draper (1875)

Although we plan to have a closer look at all of these books, yesterday we took Custom and Myth off the shelf, sat down at the round table and enjoyed a good read. It begins with the method of folklore and goes into specific myths: Cronus, Cupid, Psyche, as well as the Star myths and Hottentot mythology. The book ends with an early history of the family and the art of savages. We think you would enjoy this book, too, as it revisits familiar myths and enhances the reader's knowledge of mythology in general.

We invite you to stop by the Bullis Room when you're in the library, and take a look at any or all of these books.

HAPPY EASTER

From Nettie Bullis's postcard collection