A most happy and surprise reunion took place in York County during August 1912, when Isaac Kelly, long believed dead, stepped off the train in Blacksburg into the arms of his waiting brother whom he had not seen in 32 years. In spite of their long separation, Isaac had little trouble identifying himself to his brother, John. Both recalled numerous incidents of their childhood, and the scar on Isaac’s leg was the final certification.
The saga of Isaac Kelly began in 1880 when the Kelly family and members of Isaac’s maternal family decided to leave Texas and seek their fortune in South Carolina. The emigrants had not yet left Texas when 10-year-old Isaac fell from a tree resulting in a compound facture of the leg and a twisted arm. Unable to travel with the family, his parents had little choice but to leave their son behind until he was healed enough to travel. He was left in the custody of a Mr. Shinal of Cedar Hill in Dallas County.
Several weeks after he was left behind, a letter came to Shinal from Isaac’s mother inquiring about his safety and health. The black-hearted Shinal took advantage of the boy’s inability to read and lied about the content. He told Isaac that his mother wrote that their team had been stolen, but not to worry for she would make other arrangements to get him. Sometime later another letter came; Shinal lied about the letter again and said that their team had been recovered and she would send money later for him to join his family in York County.
Shinal never replied to Mrs. Kelly’s inquiries about Isaac’s health or whereabouts. He was an evil, ruthless, and heartless man who physically abused his ward until the boy left during his teens to make it on his own.
In filling in the missing years, Isaac told his brother that he’d a “hard time of it.” But Isaac was able to recover, and by the time he visited with his brothers and mother, he had become a successful farmer, with a wife, three children, and one grandchild.
Editor’ Note: Cedar Hill, Texas, is located southwest of Dallas, in the Dallas hill country, and is the highest point between the Red River in Texas and the Gulf of Mexico, at about 880 feet above sea level.
The Shawnee Trail passed through Cedar Hill, running north through Dallas, into Oklahoma, and feeding into both Kansas and Missouri. The railroad did not come to Cedar Hill until 1882, and by the time the Kelly’s passed through, the Shawnee Trail had not served as a major cattle route for more than a decade.
By wagon, it’s likely that the Kellys would have taken the Shawnee through Dallas and out of Texas. In Oklahoma they probably turned east and traveled through the middle of Arkansas, then moving through northern Mississippi, Alabama, and Georgia, and into South Carolina. This route allowed them almost a straight line east while avoiding a crossing of the Appalachian Mountains.
J.L. West – Author
This article and many others found on the pages of Roots and Recall, were written by author J.L. West, for the YC Magazine and have been reprinted on R&R, with full permission – not for distribution or reprint!
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