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The saga of the last Butler County wolf
Josey1
Member Posts: 9,598 ✭✭
The saga of the last Butler County wolf
Sam Potter (right) shot this timber wolf in 1924 near Fagus. It is believed to be the last wild wolf killed in the Fagus area. Potter was assisted in the hunt by Amos Doyle. They are now both deceased. The photo was taken in front of the Fagus School building, which has been destroyed. (Photo provided)
By LONNIE THIELE ~ Staff writer
Eighty years ago Butler County was mostly timber and farmers turned their hogs and cattle out to run free in the woods under open range laws. The hogs and cattle were their livelihood.
Timber wolves threatened the free roaming livestock.
Sam Potter Jr., 88, born, raised and lifelong resident of Fagus, recalls when the last timber wolves were shot in the Fagus area.
"At one time my dad (Sam Potter) had over 100 head of cattle and 300 sows out in the woods. We were checking on them all the time, riding horses nearly every day in the woods," Potter said.
"People in those days hunted a lot. That was part of their living when I was growing up."
Potter said his dad hunted with Amos Doyle, who lived nearby and also ran livestock in the timber.
"If one of them heard of a wolf in the area, they'd both take off together," Potter said. "Wolves were destructive when sows had little pigs. They would run by, grab a pig and run off. I never could figure out why they wouldn't bother bigger hogs, but they wouldn't.
"Amos had three wolf dogs. They were good ones too.
"When the sows had baby pigs, that's when they hunted the most. That was when wolves had pups. Those wolves wouldn't leave those pups.
"The dogs would chase the wolves and they would run in circles because they didn't want to leave the den.
"I was 10 years old (in 1924) and in school when pop shot that wolf (see photo). They had just got that brick school house built (in Fagus). The dogs were running it, circling it and dad was standing on a ditch bank when the wolf ran by and he shot it with a double barrel shotgun.
"He shot that wolf on Ash Ditch, two miles west of Fagus. I believed she weighed 80 pounds and she was poor.
"In the 1930s they were still running a lot of stock in the woods, hogs and cattle. One winter day there was a little snow on, I was riding a horse in the woods, had one dog with me, a hog dog. He went to running and barking. I thought he was after a hog.
"When I got there I seen tracks in the snow. It was a wolf heading towards Cache Ditch. I followed the tracks and a guy shot it (at Cache Ditch) but didn't kill it.
"I ran him for a couple of miles. It was getting late in the evening and I figured that wolf would kill the dog. Pop wouldn't have taken a thousand dollars for that dog, so I came back.
"We went back over to track it the next morning, but didn't get over there very early and most of the snow had melted and we couldn't track it very far.
"That was the last time a wolf was ever in here.
"I never did find what happened to it.
"The guy that shot it was from Qulin, but I don't know his name. I would like to know who it was."
http://www.darnews.com/display/inn_news/news17.txt
"If cowardly and dishonorable men sometimes shoot unarmed men with army pistols or guns, the evil must be prevented by the penitentiary and gallows, and not by a general deprivation of a constitutional privilege." - Arkansas Supreme Court, 1878
Sam Potter (right) shot this timber wolf in 1924 near Fagus. It is believed to be the last wild wolf killed in the Fagus area. Potter was assisted in the hunt by Amos Doyle. They are now both deceased. The photo was taken in front of the Fagus School building, which has been destroyed. (Photo provided)
By LONNIE THIELE ~ Staff writer
Eighty years ago Butler County was mostly timber and farmers turned their hogs and cattle out to run free in the woods under open range laws. The hogs and cattle were their livelihood.
Timber wolves threatened the free roaming livestock.
Sam Potter Jr., 88, born, raised and lifelong resident of Fagus, recalls when the last timber wolves were shot in the Fagus area.
"At one time my dad (Sam Potter) had over 100 head of cattle and 300 sows out in the woods. We were checking on them all the time, riding horses nearly every day in the woods," Potter said.
"People in those days hunted a lot. That was part of their living when I was growing up."
Potter said his dad hunted with Amos Doyle, who lived nearby and also ran livestock in the timber.
"If one of them heard of a wolf in the area, they'd both take off together," Potter said. "Wolves were destructive when sows had little pigs. They would run by, grab a pig and run off. I never could figure out why they wouldn't bother bigger hogs, but they wouldn't.
"Amos had three wolf dogs. They were good ones too.
"When the sows had baby pigs, that's when they hunted the most. That was when wolves had pups. Those wolves wouldn't leave those pups.
"The dogs would chase the wolves and they would run in circles because they didn't want to leave the den.
"I was 10 years old (in 1924) and in school when pop shot that wolf (see photo). They had just got that brick school house built (in Fagus). The dogs were running it, circling it and dad was standing on a ditch bank when the wolf ran by and he shot it with a double barrel shotgun.
"He shot that wolf on Ash Ditch, two miles west of Fagus. I believed she weighed 80 pounds and she was poor.
"In the 1930s they were still running a lot of stock in the woods, hogs and cattle. One winter day there was a little snow on, I was riding a horse in the woods, had one dog with me, a hog dog. He went to running and barking. I thought he was after a hog.
"When I got there I seen tracks in the snow. It was a wolf heading towards Cache Ditch. I followed the tracks and a guy shot it (at Cache Ditch) but didn't kill it.
"I ran him for a couple of miles. It was getting late in the evening and I figured that wolf would kill the dog. Pop wouldn't have taken a thousand dollars for that dog, so I came back.
"We went back over to track it the next morning, but didn't get over there very early and most of the snow had melted and we couldn't track it very far.
"That was the last time a wolf was ever in here.
"I never did find what happened to it.
"The guy that shot it was from Qulin, but I don't know his name. I would like to know who it was."
http://www.darnews.com/display/inn_news/news17.txt
"If cowardly and dishonorable men sometimes shoot unarmed men with army pistols or guns, the evil must be prevented by the penitentiary and gallows, and not by a general deprivation of a constitutional privilege." - Arkansas Supreme Court, 1878