Joel Harris and Defeat Hollow

Joel Harris was my Great, Great, Great Grandfather and one of the original settlers of Hudson Bend, on the Colorado River, in Travis County, Texas.  Hudson Bend is on one of the old Comanche trails that led to the spot that would one day be Austin, Texas, the capital of Texas.  If you look on maps of the area you may find a spot near Comanche Peak called Defeat Hollow, the spot where Joel Harris had a run-in with Comanches.

The excerpts below tells the story; it's from a short publication that J.M. Owens of the Hudson Bend area wrote in 1970.  My notes are in parenthesis. I obtained copies from Neal Hudson who is a descendant of Joel Harris' daughter, Trophenia, who married Joseph Alexander Hudson (July 9 1874).

" .. With the establishment of the Capital at Austin, settlers began moving up the Colorado river and again we find the bends named for the early settlers ... The bends of the river (Colorado) were usually named for the first settlers in the area .. Some of these upstream from Austin area: Hudson Bend, Anderson Bend and Therman Bend ... Horseshoe Bend is immediately upstream from the present Mansfield Dam, and on the same side of the lake as Hudson Bend, and was named because of its shape ... Before Lake Travis was formed the land area of Hudson Bend was approx. 4000 acres. Now it has approx. one-half that much above the 715 ft. contour. There are 24 original land surveys in Hudson Bend, some of which are (now) completely covered by the waters of Lake Travis.  Joel Harris owned land in Hudson Bend (survey records show Joel Harris as one of the original 24) and his daughter, Trophenia, married Joseph Alexander Hudson ... Jesse James (a former Texas State Treasurer .. really) now lives at the old Harris place ...

Hudson Bend was not without its Indian troubles. As told by John C. Hudson, son of Joseph Alexander Hudson and grandson of Wiley Hudson, first white settler of Hudson Bend, Grandpa Harris went out one morning to look for some calves. He trailed them down into Horseshoe Bend and across the Colorado River at about opposite where St. Luke's (Episcopal Church) by the Lake now stands. He started up this draw when he came upon some ten or twelve Indians. He immediately dismounted and headed for the brush as the Indians were reluctant to follow a person into the brush. The Indians were shooting at him with arrows and one of them hit the stock of his gun and knocked a chunk out of it. He then decided that he would have to shoot some of the Indians. One of the Indians had mounted Grandpa Harris' horse and was trying to ride off with him but apparently the horse didn't like the smell of the rider, so was trying to buck him off. About that time, someone appeared on the bluff above and began to call out for Grandpa Harris.  Apparently the Indians thought that re-enforcements had arrived and ran off taking Grandpa Harris' horse and saddle with them. Since that time this draw has been known as Defeat Hollow ... "

Photos

Today Saint Luke's Episcopal Church on Lake Travis overlooks Defeat Hollow.  Keep in mind that Lake Travis is a man-made lake, created from damming the Colorado River, so Defeat Hollow would have looked quite a bit different in the 1800s.

TerraServer

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Topographic map showing location of Defeat Hollow, Comanche Peak, and Comanche Trail ( a road today ).

Red arrow points to Defeat Hollow.  Yellow circle is location of Saint Luke's Episcopal Church which today overlooks Defeat Hollow.  Red Circle is general location of the Oasis Restaurant & Bar, which sits close to Comanche Peak.  Green marks the southward direction of what is today Comanche Trail.  Blue shows Ranch Road 620.