An Outlaw Ballad Close to Home

My great-great grandfather, W.T. Eidson, was a friend of Sam Bass up in Denton County. The two of them raced horses together, and the jockey of Bass' fabled Denton Mare was an African-American man called Dick Eidson, who, according to historian Wayne Gard, was known by that surname because he worked for the Eidsons. On an interesting side note, my grandfather actually remembers waiting outside a nursing home as a child while his uncle visited Dick Eidson.

Grandpa Eidson and Sam Bass used to meet around a rock protrusion called Pilot Knob, where Sam Bass' treasure is said to be hidden. Today Martina and I decided to go find Pilot Knob and take some pictures. Since my grandfather talked about going on picnics there as a child, we figured it should be easily accessible. Well, once we reached our destination, which is just north of Robson Ranch Road on I-35W, we quickly realized that the knob is on private land and that we couldn't get close enough to take any decent pictures.

But do not fret. Here is Michael Martin Murphey playing the old outlaw ballad, "Sam Bass," which includes a reference to the Denton Mare.