The Comanche Connection
courtesy of his great-grandson, Lanny AsepermyLong before there was the town of Santa Anna, there were Santa Anna's Peaks. The 1849 DeCordova map shows one geographical feature west of the Brazos and north of the Colorado--Santa Anna's Peaks. The Peaks were the political and military capital of the Comanche territory at the zenith of power of the Lords of the South Plains. Oral histories describe this landmark as the center of fire and smoke communications, a warrior training camp, and the place of the "fire rock", a meteorite that became a sacred object to the Comanche.
The Peaks were named for the great Comanche war chief Santa Anna, or Santanna, who led the Penatukah band of Comanches about the time of the Republic of Texas. He was one of the signers of the Peace Treaty of 1847 with the Germans of Fredricksburg. The 150th Anniversary of the treaty was celebrated in 1997. Santa Anna was the first Comanche diplomat to visit the "Great White Father" in Washington D.C. President Polk described him as "a man of many talents", and the press of those days called him a "bold and brave looking fellow." Santa Anna was never subdued by the white man, but rather by disease--he died of cholera in 1849.
Few people are aware of the rich history of the Comanche of this area, so a plan was formulated to provide a cultural heritage and archive center which would focus on the horse culture of the Plains Indians, especially the Lords of the Plains, the Comanche.
To that end, the Santa Anna Historical Development Organization, HDO, was created in late 1991. In the fall of 1992, representatives of the HDO met with officials of the Comanche Nation to invite them to come to Santa Anna. The Director for Education of the tribe, Ozzie Red Elk, then came to Santa Anna and met with the community at a picnic in the City Park. The next day he examined ancient campsites which are on private property. Based on this experience, he convinced a small delegation to attend Funtier Days, a city-wide festival held annually in the spring. In May of 1993 the Comanche visited Santa Anna where they sang and danced and officially returned to their ancient tribal home where the sound of the drums was heard for the first time in nearly a century and a half. The highest ranking Comanche medicine man, Thomas Wahnee, performed a blessing ceremony at one of the ancient campsites, making the landowner a "keeper" for the tribe. Shortly afterward, representatives of the HDO met with the Tribal Business Council to propose a mutually beneficial partnership, which the body approved unanimously.
In October 1994, at the invitation of the Texas Archeological Society, Montie Guthrie (HDO representative), Ozzie Red Elk (Comanche Education Director), and Linda Pelon (ethnologist of the Comanche) delivered a tri-perspective presentation to the Society's annual convention in Laredo. Interest in cooperative endeavors between Native Americans and the dominant culture is quickly becoming a priority issue across the academic and cultural spectrum.
In 1995 at Funtier Days, Congressman Charles Stenholm, State Senator Bill Sims, Representative Bob Turner, County Judge Sherill Ragsdale, and Santa Anna Mayor Danny Kellar signed a treaty of mutual respect and cooperation with Tribal Chairman Wallace Coffey, and tribal elders Bill "Buffalo" Karty and Leonard "Black Moon" Riddles, tribal historian. At this ceremony, the HDO made a gift to the tribe of a registered Quarter Horse, which became the first of a tribal herd.
Many people from Santa Anna have attended powwows with the Comanche. In return, the Comanche have visited Santa Anna each year with arts and crafts, drum, singers, and dancers, teaching the citizens of Santa Anna to appreciate the many aspects of the traditional Comanche culture and way of life. The HDO is dedicated to maintaining and strengthening the historical ties between the two peoples.
The big event of the year is the Santa Anna Funtier Days, held the third weekend in May. Several events are held at the festival: the annual World Championship Bison Cookoff*, Comanches demonstrate traditional dress and dance, the Ballet Folklorico Del Rio displays traditional Mexican dance and dress, and the First Calvary horse platoon from Fort Hood demonstrate mounted weapons drills. These events represent a multi-cultural/historical display of the rich heritage of this area.
The area around Santa Anna is still being explored for further traces of Comanche occupation, one of the results of the treaty signed in 1995. One vivid reminder of the Indian influence exists today in the form of a carved stone that weighs more than two tons. The unknown sculptor carved the outline of an Indian warrior with the letters SANTANA below the profile. Removed from its home in the late 1960s to Arkansas, the stone was returned to Santa Anna where it belongs. It currently resides on Main Street at the base of the mountain where so long ago moccasins of the Comanche trod.
