Pleasant Tackitt (or Tackett; April 22, 1803 – February 7, 1886) (sometimes rendered as James Pleasant, but no official documents support this name) was a 19th-century politician, pioneer

Methodist Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a group of historically related denominations of Protestant Christianity whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's b ...

minister, stockman, teacher, farmer, Indian fighter, and Confederate officer. Tackitt was a key figure in the history of

Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the Osage ...

and

North Texas North Texas (also commonly called North Central Texas) is a term used primarily by residents of Dallas, Fort Worth, and surrounding areas to describe much of the north central portion of the U.S. state of Texas. Residents of the Dallas–Fort Wor ...

, including a state representative in the

Arkansas General Assembly The General Assembly of Arkansas is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Arkansas. The legislature is a bicameral body composed of the upper house Arkansas Senate with 35 members, and the lower Arkansas House of Representatives with 100 ...

. Because of his battles with Indians in Texas, Tackitt became known as "the Fighting Parson".

Early life

Tackitt was born in

Henry County, Kentucky Henry County is a county located in the north central portion of the U.S. state of Kentucky bordering the Kentucky River. Its county seat is New Castle, but its largest city is Eminence. The county was founded in 1798 from portions of Shelby ...

, to

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

n Lewis Tackitt and Mary Elizabeth Bashum, and was one of seven children. The Missouri Methodist Conference assigned Pleasant as missionary to the Western Cherokees in Arkansas in 1829. He was a circuit rider for two years and then assigned to mission schools. He married Kezia Frances Bruton on August 20, 1830, in

Pope County, Arkansas Pope County is a county in the U.S. state of Arkansas. As of the 2020 census, the population was 63,381. The county seat is Russellville. The county was formed on November 2, 1829, from a portion of Crawford County and named for John Pope, th ...

. He served one term in the

before joining a Texas-bound caravan in the autumn of 1853.

Life in Texas

Pleasant settled first in the spring of 1854, two years before Parker County was organized, on Walnut Creek, about four miles west of Springtown, Texas. He founded Goshen Church, and helped clear ground for the adjoining cemetery after providing shelter for his family. He preached his first Texas sermon in the cabin home of Hezekiah Culwell, and regularly held services at Goshen, Springtown, and Ash Creek, where he helped build churches. In 1857, he organized the First United Methodist Church of

Weatherford, Texas Weatherford ( ) is a city and the county seat of Parker County, Texas, United States. In 2020, its population was 30,854. Weatherford is named after Thomas J. Weatherford, a State senator and advocate for Texas’ secession to the Confederate S ...

. Then, the Texas Methodist Conference transferred Pleasant to Fort Belknap, Texas, to spread the gospel to friendly Indians and white settlers. He organized churches in Palo Pinto, Shackelford, and Young Counties, including one at

Graham, Texas Graham is a city in north-central Texas. It is the county seat and largest city of Young County. History The site was first settled in 1871 by brothers Gustavus A. and Edwin S. Graham, primary shareholders in the Texas Emigration and Land Company ...

. Tackitt at one time had 143 appointments requiring 1,200 miles of travel to visit all. Tackitt Mountain in Young County was named for him in memory of the skirmish there in 1860 between the Tackitt family and a band of Indians led by a

Comanche The Comanche or Nʉmʉnʉʉ ( com, Nʉmʉnʉʉ, "the people") are a Native American tribe from the Southern Plains of the present-day United States. Comanche people today belong to the federally recognized Comanche Nation, headquartered in La ...

known to the settlers as Piny Chummy (or Pine-o-Channa). During the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...

, Tackitt served as chief justice and postmaster in Young County and as enrolling officer in the

Confederate States Army The Confederate States Army, also called the Confederate Army or the Southern Army, was the military land force of the Confederate States of America (commonly referred to as the Confederacy) during the American Civil War (1861–1865), fighting ...

Final years

An often-told story emphasizes the major scares the Tackitts endured at their Fish Creek home south of Ft. Belknap. One of the family's cows came home with an arrow protruding from her back. Pleasant and his three oldest sons, James, Lycurgus and George, armed themselves and went to bring home the remainder of their herd. They were returning from the Tackitt Mountain area with the animals when 10 Indians rose from a ravine ambush. When the arrows and bullets ceased, four attackers lay dead, and James had a dangerous arrow point lodged in his skull and Pleasant was suffering from a point that pierced one foot. Both suffered great pain, but survived. Frontier life had tense episodes, but all Pleasant's children lived long lives, mostly into their 80s. His brother, Mann Darius Tackitt, was not so lucky. He was slain by a pillaging Indian band on his ranch in

Jack County Jack County is a county located in the north central part of the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 census, its population was 8,472. Its county seat is Jacksboro. The county was created in 1856 and organized the next year. It is named for P ...

. Pleasant Tackitt returned to Parker County in the last years of his life and is buried in Goshen Cemetery beside his wife.

Frontier life

According to a 1925 article in ''Frontier Times'' magazine, "I wish now to record one of the best Indian fights ever fought on our northern frontier by citizens against Indians. This fight like the major part of our frontier life and battles with Indians, has never been recorded in history, but by all means ought to have been. The fight was by Rev. Pleasant Tackitt and his three young sons - Jim Tackitt, 22 years old, L. L.- Tackitt, 20, and George Tackitt, 16. Rev. Tackitt was armed with a rifle and dragoon six-shooter; Jim Tackitt had a rifle and Navy six-shooter, and L. L. Tackitt had a double-barreled shot gun and Navy six-shooter. The first Indian raid into Young county after they were moved to the Indian territory was in January 1860. On the evening of January 13, one of the Tackitt's milk cows came home with an arrow sticking in her back. Mrs. Tackitt, after discovering the arrow when she went to milk, went to the house and reported the fact. It was then late in the evening. Rev. Tackitt and the three older boys above named made ready to start the next morning on foot to see if they could find the Indians and also learn what they had done with other stock. There had been a deep snow and sleet on the ground for a week or 10 days. The Tackitts then lived on Fish Creek in Young County. Early on the morning of the 14th about sunrise, the Rev. Tackitt and the three boys left home in pursuit of the Indians; they took the back trail of the cows and after having gone some two miles, they came to where the Indians had killed one of their cows and had… He and George both rain to the trees and in suddenly stopping behind the trees they both slipped on the snow and fell. Jim and Rev. Tackitt by this time were slightly wounded. The Indians seeing L. L. and George fall when they ran to the trees evidently thought they were killed and instantly dropped their bows and arrows in the branch and made a sudden rush.''

Frontier Times ''THE FRONTIER TIMES'' (or Hunters Frontier Magazine) is a popular journal and magazine devoted to history of the American West and Texas. Before it ceased publication, it was published in many locations at Texas. The magazine It was founded ...

'', Vol 2 No. 9, June 1925

Children

#James Gray B. ''circa'' 1838 #Lewis Lycurgus "Like"; born May 4, 1840; Parker County, Texas Sheriff 1882-1883; commanding officer of Parker County Minute Company, Texas State Troops (Rangers), October 1865 #George Wm. Council ''circa'' 1842 #Andrew Chester Ashley born November 15, 1845; January - February 1874 - Texas Rangers, Young County, Texas. #Robert Emmett Elias; born April 10, 1849;

justice of the peace A justice of the peace (JP) is a judicial officer of a lower or ''puisne'' court, elected or appointed by means of a commission ( letters patent) to keep the peace. In past centuries the term commissioner of the peace was often used with the sa ...

, 1901-1922

Hall County, Texas Hall County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 census, the population is 2,825. Its county seat is Memphis. The county was created in 1876 and later organized in 1890. It is named for Warren D. C. Hall, a secretary ...

. #Sarah Caroline ''circa'' 1851 #Perry Anderson ''circa'' 1854

Siblings

#Rev. Moranda Tackitt #Nathaniel Tackitt #Elizabeth Tackitt Davis #Sarah Louisa Tackitt Benefield Bewley # Mann Darius Tackitt #Martin Tackitt #Ferby Tackitt Smith ::The Pleasant Tackitt who was killed as a result of the

Mountain Meadows massacre The Mountain Meadows Massacre (September 7–11, 1857) was a series of attacks during the Utah War that resulted in the mass murder of at least 120 members of the Baker–Fancher party, Baker–Fancher emigrant wagon train. The massacre occur ...

was the son of Martin Tackitt.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Tackitt, Pleasant 1803 births 1886 deaths People from Henry County, Kentucky Members of the Arkansas House of Representatives Confederate States Army officers People of Texas in the American Civil War American Methodist missionaries Native American history of Texas Members of the Texas Ranger Division American Methodist clergy 19th-century Methodist ministers 19th-century American politicians Methodist missionaries in the United States 19th-century American clergy