Natural Bridge Wax Museum: William “Big Foot” Wallace

Posted on October 13, 2010 by Reverend

This short video features the diorama dedicated to Texas Ranger William “Big Foot” Wallace, who was originally from Lexington, Virginia, but went to Texas to “take pay out of the Mexicans” after learning both his brother and his cousin had been shot dead in the Goliad massacre. What is remarkableto me about this diorama is that William “big Foot” Wallace could very well have been one of the scalp huntere out of Cormac McCarthy’s brilliant, but devastating, novel Blood Meridian. And given I had just finished that novel a few weeks before visiting the wax museum, you’ll hear me start to make the connection between William “Big Foot” Wallace and McCarthy’s rendering of the Judge. crazy to see bounty hunters like this framed in such a way, I mean I never realized Texas Ranger is just another name for imperial bounty hunter—explains a lot about that baseball team.

This entry was posted in americana, pop culture and tagged , , , . Bookmark the permalink.

5 Responses to Natural Bridge Wax Museum: William “Big Foot” Wallace

  1. Bob says:
    November 10, 2010 at 6:00 pm

    Thats’ just you historical ignorance of Texas and the rangers shining through. Bigfoot Wallace wasn’t a scalp hunter and the Texas ranger weren’t bounty hunters. You should probably read a little more about Texas history instead of believing everything you read in fictional works.

    Reply
  2. Reverend says:
    November 11, 2010 at 4:54 am

    Bob,

    Thanks for the comment, what do your recommend I read?

    Reply
  3. Bob says:
    November 11, 2010 at 3:42 pm

    Hey Rev. Sorry I was a might touchy, but we Texans are proud of our heroes and get a little riled-up when we read inaccuracies. The most factual book on Bigfoot was written by A.J. Sowell and their isn’t a scalp taken by him within its pages. There have been a few great books on the rangers written in the last few years. Try any book by Charles Wilkins, Stephen L. Moore or Bob Utley. The rangers were mounted militia, soldiers and finally law officers, but never bounty hunters in Texas.

    Blood Meridian is actually based on a man named Glanton, who was booted out of the rangers and later became a bounty hunter and outlaw in Mexico.

    Reply
  4. Reverend says:
    November 11, 2010 at 5:21 pm

    Thanks Bob,

    And no worries, I don’t get too touchy about things like this because you were right, I was ignorant 🙂 Looking forward to reading about Bigfoot, because that whole period fascinates me, and in no small part due to McCarthy’s craziness. But a little context may do me well.

    Thanks again, Bob, and Viva la Tejas!

    Reply
  5. Bob says:
    November 16, 2010 at 9:30 pm

    You’re welcome. That sign isn’t totally right either. Bigfoot is buried in Austin at the State Cemetery next to Father of Texas Stephen F. Austin. High praise for services rendered.

    Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.