San Saba and the Penatuhkah Comanche
Long before the first settlers trickled into the San Saba River valley, the Indian tribe we know today as the Comanche was a part of the Shoshone of eastern Wyoming. Even today, hundreds of years later, their languages are still similar.
We cannot be completely certain as to why the future Comanches left the Shoshone. Indian tribal traditions refer to some inter-family disputes. Other possibilities include a desire to pursue a more nomadic lifestyle. Also, the introduction by the Spanish of horses into the west provided the potential for a new lifestyle and possibility for commerce. Some have suggested that climate change greatly expanded rich grasslands resulting in a large increase in the size of the bison herds which the Comanche could exploit. In any event, at some time between the late 16th and early 17th centuries, the people who came to be known as the Comanche moved southeastward into what would later become Oklahoma, New Mexico, Arizona and eventually, Texas.
The origin of the name “Comanche” provides a clue as to nature of much of future peoples’ relations with the tribe. The name comes from a Ute word “kimanci,” meaning enemy, foreigner. Over time, as the tribe evolved increasingly into a “horse culture” their prowess as hunters and warriors became dominant. They have been called the greatest light cavalry warriors who ever lived. The Comanche allied with and at other times warred with other tribes, the Spanish, or white settlers. The area in which they held sway became known as Comancheria. San Saba County was in the southeastern portion of that area.
The main social unit of the Comanche was the band. The bands typically numbered a hundred or more individuals. Each band had its own leaders, warriors and medicine men. The bands were organized patrilineally, providing a great deal of cohesiveness. Two of the major bands in Texas were the Kwahadis, which was the band of the famous Comanche leader, Quanah Parker who was their last chief, and the Penatuhkah, which was the band predominant in that part of Texas that includes San Saba County.
From the earliest settlement efforts in the San Saba area, conflict with Native groups posed a constant danger. Early surveyors were often unwilling to enter the vast Fisher-Miller grant because of the ongoing threat. That changed in the spring of 1847, when a remarkable event helped pave the way for San Saba’s settlement. Seeking greater security for their communities, German colonists led by Baron John O. Meusebach persuaded Penatuhkah leaders to meet and negotiate a treaty. The agreement was unusual because it was made between the Comanches and a private group rather than a state or national government. Its language also emphasized mutual respect and cooperation instead of domination by either side. Negotiated in March 1847 in the Sloan community southwest of present-day San Saba and signed later in Fredericksburg, the treaty significantly aided the county’s early development.