Introduction
According to the Selective Service records, nearly 200,000 Texans served in the Great War. San Saba County organized a Texas Cavalry company and contributed 462 men. Of that number, 344 were conscripted. It was a sizable contribution for a county with a population of barely ten thousand.
Focusing on service to veterans, service members and communities, the Legion evolved from a group of warweary veterans of World War I (WWI) into one of the most influential nonprofit groups in the US. As the nation’s largest veterans service organization, it is committed to mentoring youth and sponsorship of wholesome programs that advocate patriotism and honor, promoting strong national security and continued devotion to fellow servicemembers and veterans.
Over the years on the national level, the Legion has influenced considerable social change in America, won hundreds of benefits for veterans, and produced important programs for children and youth. Its values are in its creed, and its strength has always been with the local post. Locally, the Wiley B. Murray Post No. 27 has met continuously from 1919 until the present. It is one of the oldest posts established in the state and nation. Over the years it has been closely associated with, the United Confederate Veterans - William P. Rogers Camp No. 322, the Old Settlers Reunion, the Ladies Auxiliary, and the City National Bank. Post 27 has actively supported the various local schools, provided scholarships, and sponsored numerous youth programs to include baseball and youth leagues. In times of war or conflict, it actively contributed to the national defense and assisted returning veterans with disability, educational and other benefits.
Despite its accomplishments, there was a time in 1933 where one of its prominent Legionnaires was murdered. A local deputy sheriff would be arrested and tried. Not since the days of the San Saba Murder Trials in Austin in 1897, had there been so much attention in a trail. The courthouse would be packed to standing room only, and newspapers from Austin, Waco, San Angelo and Ft. Worth would send their reporters. What follows in a seventeen-part series, plus a conclusion exclusive to the San Saba News & Star, and is the story of that murder on the streets of San Saba.
Check back next week for Part 1 of the Murder of William L. Robertson!