it. The writer has an original manuscript written by May Gibson Fleming which she once read before the El Paso Woman's Club. She writes simply
The importance of a name arose. Neither man felt he could give up his right of choosing said name, so they settled the matter in a primitive manner by drawing straws. My father was the fortunate one, and he named it El Paso, a Spanish word meaning "The Pass."
Eugene Hodgson, Gibson's grandson still lives in Minonk, and he told the writer Mr. Gibson returned from the gold rush trip to California by the far southern route which took him through El Paso County in 1851, named only the year before. The Texas city of El Paso was first called Magoffinsville, then Franklin, and was not renamed El Paso until 1859, three years after the naming of El Paso, Illinois. The Texas city was platted February 28, 1859 by Gen. Anson Mills, was incorporated in 1873 as a town, and finally as a city in 1881. It was on Mill's recommendation that the change was made from Franklin to El Paso. We are indebted to Mr. Cleofas Calleros, historical writer of El Paso, Texas, who gave permission to use the above information from his several letters to us. Also see Holiday Magazine, December 1948, on EI Paso, Texas.
14. Testimony in the old railroad case is interesting. Further testimony of Bestor's reads as follows:
At or about the time the contract was entered into (April 5, 1856) there was disagreement between Wathen and Gibson about naming the town. Wathen proposed to call it Wathener. Gibson wanted to call it El Paso. To settle the question, I proposed to call it Bestor (or) to put up the privilege of naming the town at auction with the proceeds to be expended for the benefit of the town. I offered to pay $250 to name it. I made this proposition to Gibson, and he said he would communicate with Wathen and agree to it if he would.
I made six or seven plats like the one in evidence at my own expense. I posted one of them in the house I built at El Paso occupied by Count Chlopicki, and one in my own office, then a place of public business . . . and I gave one each to Wathen and Gibson.
The public squares, the church and school lots were made on this plat, and assented to by Wathen and Gibson, and were intended to be dedicated for that purpose.
But Gibson countered this with his testimony that
I never had any consultations with Bestor about his making the plats, and never consulted with him about donating lots. Bestor's plats were made from the surveyor's, which Wathen and I had previously made.
I first built on the property in question (El Paso, original town) in 1856 immediately after the completion of the P. & 0. railroad to El Paso. I commenced the erection of a building designed for a store room; it was afterwards changed to a hotel. Count Chlopicki frequently said he did not live in El Paso but in Illinois Junction.
Wathen backed up Gibson's testimony by stating
I never authorized Bestor to make any plats. He looked over my own plats. Yes, I knew Count Chlopicki. He always abused the
Page 56
Go to previous page Go to next page Go to El Paso Story gateway page