I am still wanting to collect stories about Glenn Lewis, for a future book.
I know it seems like I ran out of gas on the project, but I’ve been pretty busy trying to keep the wolves off my door step. But I’m slowly inching forward on that project, so if you think of anything be sure to jot it down and send to me or pickup the phone and tell it to me. I love to talk and hardly ever run on to anyone to talk to.

But I was on the phone with an unnamed character the other day and he told the following tale about Glenn. I had heard it but it had been a long time ago.

It goes like this:

Glenn was driving down Ave N, over in the area around Pure Stone Company. He came upon a young child, a little black boy with only a diaper on playing in the road. Thinking about the safety of the little boy, he stopped and picked the little feller up and hauled up to the feed store with him.

He fashioned a rope into a leash that he put around his neck to keep him from running off. Knowing that kids need feeding regularly, someone was going to the store so Glenn had them bring back a bunch of bananas for him to eat.

All went pretty well until that baby has stuffed himself on all those bananas and messed his diaper. That brought an end to Glenn’s nurturing. He loaded him up and took back over and put him out near where there were a lot of people milling around.

I never heard, but it crossed my mind that he may have tied him in the back of the pickup if the smell was pretty rank. I only say that because that’s the way Glenn did stuff.

Glenn and Sam at Melvin’s Country Store

I called my ol buddy Sam a while back, who lived over in that part of town where Glenn picked the baby up out of the middle of the road. I told him that story. I asked if he had ever heard it before, figuring that may have been part of the Glenn Lewis lore over in that part of town. He was amused by the story but said that’s one he’d never heard. I even speculated about it possibly being him, but Sam said it for sure wasn’t him. But he said most likely it was some of his kinfolks. Sam is kin to almost all the negro people in Marble Falls.

Then like usually happens, that story lead to another.

Sam was up at Melvin Wright’s Country Store one day, when Glenn rode up on a horse. Glenn roped Sam, and got the rope down around his ankles. He rode over to the huge mesquite tree and strung Sam up by his heels.

Melvin saw what was happening and came running out of the store and told him to let that boy down. Glenn kept playing around. About that time, someone had run down and told Sam’s Grandpa what was happening, so he started up the street. When Glenn saw him a-coming, he released the rope and gathered it up and headed out for home by way of a shortcut down across Backbone Creek.

They dusted Sam off and Melvin gave him a sodie water. Sam said he walked home backwards to be sure Glenn wasn’t coming back to rope him again.

A day or so later Glenn and Sam met up at the store again. Glenn said “do you like ice cream”. Sam told him that was alright he didn’t need any ice cream. Nothing would do Glenn but he would buy Sam an ice cream bar. That was a peace offering in Glenn’s mind.

Glenn was legendary for chasing children down horseback and roping them. It didn’t matter if they black, white or brown children, if you were walking along down in the Backbone Creek Bottom, you may get a rope on you. I don’t remember hearing about Glenn ever seriously injuring any kids ropin them like that, but he scared plenty of them.