Johnny Patton, 3rd Cavalry



Patton, John Ramsey, enlisted 23 Jan 1866 in Philadelphia PA, by Capt. Mix for 3 years. He was from Montgomery Co. PA, age 22, occ. Butcher & Soldier, eyes Hazel, hair Dark, complexion Fair, he was 5ft 6-1/2in tall. Enlisted in the 3rd Cavalry H Co.; Discharged 23 Oct 1868 per G.O. #24, A.G.O. of 1859, at Ft. Stanton NM, as a Pvt. Army Register of Enlistments, Fold3.com

John Ramsey Patton was born Feb 1846 in Pennsylvania, his father was from England and his mother was from Ohio. March 12, 1862 he enlisted in Co. K 109th Regt. Penn. Infantry at Philadelphia. The Regiment fought in numerous battles as part of the Army of the Potomac including Gettysburg. After Gettysburg the Regiment was transferred to Tennessee, in April of 1864 they joined General Sherman in his march to the sea. 1865 found them in the Carolinas, in March they were consolidated with the 111th Pennsylvania; after the surrender they marched to Washington D.C. They were mustered out in Washington on July 19, 1865.

Johnny then joined the 3rd Cavalry and came west. On April 2, 1868 Johnny was with Sgt. Glass and four other troopers of H Troop who were reinforced by a party of 26 Tularosa settlers and fought the Apaches in the Tularosa Canyon in the Battle of Round Mountain. He was discharged at Ft. Stanton Oct. 25, 1868, maybe he had enough fighting.

In 1870 he was working as a cook at Blazer's Mill, in April of 1878 he witnessed the famous or infamous gunfight there, Buckshot Roberts and Dick Brewer were killed. His account appears in Emerson Hough's The Story of the Outlaw, in his version of events he said he made one big coffin and Roberts and Brewer were buried together. "I couldn't make a very good coffin, so I built it in the shape of a big V, with no end piece at the foot. We just put them in together." (From Frederick Nolan's book The West of Billy the Kid)



He worked for the Lesnett family as cook when they first bought Dowlin's Mill about 1877. His whereabouts is a little obscure for the next twenty years but he was, no doubt a cook on some ranch or another. We find him in 1898 working for William McDonald down at Carrizozo Springs.



From an Essay about Doc Lacey and Fannie Lalone by Rich Eastwood:   "[When they were married in White Oaks, 1898] Doc was cowboying for the Carrizozo Cattle Company down at the McDonald place, he moved Fannie there but she was terribly lonely. An oldtimer, Johnny Patton, was the cook there and Fannie would put on her gloves and go visit him. He took her under his wing, one day he commented that she didn't have a ring, she said that they didn't have the money; a short time later, Johnny bought a ring for her as a wedding present and she wore that ring for the rest of her life."

In 1907 Johnny checked into the Sawtelle Veterans Hospital in Los Angeles CA suffering from Rheumatism and Brite's Disease. The record states that he was 61 years old, 5'7", fair complexion, Brown Eyes, Grey Hair, he could read and write, he was a Protestant and he had been a Cook in Carrizozo NM. Also there is an entry that is a little perplexing, it states that he was a Widower and his Nearest Relative was John R. Patton of Carrizozo. He died at Sawtelle in 1924... quite a life!

Postscript:

Johnny's son puzzled me for a few years, here is the story:

We know that Johnny worked at Blazer's Mill, he hung around with John Walters and the rest of the California Column boys that lived in the Tularosa Canyon. In 1886 John Walters died, his widow was Alvina Baca; apparently she and Johnny had a little liaison, she had a son in 1888 and named him James B. Patton. Nothing much is known of this, no marriage record or baptismal record have been found.

Alvina was a bit promiscuous, in 1908 she was shot and killed by a jealous lover. James married and settled around the town of Mescalero.

James B. Patton Son of John R. Patton and Alvina Baca (widow of John Walters)
Born 5 Dec 1888 in the Tularosa Canyon, Otero Co. NM (In what would become Bent)
Died 26 Jul 1936 in Los Angeles
Buried Santa Monica CA

María Cipriana 'Seferina' Lechuga Married, 22 Jul 1907 in Tularosa
Seferina: Daughter of Eusebio Lechuga and Seferina López
Born about 1889 in NM

Josephina Montoya Ortega Married, 22 May 1914 in Los Angeles CA
Josefa: Daughter of Inocente Espinosa Ortega and Antonia Duran Montoya
Born 15 Apr 1892 in NM
Died 26 Jul 1960 in Los Angeles CA

Children of Seferina and James:
(This is not necessarily a complete list of children)

John Lechuga Patton
b. abt 1910

Children of Josefa and James:
(This is not necessarily a complete list of children)

Ida Ortega Patton
b. abt. 1914 in NM

James Ortega Patton
b. 1917

Residence:
1910 Mescalero, Otero Co.
1920 Mescalero Apache Indian Reservation
1930 Los Angeles CA (Dist. 0001-0250)