Captain Gully Cowsert
Junction, Kimble County, Texas
Marker Inscription
(June 12,1896 - June 11,1958) Corporal, U.S. Marine Corps, World War I. Became Texas Ranger in 1942. He served in that rank for 14 years. Commanded Company E and West Texas District 14 years. Gained fame solving cattle and sheep theft cases. First wife was Mamie Keesee; had two sons, K. and Gully, Jr. and daughter, Mary Katherine. Second wife was Dana Van der Smissen.
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
Gully Cowsert served as a Marine Corps corporal in World War I before finding his lasting calling as a Texas Ranger, a badge he earned in 1942 and wore for fourteen years. He rose to command Company E and West Texas District, building a reputation for cracking cattle- and sheep-theft cases across the rangelands. His career bridged the mud of a world war and the enduring frontier tradition of the Ranger lawman.
Why it matters
Cowsert embodies the twentieth-century Texas Ranger, carrying the legend of frontier law enforcement into the age of the automobile and the modern livestock economy.
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Related people
- ¡ Gully Cowsert
- ¡ Mamie Keesee
- ¡ Dana Van der Smissen
Themes & tags
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