One of the most colorful and toughest of Texas’ frontier characters was William Alexander Anderson “Bigfoot” Wallace. Growing up to be a backwoodsman, folk hero, soldier, and Texas Ranger, Wallace was originally from Virginia. Born in Lexington, on April 3, 1817 to Andrew and Jane Ann (Blair) Wallace, he grew up to work in his father’s fruit orchard until he heard that his older brother and a cousin, who had moved to Texas, had been killed in the Goliad Massacre in the spring of 1836. He then set out for Texas himself, in order to “take pay out of the Mexicans.”
Wallace first settled near LaGrange, Texas in 1837 where he tried his hand at farming and quickly joined up with the Texas Rangers under Captain John Coffee Hays. In 1840, he moved to Austin, where he helped to layout the new town. While there, was misidentified as an Indian named “Bigfoot,” who had ransacked a settler’s home. Though Wallace was soon cleared, the name “Bigfoot” stuck – an appropriate nickname for the six feet two inch tall, 240 pound muscled man.
In 1840, Wallace participated in the Battle of Plum Creek, and in the Spring of 1842, fought against Mexican General Adrian Woll’s invasion of Texas.
Later that year, he volunteered for the Somervell Raid across the Rio Grande River and afterwards, joined a splinter group that was later called the Mier Expedition, to further penetrate into Mexico. However, the group was surrounded and captured by a force ten times their size. Forced into central Mexico, the men were able to escape, but were quickly recaptured and forced to participate in what became known as the “Black Bean Incident.” This was a “lottery,” in which black and white beans were placed in a crock, in a 1 to 10 ratio. Those who drew a black bean were executed, while a white bean meant prison. Wallace was one of the “lucky” ones, drawing a white bean and soon found himself on an 800 mile forced march to the Perote Prison in Vera Cruz. After a petition was signed by a number of U.S. Congressmen, he was released and after his return to Texas, joined in the Mexican-American War. After the war, he commanded a company of Texas Rangers fighting border bandits and Indians on the frontier. When the Civil War erupted, he was still helping to guard the frontier against the Comanche Indians
Somewhere along the line, Wallace was granted a piece of land by the State of Texas, where he ranched along the Medina River. However, in his later years, he was living in Frio County, and when a small village was formed, it was named “Bigfoot,” after Wallace, who had made a legend of himself during his lifetime.
Described as humorous, mellow, and honest, he became a teller of tales, which though sometimes embellished, were extremely popular among his visitors. In 1870, some of these tales were told by biographer, John Duval, in a best selling book called The Adventures of Big Foot Wallace, The Texas Ranger, which further contributed to his reputation as a Texas folk hero.
Wallace died on January 7, 1899, and shortly thereafter the Texas legislature appropriated money for moving his body to the State Cemetery in Austin, Texas.