Anarchaeology.com

[DavidCampbell]

In a recent search, I found that among the papers of A.C. Green was a reference to an unpublished paper by Barrot Steven Sanders on the geology of Rockwall, Texas. I was unable to find or access that paper but Sanders had also written about La Reunion, Texas. A google search of Barrot S. Sanders revealed nothing more but old articles which were collected by John Lindsey indicate that Sanders' excavations turned up the most convincing evidence for the walls' artificiality yet. C. Reid Ferring of UNT has also written more recent papers on the geoarchaeology of the Upper Trinity which might contain pertinent information. Ferring excavated an important Clovis site near the Lake Ray Roberts Dam in the late 80's and also reexamined the highly controversial sites at Lake Lewisville which were once thought to be 38,000 years old. These were later dismissed as errors resulting in lignite contamination. L.W. Stephenson also did an archaeological examination of Rockwall in the 40's and conluded the walls were natural formations. His other discoveries of early man sites in Rockwall and Wylie were published as "Campsites of the Upper Trinity" and included in an early Texas Archeology Society bulletin which is not currently available in their publications for sale.
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David Campbell
"The going's getting weird, so I'm turning pro."

[DavidCampbell]

A recent search that I did on Sanders, revealed that he was too young to have been the Sanders who did the excavations in 1949. An entry on the forum of the Dallas Historical Society by Elliot Greene, son the late A.C. Greene indicated that Barrott Sanders had been a boy growing up in the 50's when he developed an interest in the history of the La Reunion site. Though he may have written a geology of Rockwall in later years I could not find it and he certainly was too young in 1949 to have conducted an archaeological dig there. The search continues, then, for the identity of the mysterious Mr. Sanders.
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David Campbell
"The going's getting weird, so I'm turning pro."

[TexasGuy]

well Looks like you did it to me again LOL. now im hooked on finding this guy. do you have any other data than what you posted. I need to narrow down the field. and then im sure lots of phone time
LOL
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"Reality is that which, even when you stop believing, does not go away."

[DavidCampbell]

The only reference I have is from Dr. James Glenn, a Presbyterian minister who was fascinated by the walls ever since he came to Rockwall and spent the remainder of his life trying to figure out what they were. " Mr. Sanders of Fort Worth, another layman", "excavated in 1949". The excavations were at wall #3 on Kelsey and Denton's map, with a strike of 25 degrees N. If you were to check with your archivist friend at the Dallas Morning News you might find something in 1949 or 1950 when Dr. Glenn first published this for the Rockwall bicentennial, I believe. I recall attending the centennial event which was around 1956 since I was old enough to recall it but was not yet in school. The columns by Frank X. Tolbert are not that enlightening though they do contain tidbits of information about Dr.Glenn, such as the fact he had been a missionary among the Seminole Indians of Florida before coming to Rockwall. Sanders is also the one who found the inscriptions which look like an ancient Middleastern script, such as Phoenician. He also found other pictographs on the stones he excavated but these were left exposed and weathered away over the years.
The inscribed stone was once housed at the Rockwall courthouse for all to view but was mysteriously removed several years ago by undisclosed individuals. The circumstances of the removal are equally mysterious as one does not remove a two ton stone over six feet long from the basement of the courthhouse without a certain amount of complicity and very heavy equipment. Beyond that it gets too sticky to discuss publicly and the less said the better, but I am reasonably certain Mr. Sanders did not take possesion of it.
Mr. Thomas L. Gaddie, author of The Man From Red Hill, Cooke County Texas who writes a weekly column in our TGIF newspaper, has a stone from the rock walls which had been part of the old courthouse. He brought it to his residence many years ago when he was working on the rebuilding of the new courthouse. He offered to show it to me a few years back but I never took him up on his offer; I'm thinking now that I should. Many of the older homes in Rockwall have foundation stones which were taken from the wall in the 19th century. More of them were west of Lake Ray Hubbard where they had been used for goat pens in the 19th century when the residents of Rockwall split up between herders and farmers, the herders moving to the west bank of the Trinity. Those stones were also removed by various people when the lake levels were down around 99-2000 due to the publicity generated by the excavations. There is a stairway of these stones cemented with red mortar beneath the lake but I do not know if lake levels ever get that low. I suppose a determined scuba diver could investigate them if he knew where to look, but I don't think the water is ever clear enough to photograph or even view them.
Without trying to sound too much like a conspiritard, there is much more to the rock walls than a simple trellis work of clastic sand dikes, learned geologists and archaeologists notwithstanding. Sanders found the capping stones and beveled edges along with the aforementioned petroglyphs in the same area. I believe I have seen one of those stones he excavated in a field near his excavation; I don't recall any petroglyphs, though they may have been on the underside of it.
I'm glad this got you caught up in it, Jon; I'd thought to ask for your assistance but thought you were way too occupied to consider it. Obsessive/ Compulsive tendencies are an asset in this line of endeavour.
_________________
David Campbell
"The going's getting weird, so I'm turning pro."

[TexasGuy]

well you will be sad to know that he died during the 1990's. after completing a book called " Dallas : Her golden years" published in 1989. he also wrote one called "Dallas: Her Decline." I think that was in the 70's. he also wrote Cedar Springs with A.C. Greene.

A.C. Greenes library is or was up for sale by Dorothy Sloan Rare Books. Im waiting on a call back from the Company to see the status of the books and see If Ican obtain copys of the Unpublished Historys he gave to Greene.

Im also waiting to hear back from Greenes Son, who might know more about B. Sanders and where his notes and such may be. seems Barret Sanders was a well known Dallas Historian, though he rarely published, instead he shared hiw knowledge with any one he met, that had a love of history.

hope thats enough to wet your whistle for now.
not quite as fun as hunting down those skeletons, and proving they werent just urban myth.. but still entertaining LOL.

Jon
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"Reality is that which, even when you stop believing, does not go away."

[DavidCampbell]

That's pretty much what I had found out too. It seems Barott Sanders was more interested in recent history. Also I didn't find any connection with Fort Worth and as I said I think B.Sanders may have been too young to have done the excavation at Rockwall. I do have a feeling that there may be mention in either the Dallas or Fort Worth papers during 49 or 50 on the excavation. The old Rockwall papers were poorly preserved and I doubt there is anything left that mentions it except perhaps in private hands. L.P. Livingston of the Humble Oil and Refining Company who lived in Garland Texas was very much interested in the walls and was the one responsible for getting Count Prorok out to look at them in 1925 when he was lecturing at SMU on his excavations at Carthage.
_________________
David Campbell
"The going's getting weird, so I'm turning pro."