A Brief History of Watling

and its towsfolk, which anyone could know

Watling was founded in 1810.  The third son of a third son left England to make his fortune among the panhandlers on the Wild West frontier.  He struck silver, made his fortune, and raised a town, becoming the first Mayor of Watling, Arizona.  It took many years to begin to build the town and it was nothing but a typical ramshackle frontier outpost for many years.  Many folks passed through on their way to California and there was a small inn, before word spread that silver and other precious metals had been discovered in the hills of Arizona.  Eventually, the silver boom arrived, which lasted from around 1852 until around 1857.  During the boom Watling grew and thrived and had more than twice the population it boasts now.

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In 1847, Marian (who was born and raised in Watling and was close friends with Kane and Samuel) departed to live with family out East.   Dolly arrived later that same year.   Hank had returned as Preacher from The Wars in 1848, having lost his fiancee Eleanor (Josephine and Annie’s older sister, who jilted him to marry a wealthy man, moving out East) and found religion.  Before building the church, Preacher worked for Dolly as a carpenter and handyman, helping to finish the Silver Steer Saloon, which quickly became and remained the heart of Watling, throughout the changing tides of Watling’s prosperity.  Building both the saloon and the church seemed to revive his spirit, but he remained known as Preacher and lived in a humble apartment he had built above the church.  

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Kane became Mayor in 1852, thanks to the encouragement of his wife Rose (who sadly passed the following year from illness).  Theirs had been the very first wedding in 1850 in the new church that Preacher had built by hand, just outside the main town.  Jimmy arrived in 1853 as the new Sheriff of Watling.  

 

Flynn, Kane’s cousin, moved to Watling properly in 1854, followed in the same year by Pearl.  Flynn went through a bit of a wild time, engaging many of Watling’s prettiest girls in some form of romantic interlude before settling down a bit and becoming a Town Deputy, working for Sheriff Jimmy.  Flynn dated Pearl briefly, later that same year, but it did not last for long and ended amicably.

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When Richard and Casey first appeared in Watling it was Spring 1855.  Not everyone met them, as they only lived at the Silver Steer for two months as they prepared and procured all they would require, before departing Watling for two years of successful prospecting.  Dolly and Richard were very flirtatious, and anyone in the Steer knew the two shared a brief but fiery  attraction, before the gentlemen departed.  

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Flynn and Annie began seeing each other in the summer of 1855.  But Flynn left Watling and went East two years later to take care of his ill mother, leaving a devastated Annie behind.  Richard has been courting Josephine since he returned in 1857, completely by the book with outings and gifts, and he may well be the most romantic man in Watling.  Richard and Josephine broke up briefly over Christmas in 1857; but they were reunited and engaged by the spring of 1858.  Sadly, their intended wedding date of April 2nd 1859 went uncelebrated, and repeated tragedies at Silverwood Ranch have seemingly postponed any future weddings indefinitely.

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Casey, the other handsome prospector, was injured badly in a mining accident in 1857, which was the deciding factor in Richard and Casey closing up their Arizona silver mine and moving permanently to Watling.  Richard brought Casey by wagon to see Doc Samuel, who patched him up, and then Casey was treated for several weeks by Ellen at the Steer.  Rumor has it Ellen and Casey grew quite close, and many thought they might end up in a more formal courtship, but nothing ever came of it.  (Further rumors imply that it all ended when Casey laid eyes on Pearl, who also ended her relationship with Preacher soon after.)  Richard and Casey moved out of the Steer into a house that Casey had custom built in the spring of 1858.   

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As the silver dried up, the town dwindled in size whilst the population of cowboys living in the surrounding wilderness has grown.  They are referred to as the Dry Gulch Gang.  Some of them are proving more desperate, but unfortunately they’re too numerous for the town to tackle head on.  Mostly there’s a sort of unspoken truce, but sometimes they rear their ugly heads.  In January of 1859 Walter, the patriarch of Silverwood Ranch was shot dead in his own home.  Boone, who had lived and worked at Silverwood Ranch since his teenage years and was practically a member of the family, abandoned the ranch and was spotted a month later living among the cowboys.  Boone had been newly engaged to Pearl at the time, and so left behind a distressed and jilted bride as well.  The second tragedy at Silverwood Ranch occurred in the summer of the same year, when cowboys burned much of the ranch to the ground.  Rumor has it, the cowboys want the location of the silver mine which Annie has discovered and hopes to mine.  

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In the meantime, shortly before the disastrous arson, Pearl and Casey got together.  They had dated previously, following a rather public kiss for Christmas (back in 1857), but were broken up for awhile before she took up with Boone.  Pearl was actually romantically involved with Preacher years ago as well, which ended amicably, and she is considered the darling of Watling.  Darling or not, she has not had the best of luck in love, but hopes that will change now that she is happily settled in with Casey (since July of 1859).  

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After losing Flynn and then her Pa, Annie went through a phase of wild behavior and occasional drunk or disorderly misconducts.  She spent more than one night in the town’s single jail cell, and kept Sheriff Jimmy plenty busy.  In May of 1859, Jimmy surprised Annie (and the town) with a formal invitation to dinner.  They have been rather inseparable since, and one of the town’s steadiest couples. 

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One month ago, in January of this year (1860) the Dry Gulch Gang got together and raided the town of Watling.  Sheriff Jimmy managed to have a bit of warning, and the townsfolk prepared themselves and stood ground in the saloon, which became the center of the confrontation.  The townsfolk prevailed, but not without some damage to the saloon and a tragic loss.  Doc Samuel, who treated both townsfolk and cowboys throughout the night and after the confrontation ended, finally went to sleep in the wee hours but never awoke.  

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There were services for him the following week.  Doc left behind a widow, Dolly.  They had married in November of 1855 (which was the social event of the year) and only had four short years together as man and wife.  After Doc passed away,  Mayor Kane, who had already been conducting most of the town’s business in the saloon rather than his rundown office for years, practically moved into the Steer and has been looking after Dolly.  Kane had been childhood friends with Samuel (despite their occasional differences) and had become close with Dolly since she moved to town.  There was even a friendly flirtation between the two “office mates” which no one in town would have missed.  Now, although no one has seen evidence of such, and such a matter would be rather delicate to discuss, it is fairly presumed among the townsfolk that Dolly and Kane (who are always together) may be a couple in all but name.  

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Two weeks ago, however, there was cause for some good cheer.  There was a celebration in Watling to mark fifty years since its founding.  The festivities had long been planned, and it was decided that it would be good to have something positive to bring Watling out of some dark days.  Of course, mother nature is rather unpredictable and a rare rainstorm blew just before dark, forcing the remaining townsfolk all into the Silver Steer Saloon to conclude the evening.  Considering the Steer truly is the heart of the town, it was appropriate and Dolly had no objections to continuing the party at hers.  Flynn arrived unannounced just before the day's festivities began and Marian also arrived unexpectedly late that evening (sopping wet and in the arms of an equally drenched Preacher, no less).  It was a very eventful and memorable evening, to say the least. 

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Today it is February 1860.  Tomorrow Annie will lead a group of prospectors out to the hills to stake her claim.  They will be gone for many months, at least, facing the many and varied perils of the frontier.  Tonight, the townsfolk gather in the Silver Steer Saloon to wish them well, and to say their farewells. ​​​