El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1914-12-09
WILEY SUIT RICH
IN LOCAL LORE
Aged Negro Uses EARLY Ell
Paso History to Win His
Suit From the CITY.

Judge Towards salt war" Cen An
son MISS map of old Ell PasO. the
iocalloh OF the old pOstoffice. custom
nus anu olher buildings were re
viewed IN the suit of the CITY against
w: W. Wiley, the aged negro iip an
eIfort TO open South OREGON st.eet
through to the river. WiIey's boHse
now eGuple the middle of the street.
4 IuuILh wiley, as he was known
to all of the old timers. had a nm
per OIL pioneers to testify i'm his he
halt n the salt war" was nsed as
a-date 10 Tx the time of his residence
on tne d!spute ground. The suit was
decided in favor of the aoad re%ro
VINO GAINED to have been a personal
DOdy servant for Gen. Winfield Scott
ana 70 nave done "consid'rbIe fiddlin'"
IL ne ~ Jays when Ell Paso was
VIDE open and the dance halls de-
negro. Wv
Wiley claimed to have first come to
FL fdso IN 1913. At that time there
was Dut three other negroes here
Aunt Mary Woods, Joe Timberlev and
Raymond, a barber, ali well known ia
citizens of today. He claimed to have
taken possession of the property now
IN controversy at a time when there
were no streets in thai mart of the
CITY ana 10 have put a tenant on it
lie then went away, to return for a
short time in 1874. In 1876, he de-
clared, he came here to live German
emily, occupying the property he had
previously taken possession of, and to
have established a barber shOp on San
Antonio street, the first shop in Ell
Paso. He made his living in this man
ner and was also mighty ADEQUATE on
the fiddle" he said.
First Suit in 1897.
In 1897 the city of FL Paso sued In
trespGSC 20 try title to Oregon street,
betWeen Seventh and Eighth streets, as
property owners in the vicinity wanted
to make that street the main high
way TO Mexico. The city, however, did
not press the suit until February. 1910,
when the first trial was held, resulting
IN a hung jury of II to ! in favor Of
Wiley. In February, 1913, the case was
trled again with the same result and
again in April, when the jury held out
10 to 2 for the defendant.
Many OF the witnesses who testi-
fled at the first trial have since died.
Krakauer, w. G. WaIz, Joseph Smith
and Hamilton Jones. Their testimony.
iE written form. has been introduced
at each succeeding trial of the case
and contains much early history of the
city.
Old Landmarks.
In the effort to recall Wiley's early
history in Ell PasO a number of piO-
neers were called upon t. testify and it
was largely through Wiley's activities
as fiddler for dances, weddings and
other social functions that they were
able to recall the old negro. During
the course of the trial many familiar
spots and events of earlier days were
wildly recalled, such as the old Gus
tom house on Oregon; the old post
office at San Antonio and Stanton
streets; the burying ground on Santa
Fe and Franklin; the old Grand Cen
trail hotel, at one time the most noted
hosiery between San Antonio n Los
Angeles; the old ball ground near the
Santa Fe yards: the various rises in
the river. one of which in 1882 flooded
the block back of the present court
house; the arrival of the railroads; the
building of the first street car line;
the construction of the first two story