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Conflicting Canids Re-examining the Smith-Cherokee “War on Wolves,” 1961-1966.

“I’ve trapped dark wolves before, but this is the first black wolf I’ve seen,” said Billy Bass, county trapper for both Smith and Cherokee counties. Bass went on in an interview to specify that his ninety-second catch was “pure wolf… The animal has a typical wolf-like head, feet and tail.”¹ In 1962, this was an important, and rare, distinction. So rare, in fact, that it was photographed for the front page of the Tyler Morning Telegraph alongside headlines like, “U.S. Atmosphere Tests Depend on Soviet Pact” and “U.S. Running to Moon Says LBJ.” The photograph shows Bass down on one knee, lifting two dead canids - the catch-all term for the scientific family of dogs, wolves, coyotes, and foxes - by the scruff of their necks to better display their heads and chests. It is assumed that because the rare black canid was his ninety-second catch, the other “regular colored one” was his ninety-first. No genders or approximate ages are listed for these animals, leaving no clues as to their relationship or possible lives. However, it is known that they were trapped near Winona, a small town less than four miles from the dense bottomlands of the Sabine River, which functioned as the Smith County line and thus the northern limit of Bass’s jurisdiction. He was not responsible for problem animals reported on the north side of the river in Wood, Upshur, or Gregg counties - those would be left to their county trapper, if the residents chose to employ one at all that year. The ultimate fate of the remains of these two animals is unknown.

How to Draw a Wolf

Filler in the Tyler Morning Telegraph, January 15, 1961.