01. John William Sansom

First Sheriff of Kendall County- February 1862 - August 1862

At age 28, John Sansom became the first sheriff of the newly formed Kendall County. It was a turbulent time, and his term of office lasted only six months. John arrived in Texas at age four when his parents William Greenbury and Mary "Polly" Short Sansom moved from Alabama to Washington County in the Republic of Texas. In 1850, the family moved to Kendalia where they lived near Curry Creek. Indians were always on the move through the Kendalia area. Sansom's first fight with the Indians occurred when he was about 15 or 16. By age, 21 he was a private in Callahan's Ranger company of the Texas Rangers. With his experience, he was an excellent candidate for sheriff. After the Nueces Massacre in August 1862, Sansom enlisted in the Union Army in the First Texas Cavalry and participated in the Rio Grande campaign.   After the war, Sansom returned to the Texas Rangers and retired in 1883 to Uvalde County.

Source: Tomlinson, Richard. "John William Sansom" Keys to the Past. Vol. XXXVIII No. 1,

     Spring/Summer 2019.