"Suffered more hardship than most of us do in a lifetime, her indomitable spirit marks her as a heroine deserving respect." - From Martyrs to Murderers (1993)
"Wilson worked hard to stay alive and save herself from beatings until she could escape." -Encyclopedia of Feminist Literature (2014)
"Jane managed to stay alive under rough conditions." – TSHA Online
In September 1853, after most of her family had been decimated by a hostile tribe, Jane Adeline Wilson (born 1837) and her three brothers-in-law left El Paso with a small party for Paris, Texas. After the party split up prior to Fort Phantom Hill, the lone wagon carrying Jane and two of her brothers-in-law was raided by Comanches, who took the passengers captive.
Jane remained with her captors for nearly a month, enduring great physical and emotional suffering before she would attempt her escape. She narrates her amazing story of survival in her 1854 book "Narrative of the Sufferings of Mrs. Jane Adeline Wilson, During Her Captivity Among the Comanche Indians."
In describing the moment she was capture by Comanches, Jane writes:
"As we were travelling, about noon, we saw two Camanche Indians charging upon us in front, and at the same time two others were seen driving up behind. We were all very much frightened. The mules of our wagon, becoming frightened by the war-whoop of the savages, turned out of the road, and commenced running as fast as they could..."
After her capture she writes that "I was obliged to work like a slave while in camp; while there was any service to perform I was not allowed a moment's rest. ... Every indignity was offered to my person which the imagination can conceive. And I am at a loss to know how I have lived through the barbarous treatment which was inflicted upon me. Frequently my feelings were so outraged..."
After concealing herself in some brush, Jane notes that "my situation was now distressing beyond all description; I was alone in an Indian country, some hundreds of miles from the nearest friendly settlements. I was without food, without shelter, and almost without clothing. My body was full of wounds and bruises, and my feet were so swollen that I could hardly stand. Wild beasts were around me, and savages more wild than beasts, roamed on every hand..."
