Tracking the Texas Rangers: The Twentieth Century

10. Ranger Arthur Hill In Dallas

162 ★ 10 ★ Ranger Arthur Hill in Dallas S. E. Spinks A Ranger is an officer who is able to handle any given situation without definite instructions from his commanding officer, or higher authority. — Captain Bob Crowder T he year 1957 was one of transition for the Ranger Service and for Texas Ranger Arthur Hill. For the first time since their association with the Department of Public Safety in 1935, the Rangers underwent broad-based reorganization. Hill, now sergeant of Company B in Dallas, adjusted to his new position and new surroundings. The DPS had grown in size and scope since its inception in 1935. Every legislative session brought the agency new functions and responsibilities . Texas’s postwar growth and urbanization resulted in rising crime and traffic. The DPS continued to maintain public safety by meeting these needs as they arose. The 1950s in particular saw drastic increases in departmental responsibilities. Beginning in 1951, the DPS assumed the task of tracking and maintaining records on known communists in Texas. In 1953, the DPS added a narcotics branch, funded for the first time since 1937. Initially, the unit assigned only one Texas Ranger to the Ranger Arthur Hill in Dallas ★ 163 detached duty. By 1955 the narcotics branch consisted of ten agents, as it would remain until funding was increased to add ten more agents in 1968. Before the existence of the narcotics branch, Rangers handled all drug-related investigations. And with the number of agents dedicated to narcotics limited, most Rangers continued to do so throughout the 1950s and 1960s. By 1957, the DPS infrastructure consisted of fifteen branches, many with overlapping functions. The department needed a more efficient organizational structure. As a result, a major reorganization plan went into effect on September 1, 1957.1 Regional headquarters offices for the DPS were established in Dallas, Houston, Corpus Christi, Midland, Lubbock, and Waco, with a limited crime lab at each site. A DPS major served as chief administrator at each headquarters location. The Texas Rangers were then organized into six companies under regional commands headquartered in the same locations as those of DPS. This move increased the Ranger companies from five to six, as well as moving headquarters all over the state from Austin. The Rangers had been organized into five commands and all headquartered in the capital city since the Rangers’ initial association with DPS.2 A Ranger captain still headed each Ranger company, now assisted by a sergeant. Ranger companies (A through F) were located at the following DPS regional headquarters: Company A (Houston), Company B (Dallas ), Company C (Lubbock), Company D (Corpus Christi), Company E (Midland), and Company F (Waco).3 Rangers were assigned posts in various towns in each company’s region. Originally, in the reorganization scheme, Ranger captains reported to DPS majors in charge of their respective region. This chain of command did not last long, however. The Rangers’ activities varied greatly from those of the Highway Patrol. Rangers needed to have the flexibility to perform their duties without conferring constantly with higher authority. By December 1957, Ranger captains in each company again had direct responsibility to the director of the DPS.4 164 ★ Tracking the Texas Rangers: The Twentieth Century Reorganization not only changed some Ranger company boundaries and headquarters locations, but also added paperwork and protocol for Rangers in the field, historically not a favorite part of the job description for any Ranger. The most publicly visible change that came about because of reorganization , however, has since become a Texas tradition. In 1958, all DPS uniform designs were consolidated into a single one, creating the tan uniform with blue tie and blue and red stripe down the pants as is in use today. A vendor created the new color, “Texas tan,” exclusively for the Texas DPS. Various divisions within DPS now wore the same uniform differentiated by shoulder patches. The department reported, “Since its adoption, the Reorganization Plan has shown to have accomplished its purpose. It has brought better Department services closer to the people and has proved to be more economical and efficient than the previous operating structure.”5 In March 1957, Hill began his assimilation into the position of sergeant of Dallas’s Company B. Ten years previously, when Hill started as a Ranger, Houston White informally mentored him into the position. This process allowed him to demonstrate ability with on-the-job oversight. Hill went through a similar training...