Crescencio and Juan Vinton were brothers. Their grandmother was Carmelita Mancha. She was the wife of Jake Vinton, who was sheriff of Frio County from February 1876 until November 1878.

Jimmy and Manuel Tafolla were brothers. Their grandfather was Jose Mancha, who was Carmelita's brother. Peter Mancha's sister, Antonia, was mother to the Tafolla's.

Jimmy Tafolla died in an accident while quite young. Others in the picture, however, worked in cattle ranches in Frio County until the '50s. Manuel Tafolla and Crescencio (Chito) Vinton worked at adjoining ranches southeast of Laredo during the '30s and moved to the Frio Town area during the '40s and again worked adjoining ranches. During large cattle roundups, it was a common site to see Pete Mancha and Juan Vinton join them. These four men would form the nucleus for a no-nonsense team of cowboys containing 20-25 men whose job it was to process cattle to market.

I have very fond memories of riding trail with them on several cattle drives across the wooded country pastures, and one of driving cattle along the road from the Carrie Thompson ranch on the Frio River to the stock pens in Pearsall sometime between 1945 and 1948. Life could not get any better than that for a boy not yet in his teens!     (Joe Tafolla)