Chapter 17
Ranching in Texas
1850-1890
(pages 360-377)
Section 1
The Beginning of the Cattle Kingdom
• Objectives
– Trace the development of the cattle industry
from its Spanish beginnings
– Explain how the geographic factors affected the
development of the cattle industry
– Analyze the economic effects of the Civil War
on ranching
• Terms/Names
Jose de Escandon, brand, longhorn, James
Taylor White, cattle drive, Texas fever
(pages 362--364)
The Cattle Industry
• The Texas climate and geographic
features were perfect for raising cattle
– Cattle could graze on the grass of the prairies
• Cattle industry grew rapidly in late 1800s
• When Native Americans were forced onto
reservations, settlers began to move into
West Texas…cattle industry grew also
Spanish Origins
• When Spanish explorers and priests came from
Mexico into Texas, they brought cattle with them
• In 1700s, Spanish explorer, Jose de Escandon,
set aside land for people
– Started a charro culture (kind of a cattle culture)
– Charros = Mexican cowhands who used horses and
ropes to round up cattle
– They would brand the cattle
• Brand = a mark burned on the hide of cattle to show
ownership
Cattle Brands
http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~txparker/images/brands.gif
See Page 363 for Cattle Brand Info
http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~lincolncounty/brands.jpg
Longhorns
• Spaniards brought cattle with them
• Some of this cattle roamed wild in Texas and
multiplied
• A new breed was formed—the Texas Longhorn
• Longhorns had
– Huge horns (used horns to protect themselves)
– Could easily adapt to environment
• Little water and food and could handle hot and cold weather
Longhorn Cattle
http://photos.igougo.com/images/p10680-Fort_Worth-two_longhorn_cattle.jpg
http://www.texaslonghornbreeder.com/images/longhorns_the_lineup_r1_c2.jpg
http://www.photohouston.com/texas-cattle-ranching/texas-longhorn-cattle-N1-14.jpg
Texas Longhorn Cattle
Video
Westward Expansion for Students: Old Texas and the Trail Drivers.
CLEARVUE & SVE, 1997. Full Video.
7 April 2011. <http://www.discoveryeducation.com/>.
Early Ranchers
• When Mexico controlled Texas, Mexican
government would give settlers land if they
would raise cattle
• Cowhands developed own way of working
with cattle
• James Taylor White = first cattle baron
in Texas
Early Ranchers, cont
• By 1850s, cattle was “driven” to railroads to be shipped to market
• On path of cattle drives, farmers were mad…cows ruined crops, etc
• Cattle carried disease called Texas Fever…caused by ticks
• Ranchers learned to “dip” cattle in chemicals to kill ticks
• Because it was expensive to transport cattle to markets, ranchers
started having cattle killed for the cattle hide (for leather) and for fat
from meat to make soap and candles
Texas Herds During the Civil War
• Texas cattle should have been used for food for
Confederate soldiers
• But, Union controlled the Mississippi River so
cattle couldn’t cross river to get to soldiers
• Cattle industry declined in Texas during Civil War
– Ranchers fighting in war
– Cattle roamed free and numbers multiplied
– Cattle wasn’t worth much because people couldn’t
afford to buy them…value of cattle decreased
Section 2
• Objectives
The Cattle Trails
– Analyze the impact of the national markets on
the cattle industry in Texas
– Identify the significance of the cattle drive
– Describe life along the trail
• Terms/Names
stockyard, packinghouses, cowtown, Abilene,
Kansas, Chisholm Trail, Western Trail,
Goodnight Loving Trail, roundup, wrangler,
chuck wagon
(pages 366-371)
A Market for Beef (2 slides)
• Demand for beef increased after Civil War
• Beef was shipped to markets in North &
East.
• Stockyards: a pen where livestock is
kept before being butchered or shipped
to market
• Packinghouses: a warehouse where
beef is prepared for shipment
A Market for Beef, con’t
• Ranchers made a lot of money selling the cattle.
Needed a way to get cattle to stockyards
• Joseph McCoy built first cowtown in Abilene,
Kansas
– Cowtown: a town that serves as market or
shipping point for cattle
– Let ranchers know that they could drive cattle through
Indian territory to Abilene, Kansas
– Cattle would be put in holding pens there till the herds
could get on trains for north and east
The Development of Cattle Trails
• See map on page 367
• First great cattle trail = Chisholm Trail
– Started in 1867 by Cherokee trader named Jesse Chisholm
– Between 1867-1887 about 6 million herd of cattle were driven
from Texas to Abilene, KS
• More trails developed as more railroads were built
– Western Trail (aka Dodge City Trail)
• San Antonio across the Red River to Dodge City, Kansas
– Pecos Trail (aka Goodnight Loving Trail)
• Followed the Pecos River into New Mexico and then went into
Wyoming
http://chisholmtrailmuseum.us/images/chisholm.jpg
Cattle Trails Video
Life on the Trail (2 slides)
•
Trail Drive
1. Began with a Roundup: the process of herding
together cattle that are scattered
•
Cattle rounded up and branded (took several weeks)
2. Scouts rode ahead to find best route and to alert
trail boss of dangers, etc
3. Trail Boss —in charge of everything
4. Cowhand Duties
•
•
•
Pointers: rode at side of lead cattle to direct herd
Flankers: rode beside herd to keep cattle from straying
Other cowhands rode in rear of herd to keep cattle from
falling behind
Life on the Trail, con’t
Cowhand duties, con’t
• Wranglers: took care of the extra saddle horses
– Each cowboy had several horses; they would switch out horses
several times/day to keep horses rested
• Camp Cook: cooked all meals
– Sourdough biscuits, beef, beans and coffee
– After a meal, he would take Chuck Wagon: a wagon that
carries cooking equipment and food for the cowhands
– At night, the cowhands would gather around campfire and sing
» Read A Real Life Story on page 366
http://www.lavendermoongallery.com/e_kayton/CattleDrive.jpg
http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_W_DzKxXxOME/TJ-I69m0AcI/AAAAAAAAB3I/713GgtCHwaw/s1600/Cattle-Drive2.jpg
http://www.lornadillon.com/Cookies%20Diner.jpg
http://www.ghostcowboy.com/files/images/chuckwagon_detail.preview.jpg
Cattle Drives Video
After the Cattle Drive Video
An Expanding Cattle Range
• Usually cattle were driven each spring to railroad
and sold
• The ones that got there earliest got the most
money for their cattle
• So, they started having cattle drives in the fall
and staying through winter to spring to be first to
sell cattle
– These winter herds expanded cattle kingdom out of
Texas into other parts of US…usually Wyoming and
Montana
Video Bibliography
• Westward Expansion for Students: Old Texas and the Trail Drivers.
CLEARVUE & SVE, 1997. Full Video.
7 April 2011. <http://www.discoveryeducation.com/>.
Read Old Yeller excerpt
Page 370-371
Section 3
The End of the Open Range
• Objectives
– Analyze the political, social, and economic impact of the
cattle industry
– Analyze the effects of barbed wire and the windmill on
the ranching industry
– ID the myths and realities of the cowhand
– Explain the social and economic impact of the
development of West Texas resulting from the close of
the frontier
• Terms/Names
King Ranch, Charles Goodnight, XIT Ranch, Joseph F.
Glidden, open range ranching, barbed wire
(pages 372-377)
The Great Spreads (2 slides)
4 Large Ranches
1. King Ranch
–
–
–
Founded by Richard King and Mifflin Kennedy
In South Texas
They split up the ranch and King, his wife and his son-inlaw expanded the ranch to over a million acres in size
2. JA Ranch
–
–
–
–
–
Founded by Charles Goodnight and John Adair
In Palo Duro Canyon
Used canyon walls as part of ranch and got water from Red
River
One million acres and 100,000 head of cattle
Charles Goodnight’s wife, Moll’, was first white woman to
live on the Texas Plains
The Great Spreads, con’t
Large Ranches, con’t
3. Matador Ranch
•
•
•
Founded by A.M. Britton and H. H. Campbell
In Motley County (in Panhandle)
Scottish company, Matador Land and Cattle Company,
bought it and expanded it
4. XIT Ranch
•
•
•
•
Largest ranch in Texas
In Panhandle, along New Mexico border
Over 3 million acres”, covered ten counties
XIT stands for “Ten in Texas” or just straight lines made it
hard for cattle rustlers to change brand
–
Cattle Rustler: a cattle thief
Sheep and Goat Ranching (2 slides)
• Sheep and goats were also raised on
ranches
– Sheep brought by Spanish explorers
– Rancher, George Wilkins Kendall, started
raising sheep for wool
– After Civil War, big demand for wool…more
sheep ranches started
Sheep and Goat Ranches, con’t
• Goats
– Ranchers started raising goats for
mohair…from silky coats of Angora goats
– Mohair used for yarn for clothes
– Goat ranching mostly on Edwards
Plateau…still producing mohair today
Barbed Wire and Windmills
(3 slides)
• As more Texans were raising cattle, the
grass supply diminished
• Also, ranchers couldn’t keep their cattle
separated
• And, farmers started farming land the
ranchers needed
• Result: conflicts over land
Barbed Wire & Windmills, con’t
•
•
•
•
Open Range Ranching: no fences
But, there was a growing need for fences
In 1873, Joseph Glidden invented barbed wire
So, ranchers started using barbed wire for
fences
– FYI: XIT Ranch used 6000 miles of barbed wire for
fences
• Many people were against fences and started
wire cutting…eventually became illegal to cut
fences
http://www.barbwiremuseum.com/images/bwipic.gif
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/135/382808448_0995669238_o.jpg
Barbed Wire
http://ivarfjeld.files.wordpress.com/2009/07/barbed_wire.jpg
Barbed Wire & Windmills, con’t
• Windmills
– With invention of windmills, ranchers could pump
water from underground…used this water for animals
• By 1890s…old ways of cattle industry were
going away
– Too many cattle and not enough grass
– Cattle industry became way to make money rather
than a way of life
http://denr.sd.gov/des/wr/images/windmill1.jpg
Windmills
http://www.blnotary.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/Windmill.jpg
Charles Goodnight
http://www.legendsofamerica.com/photos-oldwest/CharlesGoodnight-500.jpg
Map of XIT Ranch
Joseph Glidden
http://www.xit-rodeo.com/images/map.png
http://www.millercountymuseum.org/presidents/090413_13_JosephGlidden.jpg
http://www.margarets.com/fashionablecarefiles/AngoraGoatMohair.jpg
Angora Goats
http://www.hoglezoo.org/images/animal_finder/Angoragoat.jpg
The Myth and Reality of the
Cowhand
• Myth: it was glamorous and
exciting…Wild West Shows exaggerated
how it really was to be a cowboy
• Reality: very different
– Not glamorous but a hard way of life
– Many cowhands were African Americans,
Tejanos, and even women….they were
ignored
American Cowboys Video
Range of Cultures
Many cultures contributed to ranching industry
1.
African Americans
•
Daniel Webster Wallace
•
•
•
•
Bose Ikard
•
2.
former slave
former trail boss
Owned ranch
Worked as JA Ranch for Charles Goodnight
Vaqueros
•
•
3.
Tejano cowhands (1 out of 10 cowhands was a vaquero)
Many vaqueros also owned ranches in South Texas
Women
•
•
Some worked ranches alongside husbands
Some became independent ranchers
*Margaret Borland: had 10,000 acre ranch near Victoria
*Lizzie Johnson Williams: owned ranch and well respected for ranching knowledge
(see page 376)
*Both of these women rode on cattle drives
Lizzie Johnson Williams
Daniel Webster
Wallace
http://celiahayes.files.wordpress.com/2011/01/lizzy-johnson.jpg
Margaret Borland
http://www.riseandgrind.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/wallace_john.gif
http://www.euniceboeve.net/images/Salter_age_27-210.jpg
Read Bill Pickett, Bulldogger (page 377)