After the Fort Worth & Denver railroad came into Hall County ranchers began shipping their cattle, for settlers were coming in rapidly and the many fenced farms hampered long drives.Įarly cattlemen depended on lakes and spring creeks for water and in dry times were often forced to drive their herds many miles. Many old trails led through Hall County, over which hundreds of thousands of cattle plodded along guarded by the old time cowboy. Calves were identified by the brands of their mothers and branded accordingly cattle ready for market were driven along the old trails, or later shipped by rail, to slaughter houses. All ranchers furnished men and heavily loaded chuck-wagons rolled out from headquarters, followed by the ranglers with large remudas. Before the before a storm or blizzard, and it was necessary that a general round-up be held each spring and fall. But life on the range was one of great hazards, loneliness, long rides beneath blazing suns or through blinding blizzards, fighting preying beasts and cattle rustlers. The saga of cattle has been told in song and story, a tale that is ever new and intriguing. A few have been placed in National Preserves in order that future generations may know of this strange creature that nature fitted for its particular period of time. Strange as it may seem, when we think of the many thousands that once roamed in Texas, they are almost extinct today. The Longhorn made history but gave way to his betters near the end of the 19th century. He was well fitted to combat the hazards of the untamed prairies, for his long legs carried him without fatigue over many miles in search of grass and water, and his steel like hoofs and long horns made him a formidable foe when encountering the lobo or panther. With long legs, steel like hoofs, thin flanks, thick skin, coarse hair, motley colored sides, and horns measuring 6 to 8 feet from tip to tip, he made a grotesque picture. The Texas Longhorn presented quite a different appearence to the slick Hereford, the king of Panhandle cattle today. Between 1865 and 189$ literally millions are said to have been driven out of the state, and it was during this time the Longhorn drifted into the Panhandle. Here originated the no men, "Vaquero" cowboy. The Texans were badly in need of money and soon began to gather and drive them to market. By the middle of the century they had become mixed with domesticated cattle from eastern states and the Texas Longhorn came into existence. Frontiersmen found many thousands running wild and unclaimed. Spanish grantees established large ranches along the Rio Grande in the early part of 1800 but when that territory was ceded to Texas in 1836 they retreated with the Mexican army, leaving their cattle to roam at large. If we would start at the beginning of the cattle industry in Texas, we must go back to the 17th century when the Spanish cattle, off-springs of those Cortez brought into Mexico in 1525, drifted across the border.
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