Trailing Cattle - A Short History Part 5

Charles Goodnight said of the Texas Longhorn - "As trail cattle, their equal has never been known. Their hoofs are superior to those of any other cattle. In stampedes, they hold together better, are easier circled in a run, and rarely split off when you commence to turn the front. No animal of the cow kind will shift and take care of itself under all conditions as will the Longhorns. They can farther without water and endure more suffering than others." Goodnight is credited as the inventor of the chuck wagon and the calf wagon or 'blattin' cart.' He was also well-known on the trail for his famous lead steer, Old Blue. Lead steers were invaluable animals on the trail, not only keeping the herd moving at a 10-12 mile pace per day, but also for tasks such as starting a herd swimming or entering pens at the sale yards. Old Blue led Goodnight herds to market for 8 years. Stories tell that the old steer refused to associate with the herd at night, often bedding with the horses and even coming into camp to beg for food. After his death, Goodnight mounted Old Blue's horns at his ranch. Today they are on display at the Panhandle-Plains Historical Museum in Canyon, Texas.

The Texas Chuck Wagon or "Wagon" was always an open-air affair. As one cowboy said, "Putting a cover on is too much trouble for getting things in and out." In the wagon bed, the cook loaded kegs of molasses, and boxes of bacon, sugar. Built into the back-end was a chuck box or pantry. The chuck box sloped outward and the lower end hinged, so it could be lowered to act as a work or eating table. This table was held by rope or chains or sometimes a stick prop beneath it. Inside, out of the elements, utensils, flour, sourdough, salt, tomatoes, beans, dried fruit, onions, and potatoes were stored. Usually the chuck box also contain one drawer that held medicinal products such as liniment, quinine, and a laxative. Sitting below the chuck box was a smaller box that held the skillets and the Dutch ovens. On one side of the wagon, a water barrel would be mounted. On the other side, a tool box was mounted. The tool box contained branding irons, horseshoeing equipment, and possibly an axe and shovel. All chuck wagons had a leather hammock stretched underneath the bed where spare wood was carried. This hammock was also called the cooney, from the Spanish word cuna. (cradle) Cowboys also called it the "possum belly." During many a stormy night on the trail, a smart cowboy could nestle into the cooney and stay dry and warm during the night. Chuck wagons were normally pulled by oxen, mules or horses.

Hot coffee was the staple for cowboys trailing Longhorns to Kansas and Arbuckle's was the brand of choice. Self-respecting cowboys drank it black without sugar or evaporated milk. The coffee was called six-shooter coffee as it was said to be able to float a cowboy's pistol. The rest of breakfast included bacon, sourdough biscuits,and dried fruit. Lunch was called dinner in that time and was always a light meal consisting usually of coffee and beef. (There was always plenty of beef on the drive) Most times, the cowboys of a particular herd would kill another drive's stray for steaks so as not to kill one of their own steers. If that option was not present, they would kill an animal from their herd that either was a problem to drive or had poor markings. For several days after the killing of a steer, the camp would endure daily portions of "son-of-a-gun" stew. The stew consisted of everything that needed to be eaten quickly before spoiling. This would include tongue, heart, liver, etc... Once the stew was portioned out, the cowboys would enjoy steak cooked in a Dutch oven. The rest of a steak meal would consist of onion, potatoes, and dried beans known by trailers as "Pecos strawberries."


Trailing cattle was never the daring, thrill-seeking adventure portrayed in the Dime Novels of the time. In fact, it was downright dangerous on a daily basis. In the Chisolm Trail by Wayne Gard, the author tells of a herd that found a grave on the North Canadian that simply read: Killed by Indians. Besides the dangers of hostile Indians, there were rattlesnakes, prairie dog burrows, cholera, and deadly spring thunderstorms. Many a cowboy used his saddle for protection during a hailstorm which in severe cases had the potential to kill horses and cattle. In addition to hail, there were also the hazards associated with lightning, flooded river crossings, and tornado-like wind. And even upon reaching Kansas, there was always trouble with the locals. Bill Poage, a vetern of the trail commented in 1874 that - "There was scarcely a day went by that we didn't have a row with some settler." And Kansas farmers used Kansas law to their advantage. One enterprising ploy was to plow a furrow around a claim, by Kansas law this was considered a fence and any herds crossing the furrow were trespassing and the claimant could collect damages from the trespassing Texas herd.

The one danger that all trailers feared to a man was the stampede or "stompede" as most cowboys called it. A stompede could be caused by something as small as a flock of quail or as large as a bolt of lightning thrown down from the heavens. But whatever the cause, the panicked Longhorns might run a few miles or a hundred. Smart trailers immediately turned the stampede into a circle, allowing the cattle to "mill." Milling cattle soon exhausted themselves and often quieted, but once a herd stampeded, they had to be watched closely the rest of the day or night. Milling was not without its drawbacks. A milling herd could work off more pounds in a half-hour mill as running a couple miles. One of the worst recorded stampedes occured on the South Bosque River, Texas where trailers could not mill a panicked herd. The herd rushed headlong over a wide gully where 2,700 steers ended up dying in the rush.

Mike Kearby's Texas Copyright 2011

Trailing Cattle - A Short History Part 3

In 1858, amidst the historic Lincoln - Douglas debates, Oliver Loving, from Palo Pinto County, Texas and a neighbor, John Durkee, drove their herds to Illinois and sold the stock at a considerable profit. However other Texas drovers would not fare so well that year. A new outbreak of Texas fever left thousand of local cattle dead in Missouri and once again the Missouri farmers took it upon themselves to turn back Texas cattle using force when needed. The Missouri situation caused many Texas drovers to take a new route skirting the eastern edge of Kansas to reach Kansas City or other points north. But the Kansas reprieve was short-lived as thousands of Kansas cattle soon became stricken with Texas fever. In 1859, the Kansas Territorial Legislature passed a protective act that prohibited cattle from Texas, Arkansas, and Indian stock from entering specific counties from June to November. Some Texas drovers treated the law with contempt thus forcing Kansas farmers to organize rifle companies to deal with the Texans and their cattle.

 By August of 1861, Pres. Lincoln forbade any trade with the South. Coupled with the number of Texans fighting for the Confederacy, (almost all outside of Texas), the state of the cattle business fell into a steep decline. Neglected herds now roamed over large portions of the state and calves would go unbranded for the ensuing war years. And for the trailing that did go on during the war, the majority of herds were driven to the East Coast to feed Confederate soldiers. A few notable Texas cowmen who supplied cattle for the south were John S. Chisum, Oliver Loving, and Jesse L. Driskill. But for a the majority of trailers , the war exacted a heavy toll as the profitable northern markets were now unavailable. But at war's end, a few forward-thinking men would see a fortune on the horizon. Those unbranded calves, now called mavericks, were seen to be a source of profit to the cowman who caught and branded them.

J. Frank Dobie always said the word had only two syllables and that a genuine Texan pronounced it: mav-rick. One legend has it that the word originated by the fact that Samuel Maverick would not brand or earmark any of his herd. His neighbors, however took to branding not only their cattle but his as well. This did not prevent Samuel from claiming any slick eared animal belonged to his herd. Over time, when observing a slick-ear, folks would say, "There goes one of Mr. Maverick's animals. Later, when observing any unbranded animal anywhere, the saying became: "There goes a Mav-rick." Another legend holds that the word comes from the name of a drover who lost his herd in a snowstorm. The cattle became so scattered that regrouping the animals became impossible. The off-spring of the scattered herd became known as Maverick's cattle.

 

By 1866, the push to trail cattle north resumed in Texas. Estimates from the time suggest as many as 300,000 head were trailed for northern markets that spring. But two cowmen decided they would follow a westward direction out of the state. The two, Oliver Loving and Charles Goodnight, combined their herds along the upper reaches of the Brazos River with the intent on moving them to the Rockies. However, there was one problem...Comanche lands blocked a direct route to Colorado. The two solved the problem by following the old Butterfield Stage Line through Buffalo Gap and then down to present day San Angelo.
From there they headed for Horsehead Crossing and the Pecos River. The cowmen then drove for Fort Sumner, NM. Of the 1000 steers they started with, 300 were lost by the time they reached Fort Sumner, but the NM market was willing to pay .08 a pound on foot. After selling all of their steers, 700 cows and calves remained. Loving trailed these north to Denver, while Goodnight rode back to Texas to gather another herd. In 1867, Loving followed the route and was attacked by Indians. The wounds he received eventually resulted in his death at Fort Sumner in September of that year.

Mike Kearby's Texas Copyright 2011