For some of our older collectors and dealers, including myself, those words will bring back memories of a terrific TV show called RAWHIDE which ran from1959- 1965 and helped launch the career of Clint Eastwood. Set in the years after the Civil War it told stories of the many challenges faced by drovers on the great cattle drives from Texas northwards to the railheads in Kansas, Nebraska and Wyoming.
As a kid I loved RAWHIDE, it was my favourite TV Western and helped fuel my interest in the Old West and that particular part of its colourful and exciting history.
Now journey forward quite a few years to when King & Country took over the Kings X store in San Antonio, Texas and our confounder Laura McAllister Johnson moved to the Lone Star State to live and work.
On my frequent visits to Texas over the years both Laura and myself explored different aspects of Texan history and the people and events that shaped it.
As many of you know K&C has long delved deep into that history with series and, ranges that have included The Alamo and The Rough Riders and even individual fictional Western and Texas figures such as Ranger Captains Woodrow Call and Gus McCrae from Larry McMutrys classic "Lonesome Dove" book and TV series.
So, K&C is no stranger to the Old West or as weve called it The Real West and over all these years weve managed to explore different aspects but not, until now, have we looked into the huge, and important subject of The Cattle Drives that developed in the years after the Civil War.
Texas, at that time, had millions of Longhorn cattle both domestically reared and in the wild that could help feed a rapidly expanding country that had a taste for beef.
These cattle had been raised in Texas from the time of the first Spanish settlers and were a mix of animals from Spain together with Mexican breeds and even some cattle of British origin brought west by Anglo-American colonists.
The result was the Texas Longhorn, a tough, sturdy animal, used to dry, hot surroundings with long, extended horns up to 8 feet in width!
The peak era of the Texas Cattle Drives was just about 20 years from 1866 until the mid 1880s. During that time a great number of herds of between 2-3000 head of cattle would be driven northwards to the markets and railroad-loading facilities by a crew of usually 12 men led by a Trail Boss.
Many of the Texans who became cowboys were former Confederate Cavalrymen well used to a hard life on horseback and also handy with a rifle and a six-shooter. Some others on the crew would be Mexican or Tejano and a few more might be black former slaves who knew a thing or two about handling cattle and horses.
Cattle drives usually began in the Spring after round up when grass was plentiful and the herd could be delivered to its destination up north before the cold, winter weather set in.
On the drive the Trail Boss was the ultimate authority and could earn anywhere from US$100-US$125 a month. The average cowboy, by comparison earned 30-40 dollars each month while a good cook might get US$50-US$60.
In each crew there were usually about 10 drovers or wranglers who would take up their posts along the outside and rear of the herd as it moved along. Most herds would cover between 10 to 15 miles a day, depending on what delays or weather conditions were encountered.
A drive from Texas up north to Kansas might take anywhere from 25-100 days.
Along the way the herd and its cowboys could come up against Indians and / or rustlers as well as a host of natural hazards including flood-swollen rivers, extreme drought, lightning strikes and even sudden stampedes caused by thirsty animals crazed at the smell of water.
These first few figures paint just a small portion of a much larger portrait of a unique part of Texan and American history that deserves to be seen in miniature.
As a kid I loved RAWHIDE, it was my favourite TV Western and helped fuel my interest in the Old West and that particular part of its colourful and exciting history.
Now journey forward quite a few years to when King & Country took over the Kings X store in San Antonio, Texas and our confounder Laura McAllister Johnson moved to the Lone Star State to live and work.
On my frequent visits to Texas over the years both Laura and myself explored different aspects of Texan history and the people and events that shaped it.
As many of you know K&C has long delved deep into that history with series and, ranges that have included The Alamo and The Rough Riders and even individual fictional Western and Texas figures such as Ranger Captains Woodrow Call and Gus McCrae from Larry McMutrys classic "Lonesome Dove" book and TV series.
So, K&C is no stranger to the Old West or as weve called it The Real West and over all these years weve managed to explore different aspects but not, until now, have we looked into the huge, and important subject of The Cattle Drives that developed in the years after the Civil War.
Texas, at that time, had millions of Longhorn cattle both domestically reared and in the wild that could help feed a rapidly expanding country that had a taste for beef.
These cattle had been raised in Texas from the time of the first Spanish settlers and were a mix of animals from Spain together with Mexican breeds and even some cattle of British origin brought west by Anglo-American colonists.
The result was the Texas Longhorn, a tough, sturdy animal, used to dry, hot surroundings with long, extended horns up to 8 feet in width!
The peak era of the Texas Cattle Drives was just about 20 years from 1866 until the mid 1880s. During that time a great number of herds of between 2-3000 head of cattle would be driven northwards to the markets and railroad-loading facilities by a crew of usually 12 men led by a Trail Boss.
Many of the Texans who became cowboys were former Confederate Cavalrymen well used to a hard life on horseback and also handy with a rifle and a six-shooter. Some others on the crew would be Mexican or Tejano and a few more might be black former slaves who knew a thing or two about handling cattle and horses.
Cattle drives usually began in the Spring after round up when grass was plentiful and the herd could be delivered to its destination up north before the cold, winter weather set in.
On the drive the Trail Boss was the ultimate authority and could earn anywhere from US$100-US$125 a month. The average cowboy, by comparison earned 30-40 dollars each month while a good cook might get US$50-US$60.
In each crew there were usually about 10 drovers or wranglers who would take up their posts along the outside and rear of the herd as it moved along. Most herds would cover between 10 to 15 miles a day, depending on what delays or weather conditions were encountered.
A drive from Texas up north to Kansas might take anywhere from 25-100 days.
Along the way the herd and its cowboys could come up against Indians and / or rustlers as well as a host of natural hazards including flood-swollen rivers, extreme drought, lightning strikes and even sudden stampedes caused by thirsty animals crazed at the smell of water.
These first few figures paint just a small portion of a much larger portrait of a unique part of Texan and American history that deserves to be seen in miniature.
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