Texas history,
to the average person, is mostly the story of the pioneer cattle lndustry; the trail drives and roundups. We know that there's more to it than that, but the western cattle range still dominates the image people have of Texas in the 1866 through 1890 period.

It is no mystery how the image got started or why it grew and persisted. It was an exciting and colorful period. The people in the stories were bold and vigorous.

It took great courage and skill to gather the wild and dangerous Texas Longhorns and drive them hundreds of miles to northern markets. It was not a job for the inept or the chicken-hearted. The trails are lined with unmarked graves. Small wonder, then, that the old-time cowhand took pride in his exploits.

This chart has over 200 of the most famous and significant brands of the period along with the registration dates,counties and owners.

 Here are examples from Spanish colonial times through the early days of the twentieth century, representing great cattle empires such as the Four 6's, the Matador, the Running W, and the Long Rail. as well as the "road brands" of the trail drivers.

Here, too, are the ''irons" of the men of whom the legends tell: Col. Charles Goodnight, John Slaughter, Shanghai Pierce and John Blocker.

These hand-drawn brands are printed in dark brown on museum quality tan paper, ready for mounting.

Where brands of the cattle kings
came from

Of the many brands of the cattle kings, 
there are some very exceptional stories 
associated with their owners and origination 
of the brands. 
         
An excerpt from one such story follows. 

The XIT Iron
By Tom Burks

former curator of Texas Ranger Museum

In 1879, the Texas Legislature passed a law setting aside 3,000,000 acres of state land for the construction of a new capitol. At that time, Texas had plenty of public land but little cash. Since this huge block of land was to be traded for construction, a committee was appointed to oversee the bidding, evaluate the bidders and award the contract to a firm that would be capable of such a large undertaking.

They chose a Chicago group which became known as "The Capitol Syndicate." The group agreed to construct a capitol building that would be bigger and grander than that of another state; it was to rival the National Capitol in Washington (its dome would be seven feet higher!).

The land the syndicate received was in the northwest corner of the panhandle, stretching 200 miles south along the New Mexico line. In some places it was as much as twenty-five miles wide.

Their intention was to create a giant ranching operation that would produce an income until the region was ready for settlement, then to sell the land in smaller parcels to farmers and stockmen........

The Men Who Wear the Star : The Story of the Texas Rangers
Amazon.com
Predating the entry of Texas into the United States, the Texas Rangers came into being as a ragtag outfit of frontiersmen who battled a host of enemies, from Mexican soldiers to Comanche Indians to Anglo outlaws, and who were not often scrupulous about method--or the niceties of law. The Rangers...

 

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Why Cowboys Need a Brand

 

 

 

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Gold Dust and Gunsmoke : Tales of Gold Rush Outlaws, Gunfighters, Lawmen, and Vigilantes
From Booklist
Movies and television have created an image of the Old West as an extremely violent place. This is to a large extent false, for most of the West was relatively peaceful during the frontier era. One outstanding exception was California during the Gold Rush. A lust for gold was the driving force...

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