FrontierTimes - Home of frontier history -the cattle industry and how the brands originated

Welcome to
FrontierTimes.com

Home
Outlaws
Books
Auctions
For Sale
Wholesale
Poster
Plaque
Links
Contact Us
Free Newsletter
Welcome to FrontierTimes.com


We hope you will leave more informed
than when you arrived.


Checkout The Outlaw Series
for the most dangerous gunmen that ever operated in Texas.
Be sure to see our Auctions page for items related to
the frontier days or western things
.

We also have similar items available for direct purchase.

Cattle Kings 
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.

Poster of famous Texas cattle brandsThis 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.

Texas Cattle brands poster
Large format
24 inches wide
x
36 inches high

Click here for more details.

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........

For the rest of the XIT Iron article and other articles mailed to you periodically, click here to join mailing list.

Be sure to bookmark this page.

We intend to have the most thoroughly linked frontier history site on the internet. So check back often for new links to relevant sites and information.

Cattle Roundup
Popular Books on frontier history

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...

 


Why Cowboys Need a Brand

 

 

 


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...




Click here for more books




Home
Outlaws
Books
Auctions
For Sale
Wholesale
Poster
Plaque
Links
Contact Us
Free Newsletter
Wholesale