By Vickie McDonough
It’s estimate that 25,000 to 35,000 men trailed six to ten
million head of cattle and a million horses from Texas, through Indian
Territory to Kansas between the end of the Civil War and the turn of the century.
Though the long, dusty trips included drudgery and hardship, the drive also
promised danger and excitement. It was often the most unforgettable experience
for many young men and created memories to last a lifetime. Stories of crossing
raging rivers, stampedes, fighting Indians and rustlers were shared for the
rest of their days. While many drives were successful and resulted in making
ranchers wealthy men, many were not. I thought it might be interesting to hear
some tales from actual drovers.
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| Texas longhorn |
Jeff Connelly of Lockhart, Texas, says he was paid $1.50 per
day and board was furnished for herding cattle in 1881 & ’82. He said that
on one drive, they were looking for a place near Okmulgee (now in OK) to camp
and stumbled upon a man hanging dead in a tree. A sign posted on the tree read:
Death to anyone who cuts him down. Needless to say, Jeff and his friends left
the man and went on to camp somewhere else.
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| Map of Famous Cattle Trails through Indian Territory |
J.D. Jackson, a tenderfoot from Kentucky, decided to try his
hand at driving cattle. The cowboys had fun teasing him and told him stories of
Indian attacks until he wouldn’t leave camp alone after dark. One night, Den Knight
awakened J.D. and said he needed his help to move the horses closer to camp so
Indians wouldn’t get them. What J.D. didn’t know was that a dozen of the other
cowboys were waiting in the bushes. They’d tied bunches of grass on their head
and had gotten sohol stalks for lances. Just as J.D. and Den got off their
horses and prepared to untie the staked horses, the “Indians” attacked. The
boys came charging up on their horses, yelling and shooting and making all
kinds of wild noises. Knight fell over and pretended to be fatally shot and
told J.D. to make his escape. No one expected the tenderfoot to make it back to
his horse before the jig was up, but J.D. did. By 10 o’clock the next morning,
he’d ridden sixty miles to Marfa. He arrived exhausted and told the townsfolk
the Indians had attacked their party, and he was the only one to escape. When
J.D. found out it was all a joke, he decided the West wasn’t for him and
returned to Kentucky.
Ben Drake tells of a drive he went on in 1879. As they
neared Indian Territory, he was captured by Indians and carried off to their
camp, where he remained for three months. He ate terrapin and dog meat cooked
together and was glad to have it. He said that eventually an old chief went to
Texarkana and got a U.S. marshal who came and collected him and returned him to
Austin.
L.D. Taylor tells about driving the chuck wagon about a mile
behind the herd when four Indians approached and asked for “tarbucket.” He
grabbed the tar bucket and gave it to them but they shook their heads and put
their hands in his pockets and took all of his tobacco. He said they gave a
grunt and took off with the tobacco and tar bucket. In camp that night, his
brother asked why he permitted the Indians to take the tar, but L.D. replied,
“I was glad they did not take my scalp.”
Part of The Good Ole
Days, a poem by Luther A. Lawhon.
The old-time cowboy had ‘is faults, ‘tis true, as has been
said.
He’d look upon the licker when the licker, men, wuz red;
His language weren’t allers spoke accordin’ to the rule;
Ner wuz it sech as ye’d expect to hear at Sunday school.
But when he went to meetin’, men, he didn’t yawn or doze,
Or set there takin’ notice of the congregation’s clothes.
He listened to the preacher with respect, an’ all o’ that,
An’ he never failed to ante when they passed aroun’ the hat!
Excerpts taken from The
Trail Drivers of Texas by University of Texas Press, Austin. This is a great book for anyone interested in Texas history or cattle drives.
Just released! South Carolina Brides. Visit historic South Carolina where secrets disrupt the lives of three women. A cousin’s quest takes a drastic turn when she falls for the man she thought she despised. A young woman’s sheltered world crumbles after she finds a badly beaten stranger on a nearby plantation. And a sister’s heart is torn when the neighbor who killed her brother in a duel returns home a changed man. Between betrayal and lies, is there room for love?
Vickie is a wife of thirty-eight years, mother of four grown
sons, one daughter-in-law, and grandma to a feisty seven-year-old girl. When
she’s not writing, Vickie enjoys reading, antiquing, watching movies, and
traveling. To learn more about Vickie’s books or to sign up for her newsletter,
visit her website: www.vickiemcdonough.com
