CLOSE ENCOUNTER:At Copper Breaks State Park near Quanah, where a portion of the state’s official Longhorn herd resides, park superintendent David Turner has a unique way of “kissing” his cattle — with a chunk of cow cake through the fence.
War. Longhorns were such ideal trail cattle that they even gained weight on the long trip north. The Chisholm Trail (named after Jesse
Chisholm, a trader, tracker and interpreter from Tennessee) was the major cattle drive route out of Texas from 1867 to 1884. It was perhaps the most famous of various trails that spread across the state, with roots deep in South Texas up to San Antonio and Waco, eventually branch- ing farther out in different directions as the Chisholm Trail or the Western Trail to destina- tions in Kansas. Barbed-wire fences and a new quarantine
law for Kansas in 1885 closed the trail and brought an end to the open-range cattle boom. Fencing also made it possible to control breed- ing and raise cattle that developed faster and yielded more beef. By the 1920s, only a few herds of Longhorns remained. It was thanks to Will C. Barnes and his fellow Forest Service men as well as Western writer Dobie that the Longhorn was saved from probable extinction. Along with financial backing from oilman Sid W. Richardson and help from former range inspector Graves Peeler, they gathered several small herds to keep in Texas state parks. Since 1948, the official state herd of
about 200 has been based at Fort Griffin State Historic Site near Albany, with smaller herds
still based at other parks. This herd is kept as close to the original Longhorns as possible, so visitors can experience animals similar to those that lived in the late 1800s and earlier — offer- ing a true living history of a longstanding Texas symbol.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:
visitfortgriffin.com albanytexas.com
tpwd.texas.gov/state-parks/san-angelo tpwd.texas.gov/state-parks/copper-breaks tpwd.texas.gov/state-parks/palo-duro-canyon tpwd.texas.gov/state-parks/lyndon-b-johnson
14 AUTHENTIC TEXAS
BARBARA BRANNON/TEXAS PLAINS TRAIL
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