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Chapter Seven
A Frontier Society in Transition
Year Total Urban Rural (%) Black (%)
1860 604,215 26,615 577,600 (96.4)
182,921 (30.0)
1870 818,579 59,521 764,058 (95.6)
253,475 (31.9)
1880 1,591,749 146,795 1,444,954 (93.7)
393,384 (25.0)
1890 2,235,521 349,511 1,886,016 (90.5)
488,171 (21.8)
1900 3,048,710 520,759 2,527,951 (84.5)
650,722 (20.0)
Texas Population (1870-1900)
What do these statistics mean?Stead increase in overall populationSteady increase in urban populationSteady decrease of black population
Who came to Texas?Primarily white southerners
From Arkansas, Alabama, Mississippi, Tennessee, Missouri, Louisiana, and Georgia (in that order)
West Texas provided adequate for cattlemenFarmers followed ranchers
Railroad lines are also responsible for population increases in cities
Texas Population (1870-1900)
After the Civil War, northern U.S. markets for beef spurred the growth of ranching in South TexasKenedy RanchKing Ranch
In the 1880s and 1890s, South Texas acreage was slowly converted to farmlandAs a result, ranch hands became displaced workers
Railroads expanded in the area and urban development increasedCorpus Christi, Laredo, and Brownsville benefitted
greatly from railroad expansion
Growth of South Texas
King Ranch
Captain Richard King
King Ranch in Popular Culture
Kiowas and ComanchesStill ruled over West Texas despite Texan advances on
their territoryTheir society glorified warfareThey finally honed their military tactics (hit and run tactics)Texan migration stopped short of Plains Indian territoryTheir nomadic lifestyle prevented Texans from attacking
any tangible military/social positions Texans feared the Plains tribes
They tortured white victims during or after combatTortured prisoners or mutilated corpses
Abducted white women and childrenThis was usually enough to stave off further migration to the
west
Indian Displacement
FortsFrom 1866 to 1868, the U.S. War Department
established a line of defense Replaced long-established U.S. troops stationed in militia
units and Indian-fighter regiments along the frontierHowever, the Plains tribes proved too resourceful and
cunningEasily avoided the fortsThey were spread too far apart to be effective
“Comanche moon” raidsComanches typically carried out some of their fiercest
raids under the light of a full moonU.S. soldiers began to carry out reconnaissance
missions under a full moon also
Indian Displacement
May 1871 (Young County, TX)
Kiowa Chief Satanta and roughly 150 of his followers near the Fort Sill Reservation raided a supply train
Killed and mutilated 7 of the 12 drivers
Satanta did not want to relinquish Kiowa land in West Texas
The Salt Creek Massacre
Satanta
General William T. Sherman ordered the arrest of Satanta and his followers
They were subsequently arrested, tried, and sentenced to deathHowever, Governor Davis pardoned this in an
attempt to exercise a peace policy towards the Plains Indians
Satanta was released and continued his old ways
He was later recaptured and sent to the Huntsville state prisonDied in 1878 under questionable circumstances
The Salt Creek Massacre
After the Salt Creek Massacre, the U.S. Army led an offensive against the Plains tribesSpearheaded by Col.
Ranald Slidell MackenzieConducted very effective
search and destroy missions on the Panhandle Plains in 1871Against resistant
Comanche bands
Mackenzie’s Raids
Col. Ranald Slidell Mackenzie
Notable Comanche leader Quanah Parker faced Mackenzie’s forces in 1871 Parker was the son of
Cynthia Ann Parker, a white Comanche woman who was abducted in 1836 at Fort Parker (Limestone County)
Objective of Mackenzie’s campaign was the forcible removal of Indians to the reservations Most Indians refused to fight
under circumstances to the advantage of the U.S. Army
Mackenzie’s Raids
Quanah Parker
The U.S. Army resorted to ruthless measuresSlaughtering pony herdsDestroying Indian villagesConfiscating food, weapons, and necessities for
survivalThis policy was effective
Frequency of Indian raids decreased dramatically
Mackenzie’s Raids
Final military operation against the Plains Indians in northwestern Texas
Multi-pronged assault from New Mexico, Kansas, Oklahoma, and West Texas
September 1874 – Mackenzie and his troops skirmish with Comanches at Palo Duro CanyonAfter the skirmish, he ordered the slaughtering of
the tribe’s pony herdWithout their horses, the Comanches were easily
subduedRemnants of the Plains Tribes moved to the
Oklahoma reservations in 1875
Red River War
Their way of life was detrimental to their survivalLacked a system of supply depots and armories
essential for warfareLacked a support network of factories and
farmsLacked an efficient infrastructure effective
enough to stave off whites moving westWar strategy did not favor prolong conflict
against well-trained and well-armed opponentsDecline of the buffalo herds
Decline of the Plains Tribes
Major decline was during the 1870s and 1880sCauses
Tribal migrations increased slaughteringPartially for sustenance and essential byproductsPartially for its trade value (alcohol)
Anglo range animals contaminated the herds with diseasesHorses, cattle, and sheep
European livestock upset the ecology of the regionWhites shot buffalo for sportBuffalo hides became profitable
By the early 1880s, less than 200 buffalo were left on old Texas feeding grounds (previously thousands)
Decline of the Buffalo Herds
Roughly 5 million longhorns grazed throughout Texas in 1865Majority were “mavericks”, belonging to the
first person to brand themEra of the Cattle Kingdom began during the
mid-1860s until the mid-1880sDemand for beef in the North pushed up the
price of cattle$3-4 a head in Texas would bring $30-$40 a
head in the upper Mississippi Valley
The Cattle Kingdom
First “long drive” was in 1866 Passed through the Nueces Valley, Austin, Fort Worth, Denison,
and finished at the railhead at Sedalia, Missouri Dealers would ship the cattle north for huge profits
Problems Bandits and Indians Missourians were problematic
Shot cattle Tried to turn herds back south Did anything to keep cattle out of Missouri
Preferable rail shipping point became Abilene, Kansas as a result Wide-open plains Allowed Texas cowboys to avoid problems in Missouri Texans reached Abilene via the Chisholm Trail Over 35,000 cattle were driven from Texas to Abilene in 1867
Cattle Trails
Cattlemen in the South Plains and Panhandle made free use of grasslands on the open rangeKnown as “free rangers”Notables: John Chisum, Charles Goodnight, C.
C. Slaughter, George Littlefield, and Oliver Loving
Free rangers were often ruthless asserting their “range rights”Used violence to drive away intruders
Many free rangers obtained legal title to public lands when the government put it on the market
Range Rights
Several gigantic ranches emerged out of the need of speculators to legalize claims on the open range
Ranches provided labor and shared profits with financial sponsors
Notable ranches:JA Ranch (Charles Goodnight)
700,000 acres in Palo Duro CanyonShoe Bar Ranch (Thomas S. Bugbee)
450,000 acres in the PanhandleMatador Land and Cattle Company (based out of
Scotland)300,000 acres in Motley County
Land and Cattle Companies
Largest of the Texas ranchesAlong the western boundary of the PanhandleOwned by a Chicago syndicate3,050,000 acres in payment for building the
new state capitol in Austin (1888)
XIT Ranch
Cattle boom waned in the mid-1880sLong drives were not cost-effective
Cattle lost weight on the trail and did not bring premium prices
Kansas law prevented cattle from passing through the stateSpread of Texas tick fever
Land upset the ecological balanceLand could only support so many cattleRanchers routinely overstocked it
Freezes and droughts in the mid-1880s devastated the industryRanchers never recovered
Decline of the Cattle Kingdom
Ranchers divided the entire range with barbed wireCareful calculation on how many cattle each
pasture could containControlled animal breedingNew interest in ranching methods
Ranchers left a settled regionFarmers followed the ranchersWestern expansion of railroads gave rise to
townsAbilene (TX), Sweetwater, Big Spring, Midland,
and Odessa
Legacy of the Cattle Kingdom
Industry did not become profitable until the 1870s
Areas around the San Antonio River, Rio Grande, and Gulf of Mexico were particularly profitableSupported more than 3.5 million Mexican and
Mexican-cross sheep (1885)323,000 goats (1885)
Expansion in the Rio Grande plain lead to expansion in West Texas
Overall, more than 4,750,000 sheep in Texas (1886)Second to California
Sheep and Goat Ranching
Violence picked up after the Civil WarThe 1870s and early 1880s were particularly violent
Vigilante movements90,000 mile triangular expanse
Houston (Gulf Coast), Hill County (west of San Antonio), Dallas/Fort Worth (North Texas)
Types of ViolenceFeudsGunfightingLynchingWhitecappingCattle/Sheep Rustling
Violence and Lawlessness
Known as the longest and bloodiest feud in TexasOccurred in DeWitt County (1867-1876)Identified as a “community feud”
Coalition of immediate and distant relatives, sympathizers, and those who had a vested interest in the outcome
Notable eventsEx-Confederate Doboy Taylor murdered 5 Union soldiers
during military rule (1867)Bill Sutton (Union sympathizer) killed 2 members of the
Taylor familyBy 1874, roughly 2,000 men were involved in the dispute
Some hired gunslingers were involvedBy 1876, the Texas Rangers were called in, effectively
ending the feud
Sutton-Taylor Feud
DeWitt County Courthouse
Most prominent and dangerous gunfighter after the Civil War Killed more men than Billy
the Kid, Jesse James, or “Wild Bill” Hickok
Killed more than 20 men from 1868-1878
Ardent supporter of the Confederate cause Terrorized blacks Terrorized Gov. Davis’ state
policeHired gun for the Sutton-
Taylor feud
John Wesley Hardin
John Wesley Hardin
Hardin’s Grave, El Paso, Texas
LynchingTypically a racially charged form of extralegal
justice used to assert white supremacy on black and Mexican Texans
Rape and murder were typical charges for lynchingLynching numbers increase after the decline of the
Ku Klux Klan in the early 1870sContinued until the mid-1940s in TexasRoughly 500 black lynchings were estimated
between 1870 and 1900The number declines around 1890, but picks back up
during the Progressive eraAnti-lynch laws had little effect
Lynching
Has a distinctive connection to the Ku Klux Klan of the 1870s Originally a ritualized form of enforcing community standards,
appropriate behavior, and traditional rights Men who abused their wives/children People who were lazy Women who had children out of wedlock
Took on a distinct anti-black characteristic in Texas and the South In Central Texas, economic motives were cause for whitecapping
incidents Attempting to scare black sharecroppers off of land that whites felt they
had a right to work Forms of violence
Burning down houses Beating and abusing blacks in front of other blacks Public whipping
Non-violent forms of whitecapping Posting signs on blacks’ or merchants’ doors Verbal threats Public humiliation
Whitecapping
1874 – The Texas Rangers replaced Gov. Davis’ state police force
Two Units:Special Force (Captain L. H. McNelly, commander)Frontier Battalion (Major John B. Jones, commander)
AssignmentsCollecting taxesEnsuring safety of prisoners from extralegal mobsMaintaining peace during court casesMonitoring electionsMediating labor disputesEnforcing quaruntines
Texas Rangers
Major John B. Jones
Captain L. H. McNelly
Extreme enforcementFrequently overstepped the laws they were
enforcingLey de fuga (law of flight)
Mexican tradition (empowered law enforcement to shoot fleeing prisoners)
Became standard practiceEntered Mexico illegally numerous times“justifiable homicide” was allowed to thwart
particularly violent crimesBeatings and indiscreet shootings to restore order
Society consented to the Rangers’ use of excessive force
Texas Rangers
San AntonioCenter of military installations and point of
departure for western explorationPopulation: 20,000 (1880)
HoustonBecame a huge port city in the late 19th century
due to the confluence of railroadsPopulation: 9,000 (1870) / 44,000 (1900)
GalvestonAnother major port cityPopulation: 14,000 (1870)Hit by a devastating hurricane in 1900
Texas Cities
San Antonio, Texas, 1905
Houston, Texas, 1905
Galveston, Texas, 1905
DallasBecame a transporation/shipping center for
North Texas Attracted many ranchers and farmersBecame a hub for financial and cultural activity
Fort WorthBecame a major city after the cattle boom of
the 1870s and 1880sBy 1900, it was the 5th largest city in the state
Texas Cities
Dallas City Hall, 1906
Fort Worth City Hall, 1908
Minority CommunitiesTexas did not have numerous self-sustaining
black communities during this periodDid not have business districts and professionals to
serve the minority communitiesMost develop and become fully segregated in
the early 20th centuryMexicans had fully segregated communities
(barrios) in some townsSan Antonio and Corpus ChristiSmall business districts existed, but poverty
prevented professionals from sustaining needed services (doctors, lawyers)
Texas Cities
Settlers used religious gatherings to escape from general isolation of a society still primarily on the frontier
People traveled by horseback or wagon to church houses, schools, or tents where ministers would come preachCircuit riders were common during this period
Conservative Protestantism was the most commonBaptists and Methodists were the largest
denominations
Religion
Women’s Christian Temperance Union (WCTU)Founded in Paris, Texas (1882)Led to opportunities for women to campaign
for prohibition and other political issuesChild labor lawsEducational opportunities for women and childrenWomen’s suffrage
Successfully lobbied the state legislature to found Texas Women’s University
Women’s Organizations
Women’s Club MovementTexas Federation of Women’s Clubs (TFWC) founded in
WacoFocused on literary studies initiallyMembership mainly from the middle classTurned to public activism
Cultural issuesImproving social conditionsEnhancing educationPromoting child welfareBeautifying municipalitiesSanitation issues
These become some of the primary issues of the Progressive era
Women’s Organizations
“German Belt”Germans represented the largest ethnicity of
immigrants in TexasPrimarily located in three areas of Central
TexasPopulation: 30,000 (1860) / 130,000 (1887)
Other GroupsSlavs (Fayetteville)Czechs (West)Poles (around the San Antonio River and
Brazos River)
European Immigrants