After the Civil War, people in Texas realized that an estimated 3.5 million free-roaming cattle scattered throughout the state were a valuable asset. Between 1866 and 1887, over five million head of cattle were rounded up to make the five-month, 800-mile trip through Texas to railheads in Kansas. Fort Worth, the last “civilized” stop before Indian Territory, became an important supply center. Driven by 10 or 12 cowboys, herds forded the Trinity and bedded down north of the river for a few days. In 1871, a reported 360,000 “beeves” were driven through Fort Worth along the Chisholm Trail (today’s Commerce, Calhoun, Jones and Grove streets). The invention of barbed wire and the advancing railroad brought an end to the cattle drives, but with the stockyards and the growing number of area ranches in need of supplies, Fort Worth remained a “cowtown.”

SPONSORED BY: THE ELTON AND CHRISTINE HYDER FOUNDATION