Table of Contents
How long did it take to drive cattle from Texas to Kansas?
The “Long Drive,” which initially went up to Abilene, Kansas, was about 800 miles and could take as long as two months.
What was the main trail that brought cattle to Kansas?
the Chisholm Trail
On September 5, 1867, the first load of cattle were shipped via rail from Kansas. The trail would eventually be called the Chisholm Trail. Named for Jesse Chisholm, an Indian trader, the Chisholm Trail was so named because a portion of it followed Chisholm’s trade routes.
What type of cattle came from Texas to Abilene?
The most important cow path from Texas to Abilene was the Chisholm Trail. Between the Civil War and 1873 more than 1.5 million Texas cattle were driven over it to Abilene, as well as to Wichita and Ellsworth, rival Kansas cattle towns along the trail….
| CHISHOLM TRAIL | WESTERN TRAIL |
|---|---|
| BLACK COWBOYS | LONGHORN CATTLE |
How much did Joe McCoy pay for a head of cattle?
In cities like Chicago they were worth $30 to $40 a head. McCoy began to develop a transportation system that would send cattle north to more profitable markets. McCoy examined how he could send cattle on the railroads, which could then take them north to sell.
Who drove cattle from Texas to Kansas on the open range?
Jesse Chisholm
The tracks were made by Scot-Cherokee Jesse Chisholm, who in 1864 began hauling trade goods to Indian camps about 220 miles south of his post near modern Wichita. At first the route was merely referred to as the Trail, the Kansas Trail, the Abilene Trail, or McCoy’s Trail.
Which major cattle trail was farthest east?
CONTEXT. In the latter part of the 19th century, the Shawnee Trail was the first north-south cattle trail and the farthest east of the four great cattle-driving trails from Texas to northern markets, the others being the Chisholm, the Great Western, and the Goodnight-Loving trails.
A typical cattle drive, moving 10-12 miles a day, would take about two months to travel from South Texas to Kansas. Though the cattle could be driven as far as 25 miles in a single day, they would lose too much weight and be hard to sell when they reached the end of the trail.
Where was the first cattle transported by rail?
The first rail-transported cattle were shipped from Abilene, Kansas in 1867. Other rail centers were soon established. Thereafter, thousands of animals were moved along the various cattle trails which led to these shipping points. The famous Chisolm trail led from South Texas north to Abilene, Kansas or Ogallala, Nebraska.
Where did the cattle go on the Great Western Trail?
Most of the cattle along the trail were shipped out of Dodge City, Kansas along the railroad. However, as cattlemen learned of the great open ranges to the north, many began trailing their herds further into Nebraska, Wyoming, Montana, the Dakotas, and even as far north as Canada.
Where did cattle go on the Shawnee Trail?
The Shawnee Trail went from Fort Worth, Texas to Sedalia, Missouri; the Bozeman Trail from northeastern Colorado to Virginia City, Montana; and the hazardous Goodnight-Loving Trail from west Texas to Denver Colorado and Cheyenne Wyoming. As many as 2,500 cattle in a drive would spend two to four months traveling to their destination.