Texas Road facts for kids
The Texas Road, also known as the Shawnee Trail, was a very important route for trade and travel. It helped people move to Texas and allowed cattle to be driven north across what was then called Indian Territory (now parts of Oklahoma, Kansas, and Missouri). This trail started during the Mexican–American War when many people were moving to Texas. It stayed important until Oklahoma became a state. The Shawnee Trail was the first and most eastern path used to move Texas Longhorn cattle north. It played a big part in the history of Texas, Oklahoma, Missouri, and Kansas in the mid-1800s.
The Shawnee Trail's Path
The Shawnee Trail was the earliest and most eastern route for moving Texas Longhorn cattle. It was used before and right after the American Civil War. The trail gathered cattle from areas both east and west of its main path. This main path went through cities like Austin, Waco, and Dallas.
It crossed the Red River near a place called Preston. From there, it went north along the eastern side of what is now Oklahoma. Later, the Missouri–Kansas–Texas Railroad followed a similar path. Cattle drivers used a trail that had already been used for a long time by Native Americans for hunting and raiding. Settlers from the Midwest who traveled south called it the Texas Road.
North of Fort Gibson, the cattle trail split into different paths. These paths ended in Missouri cities like St. Louis, Sedalia, Independence, and Kansas City. They also ended in towns in eastern Kansas, such as Baxter Springs. Early cattle drivers called their route the cattle trail, the Sedalia Trail, or the Kansas Trail. It's not clear why some started calling it the Shawnee Trail. The name might have come from a Shawnee village near the Red River crossing or from the Shawnee Hills, which the trail went around before crossing the Canadian River.
The Shawnee Trail started at Colbert's Ferry, Indian Territory, in the south. It crossed through the lands of the Chickasaw, Choctaw, and Cherokee Nations. It ended in Baxter Springs, Kansas, in the north. Later, the Shawnee Trail split further west. The first route was then called the East Shawnee Trail, and the new branch was called the West Shawnee Trail. The East Shawnee Trail followed the Grand River to Fort Gibson. The West Shawnee Trail started in Missouri and went through Fort Wayne before joining the other trail to the Red River. Several rest stops were set up along the road for travelers and their horses. The western branch of the Shawnee Trail remained the main cattle trail from Texas until the Chisholm Trail opened after the Civil War.
History of the Trail's Challenges
Texas cattle herds were moved north on the Shawnee Trail as early as the 1840s. More and more cattle used the route over time. But by 1853, problems started for some of the cattle drivers. In June of that year, 3,000 cattle were being moved through western Missouri. Local farmers blocked their way and forced the drivers to turn back.
This problem happened because the Longhorn cattle carried tiny creatures called ticks. These ticks carried a serious illness that farmers called Texas fever. The Texas cattle were not affected by this disease. However, the ticks they left behind on the ground infected local cattle. This caused many local cattle to die or become too sick to sell.
Some herds managed to get past the blockades. But the anger from farmers grew stronger. In 1855, angry farmers in western and central Missouri formed groups to stop the herds. They even killed any Texas cattle that entered their areas. Farmers in several Missouri counties asked their state government for help. A law was passed that year, banning sick cattle from being brought into or through the state. This law didn't work well because the Longhorns themselves weren't sick. Farmers formed armed groups that turned back some herds, but others still got through. Some cattle drivers took their herds north through eastern Kansas. But there, too, they faced opposition from farmers. These farmers convinced their local government to pass a similar law in 1859.
During the Civil War, the Shawnee Trail was hardly used for moving cattle. However, both the Union and Confederate armies used the road a lot. They moved supplies and troops along it. Union and Confederate forces fought over control of the route. Battles like the Battle of Honey Springs and the Battle of Baxter Springs happened right on the road.
After the war, Texas had too many cattle and not enough places to sell them locally. So, moving cattle north became more important than ever. In the spring of 1866, about 200,000 to 260,000 cattle were sent north. Some herds were forced to turn back, but others made it through. Some were delayed or had to go around the angry farm settlements.
A 16-year-old Texan named James M. Daugherty experienced these troubles. He was moving his herd of 500 steers north when he was attacked in southeastern Kansas. A group of people called Jayhawkers, dressed as hunters, attacked him. They scared his cattle away and killed one of his helpers. (Some stories say they tied Daugherty to a tree and whipped him.) After being freed and burying his helper, Daugherty found about 350 of his cattle. He continued his journey at night, taking a longer route. He successfully sold his steers in Fort Scott and made a profit.
By the first half of 1867, six states had passed laws against moving cattle through them. Texas cattlemen realized they needed a new trail. This new trail would have to go around the farm settlements to avoid the problems with tick fever. In 1867, a young livestock dealer from Illinois named Joseph G. McCoy built market facilities in Abilene, Kansas. This was at the end of the new Chisholm Trail. This new route, located west of the Shawnee Trail, soon started carrying most of the Texas cattle herds. The Shawnee Trail was used less and less for a few years until it was no longer a major cattle route.
The Texas Road eventually became part of U.S. Route 69.
