Necessity gave birth to the frontier battalion.  They were to protect settlers from marauding Indians and outlaws.  Living conditions on the vast arid plains, scouting trips, encounters with violence and long watches over dangerous captives made a TEXAS RANGERS'  life hard.  Retreat in time to the CAMP ROBERTS experience.

By 1875 and the ten years following, cattle replaced buffalo herds and ranches popped up on the Llano Estacado like wild flowers after a spring rain.  In the 1880's, an abundance of free grass and increasing cattle prices caused a rush for West Texas Land. The Dockum ranch, the Espuela and Kentucky Cattle Raising Companies, the McNeilL and Swenson ranches impacted the life and times in Crosby County.  Spend an afternoon absorbing facts about the EARLY RANCHING ERA.

Ranch work provided a young cowboy a measure of independence.  His sole possessions were worn or carried in his bed roll.  Mosey through a COWBOY'S LIFE 100 years ago.

TEN TO ONE:  LOOKING FOR A WIFE  Women were a luxury in the settlement of West Texas.  Ten men to one woman was the ratio of the sexes.  Many men married back east and came west with their new brides to carve out a life in a hostile world.   However, there was a phenomena, dubbed MAIL ORDER BRIDES, for men who did not pursue the accepted means of selecting a wife.