Wednesday, November 2, 2016

Selling Off The Herd...!

There comes a time when even the biggest and best of the cattle business has to call it a day. Pretty sad when a place like this has to sell off all the cows.

1912
XIT Ranch sells its last head of cattle

On this day, the XIT Ranch of Texas, once among the largest ranches in the world, sells its last head of cattle.

Despite the popular image of the cattle rancher as an independent and self-reliant pioneer, big-city capitalists and stockholders owned many of the most important 19th century ranches. The Chicago capitalists behind the XIT—also known as the Capitol Syndicate Ranch—were trying to get rich by catering to the growing American passion for fresh western beef. They received the land in exchange for financing a state capitol building in Texas.

Given the aridity of the region, the Chicago capitalists determined that ranching would be the only profitable use for their new land. They quickly built up a massive but highly efficient cattle-raising operation that stretched over parts of nine Texas counties. At its peak, the XIT had more than 160,000 head of cattle, employed 150 cowboys, and encompassed nearly 3 million acres of the Texas panhandle—an unusually large tract of land even by western standards.

As land prices increased in Texas and cattle prices fell, the owners of the XIT realized they could make more money by selling their land. By 1912, the XIT abandoned ranching altogether with the sale of its last herd of cattle. The corporate managers gradually sold the remainder of their property to farmers and smaller ranchers throughout the first half of the 20th century. By 1950, the once-mighty XIT had control of only 20,000 acres.

Call me crazy, but 20,000 acres still sounds like a lot of land...a LOT! I know I don't want to mow it, that's for sure!

Coffee out on the patio this morning.

9 comments:

linda m said...

I would be happy with 5 acres of land. Not that I want to mow that much grass (I would have to hire someone for that) but just for the privacy. That was one humongous ranch. Raining here all day. Rain, rain go away, Linda's seen too much of you the last few weeks.

Hermit's Baby Sis said...

Bubba - left a message yesterday, but somehow it didn't post. Guess Mama saw it anyway ~
Today's ranch post makes the little 1 acre I bought while in high school look like a speck of dust; but it's paid for and it's mine!

Big hugs ~

Rob said...

The reality of the Texas cattle ranch is not nearly as happy as the one I got from TV & the movies.

Chickenmom said...

Wow! Those herds of cattle must have really been something to see, Mr. Hermit!

HermitJim said...

Hey Linda...
Most of us now days don't want a lot, but 5 acres sounds like it's a good area. Like you said, maybe have someone else mow it.
Thanks for stopping by today!


Hey Sis...
Hope it wasn't anything important. Don't know why it didn't post.
Thanks for coming by this morning, Sis!


Hey Rob...
I reckon the truth lies somewhere between what we see on the media and what was in the imagination. Either way, it must have been a lot of work.
Thanks for the visit this morning!

HermitJim said...

Hey Phyllis...
Bet they seemed to go on forever!
Thanks for coming over this morning!

JO said...

This happened to so many ranches back then. Here in AZ it was the same huge ranches that spanned many towns are now just a remembered thought. Visited one that was established in the 1800 and then it started to sell off to NY realtors and soon was nothing but maybe 50 or so acres too.

57 here right now so it must have been around 50 earlier this morning no wonder I didn't want to get up. Coffee sounds really good right now

Dizzy-Dick said...

I have some land but not nearly as much as in your story, only about 12 acres. Ain't a ranch but my son lives on the back of my place and raises rabbits and calls it the Wabbit Wanch.

HermitJim said...

Hey Jo...
I think that's the way many towns got started. Of course, the government took a lot of the land as well.
Thanks, sweetie, for dropping by today!


Hey Dizzy...
Still a sizeable piece of property, my friend.
I like your son's name for his part!
Thanks for the visit this morning!