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Turning
Points in Texas History --
The Saving of a Legend
Julie Pack
Senior Division
Historical Paper
The Texas Longhorn is the
symbol of the old west, spirit of freedom, rugged,
independent and probably the most recognizable breed of
cattle in the United States, not to mention cattle in
Canada, Australia, New Zealand and possibly China. In the
1860’s the Texas census recorded 4,000,000 head of cattle in
Texas, but only 600,000 people (TLBAA 1998, 7). The Longhorn
has not always been so plentiful though. In the late fifties
the breed was all but extinct. In fact the Longhorn had come
closer to extinction than either the buffalo or the whooping
crane (TLBAA 1998, 8). This very integral part of history
was being replaced. With the introduction of new meatier
breeds from Europe and the decline of the cattle trails, the
Longhorn was no longer needed as the major beef breed in the
U.S. With its numbers decimated and its popularity rapidly
diminishing, six dedicated Texas ranchers and the U. S.
Parks and Wildlife Department decided to try and save what
was left of these majestic and historic animals. Without
these seven genetic families it is not only possible, but
also very probable that the Texas Longhorn would not exist
today. The seven genetic families are those of the Wichita
Mountains Wildlife Refuge in Cache, OK, Milby Butler, Jack
Phillips, M.P. Wright, Graves Peeler, “Cap” Yates and Emil
Marks. Each of these lines of cattle and the philosophies
and methods of the men that owned and bred them were
different, but these men and the men of the Wildlife Refuge
all loved the Texas Longhorn and knew that the breed had
more to offer and deserved more than to fade away like the
trails that made them famous.
The first family of cattle is that of the Wildlife Refuge or
WR. Established in 1927 the WR herd is of special importance
to history because only once has the Federal Government
actively stepped in to conserve a breed of domesticated
animal on public lands at public expense (Sponenberg and
Christman 1996, 2). This one time, fearing the loss of the
history and heritage the Longhorn represented, the
government provided $3,000 for the purchase of a herd of
Longhorn cattle. The task of finding these cattle fell on
the shoulders of Mr. Will C. Barnes, who found it necessary
to travel almost 5,000 miles across south Texas and Mexico
to find the twenty cows, four calves and three bulls with
which to develop a herd that was the remnants of some
4,000,000 cattle living in the U.S. only sixty years before.
These animals were then blood typed to insure that no
outside blood was present in the cattle. Unfortunately, the
largest of the three bulls showed a taint of Brahman blood,
so he and his progeny had to be culled (Recollections of a
Refuge Man 1985, 47). Later, the other two bulls also had to
be culled. After this another bull was found and purchased
(Recollections of a Refuge Man 1985, 48). Today the WR herd
is considered the “purest” herd, and WR branded animals
demand premium prices (Sponenberg 1996, 14).
The next herd is that of Milby Butler. Butler started out
raising registered Brahman cattle. When his son Henry left
to serve in the military, he left his Longhorns to his
father who then developed a love for them (The Seven
Families 1990, 24). A typical Butler Longhorn has large
horns and is of good frame. They are not the tallest or
largest of the seven families, but they are larger than some
of the others. Many are light with dark points, but the
color is widely varied (The Seven Families 1990, 25). Many
of his original cattle included duns from the gulf coast and
white cattle from east Texas (Sponenberg 1996, 12). In 1923,
Butler decided to keep his Longhorns separated from his
other types of cattle. Over the years, he added good cattle
when he could find them. Eventually, Butler had a herd of up
to 600 head (Sponenberg 1996, 12). Many present day herds
carry the Butler bloodline through their herd sires that may
trace their heritage back to Classic. Classic was a large
white bull with red ears, nice horns and good conformation
(Classic 1999, 1). Syndicated for one million dollars in
1983, Classic is a good example of what Butler’s cattle
looked like (The Seven Families 1990, 25). Another good
Butler bull was Monarch 103, who also was white with red
ears. He had good horns, but his conformation was not as
good as some other Butler bulls (Monarch 1999, 1). Above
all, the most enduring Longhorn legacy Butler left us was
just that--long horns. Today, the name Butler is synonymous
with long horns.
The Jack Phillips line of Texas Longhorns began in the early
1930’s (Sponenberg 1996, 13). Phillips lived in West
Colombia, Texas. His grandfather had raised Texas Longhorns,
and Phillips decided to follow in his footsteps. By the time
the Texas Longhorn Breeders Association of America, or TLBAA,
had been founded, Phillips had already been selectively
breeding and raising Texas Longhorns for thirty years. In an
interview with a writer from the Texas Longhorn Journal,
Phillips tells what we wanted in his cattle.
I wanted a long-bodied, long-headed cow with a high tailhead,
and a tail with a heavy brush that either brushed the ground
or was close to it. I also looked for old Texas-twisty
horns. I didn’t like too many of them with the horns that
came out and went straight up. As for the bulls, I liked a
long-bodied long-legged bull with a heavy forequarter and a
light rear, with horns coming out straight from his head,
forward, then up. We didn’t have any of those tremendous,
lateral-horned bulls in those days, so far as I can recall.
They were all the Mexican fighting bull type. (The Seven
Families 1990, 18)
Texas Ranger JP was the most famous Phillips bull and one of
the most famous Longhorns ever. He was a red and white
speckled bull with a red head and neck. Texas Ranger JP was
also tall and well muscled with moderate horns (Texas Ranger
JP 1999, 1). He was produced through the selective breeding
program run by Phillips (The Seven Families 1990, 19).
Although dead for 19 years, Texas Ranger JP is still
producing offspring through artificial insemination
techniques.
M. P. Wright came from an old pioneer ranching family in
south Texas (Sizemore 1982, 54). When he was young, Wright
operated a slaughterhouse to help support his family. When
people brought their cattle to be slaughtered, he would
single out and save the Longhorns. In this way, he procured
his first one hundred Longhorns in the early twenties. Along
with saving his Longhorns, Wright was an avid
conservationist, and by the 1960’s his wildlife preserve was
the winter home to over forty types of birds. Wright’s
Longhorns were noted for their wide range of color, good
frames and large horns (Sizemore 1982, 54). Wright’s steers
were known to have hornspans over six feet tip to tip.
Today, the Wright bloodline is known as one of the oldest
and purest lines in existence (McGinnis 1984, 16).
The fifth family is that named for Graves Peeler. Peeler’s
father, Tom, had raised Longhorns and instilled in Peeler
the belief that there was not any other kind of cattle worth
owning (Stiles and Searle 1999, 1). As he got older, Peeler
joined the Texas Rangers and went on to be an inspector for
the Texas and Southwest Cattle Raisers Association. In 1931,
Peeler began to gather his herd. He helped in the gathering
of the WR herd, and from the cattle gathered he kept back
for himself ten cows and a bull. Peeler selected his cows
for size, survivability and mothering ability (Stiles and
Searle 1999, 1). If a cow on Peeler’s ranch did not have a
calf, she did not stay long. Peeler also liked for his
cattle to have some fight in them. Peeler’s cattle reflected
the characteristics of Peeler himself more than any other
line reflected its founder (Stiles and Searle 1999, 2).
Peeler’s efforts to preserve the breed at a time when
extinction was imminent is something for which all
present-day breeders should be extremely thankful (The Seven
Families 1990, 28).
The Yates bloodline was named for I. G. “Cap” Yates. Yates
was eighty-two at the time of his death in 1968. When he
died, Yates had over 1,000 head of cattle. Throughout his
life he held many titles. Bronc–buster, oilman, ranch
foreman, livestock buyer and loan appraiser are just a few,
but his most important title is that of conservationist
(Johnson 1984, 18). By 1926, Yates must have envisioned
saving the “true” Texas Longhorn. In the 1930’s Yates also
started preserving and caring for wild game such as buffalo,
deer, antelope, elk, quail and chukka partridges (Johnson
1985, 35). In the 1950’s Yates started building up his herd
(Johnson 1985, 35). Yates looked for hardy tough animals
with twisty horns that were generally beefier and larger
than other Longhorns (Sponenberg 1996, 13). Color was not
important to Yates; however, he valued purity in his strain.
He also looked for “old-type” Longhorns. Although straight
Yates cattle are increasingly hard to find, they are an
asset to anyone who chooses to use them in their breeding
program today.
The final family is the Marks line of cattle. This bloodline
was named after Emil H. Marks (McGinnis 1984, 16). Marks
started raising Longhorns in the early 1900’s (Sponenberg
1996, 12). Almost anyone would be thrilled to have one good
Marks cow, but there are very few to be found. Marks valued
the traditional functionality of the Texas Longhorn. In
fact, Marks started raising Texas Longhorns because in his
mind Longhorns were “simply better” and more productive than
other types of cattle (Sponenberg 1996, 12). Some problems
can occur when a breed has a limited gene pool. To help
avoid some of these problems, Marks used bulls from other
bloodlines. In 1967 he used a WR bull, and later on he
purchased and used a Butler bull (Sponenberg 1996, 13).
Marks, like the other breeders, had the foresight to save
this beautiful, historic animal.
Today, the Longhorn is flourishing. The threat of extinction
is no longer looming on the horizon. Also, the Longhorn is
finding new markets in which to compete. Many rodeos buy
Longhorn roping stock for their superior horn and lower
weight. More recently, a grass fed Longhorn steer has been
shown to have only one gram of fat in a four ounce
tenderloin (Hunter 1997, 77). Longhorn crossbreeds are also
sought after for their beef. The Longhorn is even being
utilized as one-fourth of a new breed of cattle that will
benefit from the Longhorns’ lean beef and its calving ease.
All these things and more would have been lost with the
coming of fatter breeds if not for the work of the seven
genetic families. The true turning point for the Longhorn as
a breed and the Longhorn as a symbol came in 1964 with the
founding of the Texas Longhorn Breeders Association of
America, the first Texas Longhorn registry. As we move into
a new century and millenium, it is comforting to know the
Longhorn, which was on the brink of extinction, is now a
flourishing and appreciated breed. “Because of the
Longhorn’s past as well as the contributions it can still
make, it is fortunate that a few farghsighted men rescued it
from extinction (Worcester 1987, 94).”
Works Cited
Primary Sources
Classic. Accessed 2 December 1999. Available from
http://www.longhornsdowneast.com/FamousNames/Classic.html.
This site contains a picture of the Butler Bull Classic.
Monarch 103. Accessed 2 December 1999. Available from
http://www.longhornsdowneast.com/FamousNames/Monarch.html.
The Butler Bull Monarch 103 can be observed at this site.
Texas Ranger JP. Accessed 2 December 1999. Available from
http://www.longhornsdowneast.com/FamousNames/Ranger.html.
The most famous Phillips bull, Texas Ranger JP, has a
picture posted at this site.
Secondary Sources
Dickinson, Darol. The Seven Families of Longhorns. Accessed
2 December 1999.
Available from http://www.itla/longhorn/sevet.html.
This piece gave me good insight into the Texas Longhorn
breed as its numbers and popularity increase in the 1990’s.
Fowler, Stewart H., Ph.D. Texas Longhorn: Survivor of the
Past - Bright Promise for the Future.
Accessed 1 December 1999. Available from
http://www.ansi.okstate.edu/Breeds/Cattle/TEXASLH/index.html.
This article showed me the genetic value of the Texas
Longhorn.
Hoyt, Alan M. “William Earl Drummond: Father of the WR
Herd.” Texas Longhorn Scene
(February 1986) : 18-20.
This article told the story of the gathering of the WR herd
and also tells some stories from Drummond’s days as a park
ranger. I got a good description of WR cattle from this
article.
Hunter, Carolyn. “The Texas Longhorn Beef Market-Springerhill
Ranch Texas Longhorn Beef
‘From My Range to Yours.’ ” 1997 TLBAA Breeders Handbook
(July 1997) : 77
The article gave information on the leanness and
marketability of Longhorn beef.
Jonson, Jeanie. “Yates Texas Longhorns: Part I-Cap Yates His
Early Years: 1886-1926.” The
Texas Longhorn Scene (December 1984) : 18.
From this article I learned why and how Yates acquired his
longhorns.
Jonson, Jeanie. “Yates Texas Longhorns: Part II-Cap Yates
His Later Years: 1926-1968” The
Texas Longhorn Scene (January 1985) : 34.
In this half of the Cap Yates story, I read about his life
from 1926 to his death. I also read about Yates’ most
notable and productive Longhorn years.
McGinnis, Jackie. “Bloodline Legacies.” The Texas Longhorn
Journal
(November/December1984) 14.
This article discusses all seven bloodlines and gives a
description of each.
Sizemor, Deborah. “M.P. Wright Jr.-protector of the Longhorn
legacy.” Texas Longhorn Scene
(December 1982) 54-55.
This article gave me some good background information on the
Wright line of Texas Longhorn cattle.
Sponenberg, Phillip D., Ph.D. and Carolyn Christman. The
Rise and Fall and Rise of a Great
American Breed: The Texas Longhorn. Accessed on 2 December
1999. Available from
http://www.longhornsdowneast.com/InfoTexts/Rise%26Fall.html.
This article gave me information on the WR herd and about
the longhorn at the turn of the century.
Sponenberg, Phillip D., Ph.D. “Texas Longhorn Bloodlines:
Foundations of the Present Breed.”
TLBAA Breeders Handbook (1996): 12-14.
This article gave excellent background information as well
as detailed descriptions of the individual bloodlines.
Stiles, Leonard and Charles B. Searle. The Peeler Bloodline.
Accessed 2 December 1999.
Available from http://www.longhornsdowneast.com/InfoTexts/
Peeler.html.
This article gave various background information and
descriptions of Peeler’s cattle.
Worcester, Don Emmet. The Texas Longhorn, Relic of the past
asset for the future.
College Station: Texas A&M University Press, 1987.
This chapter gave good information on the modern Texas
Longhorn.
“Recollections of a Refuge Man. What was it like on the
Wichita Refuge in the early days of the Longhorn herd?
Here’s someone who knows.” Texas Longhorn Journal
(July/August 1985): 18.
This was an interview with A.A. McCutchen about early WR
Longhorns.
“The Seven Families of Texas Longhorns: Part One.” The Texas
Longhorn Scene (January
1990) : 14-19.
This gave a comprehensive look at the WR, Yates, Phillips,
and Marks lines of cattle.
“The Seven Families of Texas Longhorns: Part Two.” The Texas
Longhorn Scene
(February/March 1990) : 24-29.
This gave a comprehensive look at the Butler, Wright and
Peeler families of Texas Longhorn cattle.
Texas Longhorn Breeders Association of America (TLBAA).
Texas Longhorn Cookbook and
Campfire Tales. Ft. Worth: Cookbook Resources, 1998.
The introduction to this cookbook had interesting background
information on the Texas Longhorn.
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