SOUTHERN ROOTS, WESTERN FOUNDATIONS: THE PECULIAR INSTITUTION AND THE LIVESTOCK INDUSTRY ON THE NORTHWESTERN FRONTIER OF TEXAS, 1846-1864 Deborah Marie Liles Dissertation Prepared for the Degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY UNIVERSITY OF NORTH TEXAS August 2013 APPROVED: Richard B. McCaslin, Major Professor and Chair of the Department of History Randolph B. Campbell, Committee Member J. Todd Moye, Committee Member Aaron W. Navarro, Committee Member Ian F. Finseth, Committee Member Mark Wardell, Dean of the Toulouse Graduate School Liles, Deborah Marie. Southern Roots, Western Foundations: The Peculiar Institution and the Livestock Industry on the Northwestern Frontier of Texas, 1846-1864. Doctor of Philosophy (History), August 2013, 289 pp., 116 tables, 12 illustrations, bibliography, 130 titles. This dissertation challenges Charles W. Ramsdell’s needless war theory, which argued that profitable slavery would not have existed west of the 98th meridian and that slavery would have died a natural death. It uses statistical information that is mined from the county tax records to show how slave-owners on the northwestern frontier of Texas raised livestock rather than market crops, before and during the Civil War. This enterprise was so strong that it not only continued to expand throughout this period, but it also became the foundation for the recovery of the Texas economy after the war. Copyright 2013 by Deborah Marie Liles ii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS It was my intention to study British history when I first came to the University but my very first graduate class was Texas History with Richard B. McCaslin, and I was hooked. His scholarship, encouragement and mentorship are irreplaceable. Randolph B. “Mike” Campbell introduced me to both the history of slavery and to the wealth of information in local archives. I am truly grateful for the privilege to learn from both and for the gift of their time. Elizabeth Hayes Turner and Aaron W. Navarro took the extra time to critique, encourage better scholarship, and deeper interpretation. Andrew J. Torget emphasized how Texas was part of United States, not an island. D. Harland Hagler presented historiography in a way that finally made sense. J. Todd Moye taught me to listen, and F. Todd Smith introduced me to the real Indians of Texas. T. Michael Parrish from Baylor University provided books, articles, sources, and support that were unexpected and appreciated. My office mate and friend Deborah Kilgore listened, encouraged, praised, and supported much more than I deserved. The library staff in microforms at UNT and so many county employees unselfishly gave their time to help me locate records. All of these people contributed to this project. Through it all my friends and family, Kelly, Chase, Noah, Madden, and Rosemarie, all took a back seat, and for that I am both sorry and grateful. Thank you for all the support and words of encouragement; I could not have accomplished this without you. To my husband Mike, whose love, patience, support, and sense of humor is the rock of my world, this is for you. iii TABLE OF CONTENTS Page LIST OF TABLES ............................................................................................................ v LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS .............................................................................................. xi CHAPTER 1. INTRODUCTION ....................................................................................... 1 CHAPTER 2. THE NORTHWESTERN FRONTIER, 1849-1855: UNCONTESTED GROUND............................................................................................................ 25 CHAPTER 3. NORTHWESTERN TEXAS: ON THE CUSP OF THEPECULIAR INSTITUTION AND IN THE MIDST OF THE CATTLE FRONTIER .................... 50 CHAPTER 4. STEPHENS COUNTY: ON THE FRONTIER, BUT IN THE HEART OF CATTLE COUNTRY ........................................................................................... 66 CHAPTER 5. MONTAGUE COUNTY: THE REFUGE, AND THE ENTRANCE TO TRAILS NORTH ................................................................................................. 96 CHAPTER 6. CLAY COUNTY: NO MAN’S LAND ....................................................... 119 CHAPTER 7. WISE COUNTY: THE LAND OF OPPORTUNITY ................................ 134 CHAPTER 8. DENTON COUNTY: WHERE FORTUNES ROAMED .......................... 163 CHAPTER 9. JACK COUNTY: ON THE TRAIL .......................................................... 200 CHAPTER 10. PARKER COUNTY: SLAVERY AND LIVESTOCK ON A POPULOUS FRONTIER ....................................................................................................... 228 CHAPTER 11. CONCLUSION .................................................................................... 264 APPENDIX. RANCHER STATUS IN COUNTIES OF STUDY .................................... 272 BIBLIOGRAPHY ......................................................................................................... 274 iv LIST OF TABLES Page Table. 4.2. Slave-owners with livestock ......................................................................... 70 Table. 4.3. Breakdown of age and gender of slaves in the 1860 census ...................... 71 Table. 4.4. Amount of slaves owned within specified groups ........................................ 71 Table 4.5. Land ownership of slave-owners .................................................................. 72 Table 4.6. Ikard property in Parker and Stephens Counties .......................................... 76 Table 4.7. Population statistics for Stephens County, 1861-1864 ................................. 82 Table 4.8. Break-down of cattle ownership ................................................................... 84 Table 4.9. Average cattle per tax-payer ........................................................................ 84 Table 4.10. Number of slave-owners who own a designated number of cattle ............. 85 Table 4.11. Livestock Ownership among Tax Payers ................................................... 86 Table 4.12. Statistics for slave-owners who owned horses ........................................... 86 Table 4.13. Horses owned by slave-owners .................................................................. 87 Table 4.14. Sheep totals ............................................................................................... 88 Table 5.2. Slave-owners with livestock ........................................................................ 100 Table 5.3. Amount of slaves owned within specified groups ....................................... 102 Table 5.4. Population statistics for Montague County ................................................. 102 Table 5.5. Total taxpayers and livestock in the county ................................................ 104 Table 5.6. Break-down of cattle ownership ................................................................. 105 Table 5.7. Break-down of horse ownership ................................................................. 105 Table 5.8. Break-down of sheep ownership ................................................................ 106 Table 5.9. Average cattle per tax-payer ...................................................................... 106 v Table 5.10. Average horses per person ...................................................................... 107 Table 5.11. Number of slave-owners who own a designated number of cattle ........... 108 Table 5.12. Number of slave-owners who own a designated number of horses ......... 109 Table 5.13. Land ownership of slave-owners .............................................................. 110 Table 5.14. Mabel Gilbert’s property taxes from Clay and Montague Counties ........... 111 Table 5.15. John Brumley’s holdings to 1863, then those of his wife Mary ................. 113 Table 5.16. C.C. and W.W. Quinllin’s tax records ....................................................... 116 Table 6.2. Slave owners who own livestock ................................................................ 121 Table 6.3. Population statistics for Clay County, 1861-1864 ....................................... 122 Table 6.4. Total population and livestock in the county ............................................... 125 Table 6.5. Amount of slaves owned within specified groups ....................................... 128 Table 6.6. Break-down of cattle ownership ................................................................. 129 Table 6.7 Average cattle per tax-payer ....................................................................... 129 Table 6.8. Number of slave-owners who own a designated number of cattle ............. 130 Table 6.9. Number of slave-owners who own a designated number of horses ........... 131 Table 6.10. Percent of horses owned by slave-owners ............................................... 131 Table 6.11. Land ownership of slave-owners .............................................................. 132 Table 7.2. Population statistics for Wise County, 1857-1864 ...................................... 140 Table 7.3. Total taxpayers and livestock in the county ................................................ 141 Table 7.4. Slave-owners who own livestock ................................................................ 142 Table 7.5. Breakdown of age and gender of slaves in the 1860 census ..................... 143 Table 7.6. Amount of slaves owned within specified groups ....................................... 144 Table 7.7. Kenneth Bain’s property taxes ...................................................................