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History of Pride
Learn how the Texas Longhorn became a vital thread in the rich fabric of Texas history and a living symbol of Texas Pride today.
We at the Texas Longhorn Cattle Ranch applaud the determination, dedication and talent exhibited by the young students who represent the best of the best. The Texas Longhorn Cattle Ranch is proud to donate a portion of each sale to the University of Texas to support these leaders of tomorrow.
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The Texas Longhorn was born from mother-nature but out of necessity. Texas Longhorns are not an engineered breed of cattle as is the case with many contemporary breeds. They were originally brought into the Americas by the Spanish in the late 1400's and early 1500's but did not originate from Spanish stock.
These cattle were allowed to roam free on the ranges that were later to become The Republic of Texas in 1836 and part of the United States of America.
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In the early 1800's, these feral “longhorned” cattle could be found throughout much of current day Texas. There was a great demand for cattle in California during the Gold Rush days of the late 1840's and early 1850's and the longhorns were driven there by the thousands to meet this demand. This ended with the onset of The Civil War as well the end of the California Gold Rush. As the economic conditions worsened in Texas many resourceful Texans began to round up the free range cattle and drive them north to Kansas and other rail heads to be shipped to the east coast where beef was in high demand. Many famous cattle trails
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were established as a result of this Texas initiative, such as the Chisholm Trail and the Goodnight-Loving Trail. The late 1800's spelled the end of free range cattle and Texans began establishing very large ranches in order to capture and contain the longhorns.
The early 20th century brought an ever increasing demand for beef production and the Texas Longhorn was soon being replaced with the “engineered” European breeds that produced more fat for tallow production and more beef for the consumer. By the 1920's, longhorn cattle were becoming a rare commodity.
The U.S. government and a select group of longhorn breeders and ranchers recognized this potential loss of genetic history and a part of American history and formed a group to preserve the longhorn from extinction.
A new assembled herd was established at the Wichita Wildlife Refuge in southwestern Oklahoma through the efforts of private ranchers and the government. The seven herds or “families” of longhorns that were assembled constitute the basis for our modern longhorn cattle. These are the Wichita Refuge, Butler, Marks, Peeler, Phillips, Wright, and Yates genetic lines.
In 1964, the Texas Longhorn Breeders Association of America (TLBAA) was founded, and a registration process was established. Thus, Texas Longhorns became a registered breed.
The modern Texas Longhorn is a genetic masterpiece that represents the best of traits. It is gentle but impressive, lean of fat but big in stature, a doting mother that instills confidence in her young, a sire that can be shy but demands attention, is quiet of nature but striking of color, adaptable and resilient by nature. These are the same inbred traits that we offer in the
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genetic history of TEXAS PRIDE. These same traits are also reflected in today's contemporary Texan, their genetic heritage, and their families.
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