Joseph G. McCoy and the Chisholm Trail are from Kansas.
You can't write about the history of Dickinson County, Kansas without mentioning Joseph G. McCoy.Joseph G. McCoy came to Kansas in 1867 to make his fortune in the cattle trade after leaving a prosperous farm in Illinois.There were reports of huge herds of cattle in Texas after the Civil War.They couldn't get the cattle to Northern Markets because the eastern trail had been closed because of a disease that killed thousands of domestic cattle.Farmers and ranchers north of Texas convinced the state that longhorns were not allowed to pass.The market for beef was higher in the east because of a scarcity of the product, so the plan was to drive the cattle to a railhead in Kansas and then ship them back east.
The Union Pacific Railway line has a railhead.He searched for an acceptable location to build a stockyard.He was turned down by many cities.He focused on the small community of Abilene after being turned down so many times.He thought it would be a good place to build his stockyards.The town was mostly made up of sod houses and dugouts.There was a problem with using the town for his stockyards.In June 1867, Samuel Crawford, the Governor of Kansas, agreed to allow Texas cattle into the state.The construction of loading pens began within a month.The men were sent to Texas to find struggling herds.
Timothy Hersey was sent by McCoy to survey the Chisholm Trail and build mounds of dirt to mark the trail for drovers.The path was not referred to as the Chisholm Trail at the time.A portion of the trail was once used by Jesse Chisholm as a trade route from the area near Wichita to Oklahoma City.
He built a large hotel for cattle barons and drivers to stay when they arrived in Abilene, as well as the Great Western Stockyards.One of the finest hotels in the west was known as the Drover's Cottage.
The longhorns arrived in Abilene on August 15.35,000 head of cattle arrived before the season ended.The stockyards in Abilene were seen as a great success, and many began to appear in several Kansas towns.There were six major cattle towns of the era.Many Kansas towns shipped cattle as well.The number of cattle was driven up the Chisholm Trail from 1867 to 1871.
The Union Pacific Railway initially agreed to pay five dollars for each car in which cattle were shipped.No physical contract was signed by either party.Over $200,000 was due to McCoy after the second season of the cattle trade.The railway refused to pay due to the fact that the agreement was "improvidently made".After he sued the company for the amount due to him, he wouldn't receive his payment until several years later.
Many buyers from the east were nervous about buying cattle from Abilene because of Texas fever.This problem was solved by McCoy.He wanted to put on a show.Several native plains animals were captured by a band of cowboys.The cowboys went to St. Louis and Chicago to show their skills in riding and roping the animals.Many of the buyers were impressed by this show.Soon after, he invited his buyers to go on a buffalo hunt.He brought the men to his stockyards and praised the thousands of longhorns that were waiting to be sold.The business was booming again after these cattle were bought.
Several other businesses began to be seen throughout the cattle town era.The community had ten boarding houses, eleven saloons, five general stores, and four hotels by 1870.Over three thousand people live in the community, which has grown to accommodate over seventy-five businesses.cowboys and cattle traders were the main source of income for most of these businesses.During the cattle drive season, as many as one thousand cowboys were paid off in a single day, and they spent their money quickly in the many businesses that Abilene had to offer.
The First National Bank is an example of what the economy was like in the area.Many cattlemen were referred to the First National Bank of Kansas City.In the first two months of the bank's existence, $900,000 was passed over the counter.It would be the equivalent of over 15 million dollars today.
In 1872, due to an increase in domestic livestock deaths related to Texas Fever and an ever growing problem with cowboys, it was necessary for ranchers to find new railheads to ship their cattle from.The inhabitants of Dickinson County will no longer submit to the evils of the trade and so we the undersigned request all who have contemplated driving cattle to Abilene to seek some other point for shipment.
He was bitter about what had happened in Abilene.Many of the leading hotels and business houses in the area were either closed or taken down and moved to other points.Property became worthless.The inhabitants passed their time sadly contemplating their ruin while the luxuriant sunflower flourished in the main streets.The political ring had both loud and deep curses.The village assumed a deserted appearance.