The Great Western Cattle Trail. Home on the Range: Cattle Trail Through
Comanche Indian Territory.
Driving thru history… Home on the Range. The cowboy has assumed a prominent role in the legend of the West. There are many cattle trails through Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas and points north. The cattle trails that went through the heart of Indian Territory left a major impact on the Indians living there. The Chisholm Trail is one of the best known. Chisholm was one of the first to become a regular and respected trader with the Comanches. He worked on behalf of by Sam Houston to negotiate with the Comanches and was a trading representative between the Eastern Tribes and the Comanches. His land was a cattle ranch and he helped drive some cattle for local trading. By 1867 cattle were being moved down a trail bearing his name, not because he was renowned for cattle driving, but because he had regularized the route in his trading. Other names like Goodnight & Loving, Shanghai Pierce and more are associated with large cattle herds. Eastern Trail and Abilene Trail are other familiar names. In 1874 Captain John Lytle, herded cattle from Texas to Nebraska and this became known as the Western Cattle Trail. Listen to local Robert Ake tell the story. The Western Trail, later referred to as the Great Western Cattle Trail, has been marked from Texas to Canada by Rotary International, to include some feeder trails. WWHA has located and marked the exact location of many of the monuments placed by Rotary. We have re-painted many of those that have fallen into disrepair or obscurity. Today there is controversy by trail enthusiasts and researchers regarding the location, name and marking of the GWT. We do not intend to enter the debate. This is the story of the quest for and maintenance of the Great Western Trail markers. We have only just begun.