The Texas Gulf Historical and Biographical Record, Volume 5, Number 1, November 1969 Page: 8
49 p. : ill. ; 24 cm.View a full description of this periodical.
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THE UNSUNG OPELOUSAS TRAIL
by
Ruth Garrison Scurlock
Mrs. Scurlock, a descendant of forefront Texas pioneers, has a
double wealth of Texas Gulf genealogical background. Her maternal
great-great-grandfather, Moses Griffin, and paternal great grandfather,
William Mitchell Garrison, both settled in Bell County in 1834 and
both were members of Sam Houston's Rangers. Her grandfather John
Garrison married Tyler County's Spice Matilda Belt, daughter of
Sam Belt (famous scout for Texas colonists and close friend of Ben
Milam) and Helen Taylor Belt (sister of General Zachary Taylor).
Fort Little River in Bell County, where the Santa Fe Expedition
once spent a night, was formerly named Fort Griffin, for Mrs. Scur-
lock's great-grandfather Moses. Another great-grandfather, Thomas
Duncan, of Bell County, built his home there in 1841; the home still
stands on property the family still owns.
Her interest in Texas cattle history stems from the fact that both
sides of her family were cattle raisers, that she grew up on a diet of
tales told around winter fires by trail-riding cattlemen, and that she
herself rode after cattle with her father, and even had her own small
herd and brand.
The Chisholm, Dodge, Western, and other cattle trails leading to markets
in the Midwest have been immortalized in legend, literature and song, but very
little is ever heard of the Opelousas Trail over which hundreds of thousands of
cattle moved through the coastal plains of Texas to market in New Orleans.
This trail began at Goliad and moved along the upper edge of the coastal plain,
crossing the Trinity at Liberty, the Brazos near Navasota, the Neches at
Beaumont, and the Sabine above Orange. It curved across upper Louisiana to
avoid as many marshes as possible, and eventually led to the Mississippi River.
Here the herds were ferried across to the markets in New Orleans.
Like all cattle trails the Opelousas Trail had branches, used for various
reasons, including safety and weather conditions. The main names of these
branches were the LaBahia, Atacosita, and Contraband Trails. Shorter trails
led into these main routes, and for the 100 years between 1750 and 1850 they
served the great cattle-growing sections of the Texas Gulf coast, an empire
which stretched from the Rio Grande to the Sabine, and then, as today, pro-
duced more cattle than any other part of Texas.
Cattle raising is the oldest industry in Texas and started with the advent
of the Spanish explorers and missionaries. In the early 18th century the first
missions had small herds of cattle, and as time passed some of the animals
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Texas Gulf Historical Society. The Texas Gulf Historical and Biographical Record, Volume 5, Number 1, November 1969, periodical, November 1969; Beaumont, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth1433638/m1/12/: accessed August 15, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; crediting Texas Gulf Historical Society.