The Taft Ranch, A Texas Principality. By A. Ray Stephens. With introduction by Joe B. Frantz. Austin (University of Texas Press), 1964. Pp. xi+232. Illustrations, epilogue, appendices, bibliography, index. $6.00.
Surely, every great ranch of the South Texas coastal plain, the mother lode of the Texas longhorn, deserves a history. Unfortunately, only two ranches of that section of Texas have been given such treatment: the fabulous King Ranch, great in its own right, but greater even because it survived the invasion of the cotton patch, beautifully told by Tom Lea; and the Pierce spread, interestingly important because of its vast operation, and made colorful by Chris Emmett, who held himself in restraint to tell the truth, but not the whole truth about Shanghai Pierce.
Now comes the third report on a Coastal Bend empire. It is hoped there will be others to complete the great roundup of ranch histories to reveal the full impact this section had on the early-day cattle industry and the development of Texas.
The Taft Ranch, originally written as a Ph.D. dissertation by Dr. A. Ray Stephens, a full length history of a South Texas ranch, adds to a treasury of knowledge we have of the cattle empire of Texas between 1880 and 1930—a period in which Cattle Kings roamed the range. This is a story of how the Coleman-Fulton Pasture Company, popularly known after 1908 as the Taft Ranch, faced the three greatest hazards to ranching: drought, markets, and bankers. The records of this company form the main structure of this book. A significant event on the national scene was the visit of President William Howard Taft to La Quinta, the palacial ranch headquarters of the Taft Ranch in 1909, as guest of his brother, Charles P. Taft of Ohio, the principal owner.
Significantly, the Taft Ranch, finally conquered by its bankers, survived the other two hazards and played a most active role in the development of the South Texas coastal plains in the early years of the twentieth century. Property that was carried on the ledger in 1880 at $2.34 per acre was finally sold in the 1920's for $80 to $100 an acre for improved farms, and $35 an acre for undeveloped pastures, making the bankers live happily there-after. More important is the fact that this book will insure for the Taft Ranch its deservedly prominent position in Texas history.
James T. Padgitt, Southwestern Historical Quarterly, July 1966 - April, 1967
Surely, every great ranch of the South Texas coastal plain, the mother lode of the Texas longhorn, deserves a history. Unfortunately, only two ranches of that section of Texas have been given such treatment: the fabulous King Ranch, great in its own right, but greater even because it survived the invasion of the cotton patch, beautifully told by Tom Lea; and the Pierce spread, interestingly important because of its vast operation, and made colorful by Chris Emmett, who held himself in restraint to tell the truth, but not the whole truth about Shanghai Pierce.
Now comes the third report on a Coastal Bend empire. It is hoped there will be others to complete the great roundup of ranch histories to reveal the full impact this section had on the early-day cattle industry and the development of Texas.
The Taft Ranch, originally written as a Ph.D. dissertation by Dr. A. Ray Stephens, a full length history of a South Texas ranch, adds to a treasury of knowledge we have of the cattle empire of Texas between 1880 and 1930—a period in which Cattle Kings roamed the range. This is a story of how the Coleman-Fulton Pasture Company, popularly known after 1908 as the Taft Ranch, faced the three greatest hazards to ranching: drought, markets, and bankers. The records of this company form the main structure of this book. A significant event on the national scene was the visit of President William Howard Taft to La Quinta, the palacial ranch headquarters of the Taft Ranch in 1909, as guest of his brother, Charles P. Taft of Ohio, the principal owner.
Significantly, the Taft Ranch, finally conquered by its bankers, survived the other two hazards and played a most active role in the development of the South Texas coastal plains in the early years of the twentieth century. Property that was carried on the ledger in 1880 at $2.34 per acre was finally sold in the 1920's for $80 to $100 an acre for improved farms, and $35 an acre for undeveloped pastures, making the bankers live happily there-after. More important is the fact that this book will insure for the Taft Ranch its deservedly prominent position in Texas history.
James T. Padgitt, Southwestern Historical Quarterly, July 1966 - April, 1967
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