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Tracing the struggles of incipient criminal justice in the Southwest through an engaging progression of outlaws and lawmen, plus a host of colorful frontier trial lawyers and judges, Neal reveals how law and society matured together.

On September 5, 1907, after Farley Sayers has been accused of stealing Burnett's cattle in King County but before an indictment is returned, one of Burnett's 6666 cowboys, Sam Graves, shoots unarmed Sayers in the back. Sayers survives . . .Read more Look inside

"Cattle baron J. J. McAdams shot and killed his brother, Sam McAdams, during an open range cattle roundup in King County, Texas, on July 25, 1889. He hired the best trial lawyers in West Texas -- Temple Houston and J. J. Fires ". . . Read more Look inside

The Society had its beginnings at the A&M-Texas football game in 1909. The announced purpose of the society was to collect and make known to the public songs and ballads, superstitions, signs and omens, cures and peculiar customs, legends, dialects, games, plays, and dances, and riddles and proverbs. Found Inside: Lost Lead Mine on the Brazos, King County --- L. D. Bertillion

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DeArment has tracked down stories of gunmen from throughout the West—characters you won’t find in any of today’s western history encyclopedias but whose careers are colorfully described here.

"Burnett left his Fort Worth home to spend a week at his King County Ranch. On May 21 a farmer named George rode twenty miles to warn Burnet that Sayers was waving a gun around and voicing renewed threats against the cattleman's life. Two days later . . ." Read more Look inside

"This gave him an opportunity to find and study the best grazing areas in the Southwest. When he decided to locate permanently, he picked a spot which later comprised parts of Dickens  and King counties, on the headwaters of" . . . Read more

The Moorhouse brothers are known as Cowboys, with a capital C. Tom, John, Ed and Bob are sons of of the late Togo Moorhouse, widely known rancher and and cattle buyer. They have deep roots in the business , their grandfather having run cattle in the Indian Nations before moving to King County, Texas. Though the brothers still cling to many time - honored ways and do not consider themselves innovators . . . Read more

J. W. Williams' classic survey of the big ranches of the Southwest reaches deep into the stories of key players in American ranching history. "Jim Gibson, now a prosperous farmer and land owner remembers well the day when their old "8" brand was burned into the hides of many thousands of King County Cattle. The ranch was sold to Burk Burnett in 1900 and with the change of ownership, his famous 6666 brand became one of the great symbols of central west Texas. " . . . Read more Look inside

Matthew 'Bones' Hooks was a true pioneer who not only built a town, schools, and churches, but also broke down racial barriers as one of the first black cowboys to work alongside whites as a ranch hand. Found inside: "He later joined cattle drives to Fort Worth and Kansas. He followed that up as manager of the Turkey Track Division of the Matador Ranch in King and Motley counties.  " Read more  . . . for more like this please see Black Texans in History

by J. Frank Dobie

Here are observations and speculations, legends and yarns, even gossip about the habits and dispositions of these extraordinary creatures—rattlesnakes.

"Dean of all the rattlesnake - smellers here on the Paisano front gallery, as well as elsewhere, is Charles Deaton of Dumont, Texas. He does not define " authority , ” but says that an authority once estimated that there were three thousand ... " Read more

A crack shot, expert skinner and tanner, seamstress, sculptor, and later writer—a list that only hints at her intelligence and abilities—Ella Elgar Bird Dumont was one of those remarkable women who helped tame the Texas frontier. First married at sixteen to a Texas Ranger, she followed her husband to Comanche Indian country in King County, where they lived in a tepee while participating in the final slaughter of the buffalo. Living off the land . . . Read more Look inside

King County: Windmills & Barbed Wire

History and photographs of King County, Texas by  King County Historical Society

L . H . “ Leander ” Criswell was the postmaster of Dumont, Texas , for twenty-three years . He also was the first journalist of record in the Criswell family , serving as a correspondent for the Post City Post in Garza County for a dozen or more ... Read more

Whether you no longer have your own copy or want to surprise someone with a unique gift, the memories in this yearbook are sure to make someone smile! All the pages and images are reproduced as-is, which means your copy may show handwriting or effects of aging, and that certain pages, images, or other content may be omitted, missing, or obscured. Don't miss out! Bring home a piece of your history.. . . Read More

The Pitchfork Land and Cattle Company of West Texas had already established a reputation for the high quality of its cattle and horses when D and Mamie Burns arrived on the ranch in 1942. D became the fifth manager of the ranch’s vast holdings, and Mamie took over management of the ranch’s Big House, including the feeding and entertaining of many guests who arrived there to conduct business or simply unwind . . . Read more

"You can see that when you pull into the little town of Guthrie, 50 miles south of Dumas, across some of the most drought-stricken land in all of Texas. If you had driven through these parched lands just a few years ago, you would have seen something very different ... Read more Look inside

"At the 6666 Ranch in Guthrie, Texas, McBain swooned at the sight of Carl 'Bigun' Bradley, a foreman, and hired him on the spot. As the first cowboy Marlboro Man, Bradley earned less than $10,000 a year, never gave up cowboying and later ... " Read more Look inside

by Bev Melban

The life of Malcom McWilliams had to be written in a book. Shot But Taking 40 Years to Die will only describe part of what this Man lived through. Malcom went to school in Finney and Paducah Texas. Then Maurine and Ollis moved to Dumas Texas when Malcom was about 10 and he went to school there until about age 17 . . . Read more Look inside

"... east (toward your very attractive King County Courthouse)—where do I find a hamburger in Guthrie, Texas?” “You don't,” the young woman stated simply. “So, the once upon a time convenience store is still closed and does not offer a burger? " ... Read more Look inside

Letters of brothers Eugene F. Williams and J. Gates Williams and of Virgil V. Parr illuminate the great challenges faced by the ranch owners and manager at a time when the rest of the country was trying to recover from the Great Depression and severe drought  . . . Read more

Showcases the beautiful, almost mystical photos taken by the vice president and general manager of the historic Pitchfork Ranch in Guthrie, Texas. Moorhouse's photographic work reflects his trademark style and traditional western subjects that create the illusion of scenes from a bygone era . . .Read more

6666: Portrait of a Texas Ranch

The Four Sixes is not a relic, showpiece, or preserve. It’s a working cattle ranch, some 290,000 acres of West Texas prairie carefully used. Here, men still earn their livelihoods on horseback, not out of blind adherence to tradition, but out of necessity.

The open range was fenced in long ago, and cattle now ride to market in eighteen-wheel trucks, but ranching remains a proud way of life for many Texans. This volume captures the best of that life in lovely watercolor paintings and an inviting text that traces the history and present-day operations of twelve prominent ranches with deep roots in Texas history.

Found inside: "When King County needed a new sheriff, George sensed the call and was elected sheriff in 1928, but he continued his cowboying duties" ... Read more

King County Treasures