That hot summer day in June the Texas town of San Antonio was humming like a drowsy beehive. The year 1871 appeared destined to be the greatest for cattle-drives north since the first one inaugurated by Jesse Chisholm in 1868. During the Civil War cattle had multiplied on the vast Texas ranges by the hundreds of thousands. There was no market. Ranches were few and far between, and the inhabitants very poor. Chisholm conceived the daring idea of driving a herd north to find a market. Despite the interminable distance, the ...
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That hot summer day in June the Texas town of San Antonio was humming like a drowsy beehive. The year 1871 appeared destined to be the greatest for cattle-drives north since the first one inaugurated by Jesse Chisholm in 1868. During the Civil War cattle had multiplied on the vast Texas ranges by the hundreds of thousands. There was no market. Ranches were few and far between, and the inhabitants very poor. Chisholm conceived the daring idea of driving a herd north to find a market. Despite the interminable distance, the hardships and perils, his venture turned out a success. It changed the history of Texas.By the spring of 1871 the Chisholm Trail had become a deciding factor in the recovery of Texas. The hoofs of Texas long-horns and Spanish mustangs had worn a mile wide trail across the undulating steppes of the Lone Star State.Adam Brite had already made one trip this year. Starting in March with twenty-five hundred head of cattle and seven drivers, he had beat the Indians and floods in his most profitable venture. He had started too early for both. The misfortunes of trail drivers following him that year could not dampen his ardor for a second drive. Perhaps he might make three drives this auspicious year. Buying cattle right and left for cash, he had in sight a herd of four thousand five hundred. This would be by far the largest number of long-horns ever collected, let alone driven north. And Brite's immediate and vital problem was trail drivers.
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Very good. Connecting readers with great books since 1972! Used books may not include companion materials, and may have some shelf wear or limited writing. We ship orders daily and Customer Service is our top priority!
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Fair. Previous owner's name on covered up on the first page. Otherwise pages are clean and bright with no markings. Binding is tight and square. Minor to moderate rubbing to the edges and corners of the clothboards.
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This is a used book in good condition and may show some signs of use or wear. This is a used book in good condition and may show some signs of use or wear.
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Seller's Description:
Good. Connecting readers with great books since 1972! Used books may not include companion materials, and may have some shelf wear or limited writing. We ship orders daily and Customer Service is our top priority!
This is the story of the cattle drive. From Texas they came, where cattle had little value except for their hides, to Kansas and the railroad where each head was worth about twenty dollars. So a herd of 3000 was worth upwards of sixty thousand dollars--quite a sum back then, and even yet today. In this novel Zane Grey relates to the reader just what it was like for a group of cow punchers to drive a herd up the Chisolm Trail--the dangers, the rivers, the storms, the stampedes, the Indians. Yet, this is also the personal story of love, commitment, honesty, fortitude, and how each of us must face up to these obstacles. The character, Pan Handle Smith, shows up in this one--one of Zane Grey's great heroes--to help deliver the cattle and use his guns. If you have ever seen the old TV show, Rawhide, this novels tells it like it really was. Of course, there is the romantic element, without which it would not be Zane Grey. A solid novel, well worth reading more than once.
FanOfTimeLifeBooks
Feb 14, 2014
Adventure on the Chisholm Trail
Zane Grey's The Trail Driver is a historical novel set on the Chisholm Trail in the 1870s. Adam Brite, Texas Joe Shipman, Panhandle Smith, and the other cowboys in the outfit encounter quicksand, stampeders, swollen rivers, treachery, hail storms, electrical storms, outlaws, and stampedes as they drive cattle from San Antonio, Texas to Dodge City, Kansas. And, to make things interesting, one of the cowboys turns out to be a girl. This is the first Zane Grey book I have read and I thoroughly enjoyed it. If you are wanting to start reading Zane Grey books and do not know where to begin you cannot go wrong with The Trail Driver.
