The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 77, July 1973 - April, 1974 Page: 392
568 p. : ill. (some col.), maps, ports. ; 23 cm.View a full description of this periodical.
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Southwestern Historical Quarterly
Loving sold their beeves at Fort Sumner to "the general contractor, . . .
named Roberts, and the sub-contractors, Jim and Tom Patterson." Else-
where, it was stated that the "Patterson brothers" had established a camp
at the Bosque Grande, about forty miles south of Sumner, and that they
and Roberts were in sharp competition with another cattleman named
Andy Adams for the beef contract at Fort Sumner.' Nothing was said,
however, that would suggest that these men played any part in the opening
of the Pecos cattle trail. This is most unfortunate because sufficient evidence
exists to show that James Patterson may well have been the founder of the
Pecos trail.
Patterson's early life is obscure. Born in Ohio in 1833 and reared in
Illinois, he moved to New Mexico "just before" the Civil War. According
to one of his associates, "He was in that country [New Mexico] working
for the Government putting in wood, hay and everything for the Govern-
ment then."8
In early 1864 Patterson joined Thomas Roberts, a former captain of the
California Volunteers, in a plan to supply beef to the military in New Mex-
ico. Almost immediately he siezed upon the idea of securing cattle in West
Texas to fill his contracts. He traveled to Texas during June, I864, and
formed a partnership with a rancher named William C. Franks to drive
cattle across the plains to New Mexico. Drives were probably made in
1864; certainly several were made in 1865. Franks later recalled that in
1865 he "was living in Texas and New Mexico, on the trail on the Staked
Plains, coming here and going back all the time with stock--coming to
New Mexico and going back--back to Texas to get some more."'
Patterson likewise was traveling back and forth over the trail. Thomas P.
Murray, a Confederate veteran who helped Franks drive a herd to Fort
Sumner in 1865, remembered meeting Patterson on the Pecos "with a train
load of merchandise, ten or twelve wagons, going down to Stephenville to
buy cattle. Further corroboration is contained in James Cox's study of the
Texas cattle industry. Robert K. Wylie, who later established a ranch near
Ballinger, Texas, recalled his early life as a trailhand. In 1865 he drove a
herd into Mexico. Returning to the Texas frontier, he met Jim Patterson
near the mouth of the Concho and entered his service at $75 a month driv-
7Ibid., 138 (first quotation), 147 (second quotation), 148.
SDeposition of Sadie M. Patterson, February 22, 1898, Indian Depredation Case #5622,
Wm. Franks and James Patterson vs. The U. S. and Mescalero Apache Indians, Records
of the United States Court of Claims, Record Group 123 (National Archives).
9Deposition of William C. Franks, February 18, 1898, ibid.392
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Texas State Historical Association. The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 77, July 1973 - April, 1974, periodical, 1973/1974; Austin, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth117148/m1/442/: accessed May 5, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Texas State Historical Association.