Cowboy Life along the Llano Estacado Eastern Escarpment of Northwest Texas: Insights from Macy Locality 16 (41GR722)

Stance Hurst; Dallas C. Ward; Eileen Johnson; Doug Cunningham

doi:10.1007/s41636-018-0098-7

Cowboy Life along the Llano Estacado Eastern Escarpment of Northwest Texas: Insights from Macy Locality 16 (41GR722)

Stance Hurst, Dallas C. Ward, Eileen Johnson, Doug Cunningham

Museum Science

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

3 Scopus citations

Abstract

Cattle ranching is an important part of the heritage of the American West, yet few archaeological studies focus on this industry. Many aspects of ranching-related work are ephemeral, leaving on the landscape only small traces of these past activities. Survey on an historical ranch (established 1882) along the eastern escarpment of the Llano Estacado has identified a short-term cowboy camp at Macy Locality 16 (41GR722). Metal-detector survey and excavation has delineated camping activities alongside a chuck wagon and the remains of a temporary corral. Historical documents, composition of the site’s artifact assemblage, and its position on the landscape indicate the occupation was a ca. 1882–1901 roundup camp. This study demonstrates the importance of contextualizing ephemeral ranching-related sites within the broader organization of ranching activities across the landscape.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	332-347
Number of pages	16
Journal	Historical Archaeology
Volume	52
Issue number	2
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1007/s41636-018-0098-7
State	Published - Jun 1 2018

Keywords

Llano Estacado
Southern High Plains
Texas
cowboys
roundup camp

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title = "Cowboy Life along the Llano Estacado Eastern Escarpment of Northwest Texas: Insights from Macy Locality 16 (41GR722)",

abstract = "Cattle ranching is an important part of the heritage of the American West, yet few archaeological studies focus on this industry. Many aspects of ranching-related work are ephemeral, leaving on the landscape only small traces of these past activities. Survey on an historical ranch (established 1882) along the eastern escarpment of the Llano Estacado has identified a short-term cowboy camp at Macy Locality 16 (41GR722). Metal-detector survey and excavation has delineated camping activities alongside a chuck wagon and the remains of a temporary corral. Historical documents, composition of the site{\textquoteright}s artifact assemblage, and its position on the landscape indicate the occupation was a ca. 1882–1901 roundup camp. This study demonstrates the importance of contextualizing ephemeral ranching-related sites within the broader organization of ranching activities across the landscape.",

keywords = "Llano Estacado, Southern High Plains, Texas, cowboys, roundup camp",

author = "Stance Hurst and Ward, {Dallas C.} and Eileen Johnson and Doug Cunningham",

note = "Funding Information: Acknowledgments: The authors thank the landowner for graciously allowing us access to the ranch. Thanks to Margaret Purser and several anonymous reviewers for their comments that have improved this manuscript. This research was funded by the Museum of Texas Tech University and a foundation that wishes to remain anonymous and represents part of the ongoing Lubbock Lake Landmark regional research into cultural landscape use strategies on the Llano Estacado. Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} 2018, Society for Historical Archaeology.",

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doi = "10.1007/s41636-018-0098-7",

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AU - Cunningham, Doug

N1 - Funding Information: Acknowledgments: The authors thank the landowner for graciously allowing us access to the ranch. Thanks to Margaret Purser and several anonymous reviewers for their comments that have improved this manuscript. This research was funded by the Museum of Texas Tech University and a foundation that wishes to remain anonymous and represents part of the ongoing Lubbock Lake Landmark regional research into cultural landscape use strategies on the Llano Estacado. Publisher Copyright: © 2018, Society for Historical Archaeology.

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AB - Cattle ranching is an important part of the heritage of the American West, yet few archaeological studies focus on this industry. Many aspects of ranching-related work are ephemeral, leaving on the landscape only small traces of these past activities. Survey on an historical ranch (established 1882) along the eastern escarpment of the Llano Estacado has identified a short-term cowboy camp at Macy Locality 16 (41GR722). Metal-detector survey and excavation has delineated camping activities alongside a chuck wagon and the remains of a temporary corral. Historical documents, composition of the site’s artifact assemblage, and its position on the landscape indicate the occupation was a ca. 1882–1901 roundup camp. This study demonstrates the importance of contextualizing ephemeral ranching-related sites within the broader organization of ranching activities across the landscape.

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Cowboy Life along the Llano Estacado Eastern Escarpment of Northwest Texas: Insights from Macy Locality 16 (41GR722)

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Keywords

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