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Stock
Detective This piece tells a story of an overlooked and short lived era of our American west. The late 1800's brought many changes to the western landscape. The great demand for beef force a great migration of cattle on to all regions of the west. Millions of cattle free grazed from Texas to Montana and from California to the Canadian border. This was the great cattle baron era. Since the advancement of organized law enforcement had not yet reach these regions it had spawned a free for all for rustlers, herd cutters, horse thieves and murderers. The great stockmen, who had invested millions in developing these vast cattle companies had little choice other than to police their ranges by any means available. Many hired ex military scouts and sharp shooters to control the pillaging. The title Stock Detective became a formal title for these range patrolmen. There duty was to take care of the problem when and where it occurred by any means they found fit, no questions asked. The winter of 1886-1887 changed the face of the western livestock industry forever. Millions of cattle and horses starved and froze to death leaving the majority of these large operations in bankruptcy. It also opened the door to homesteaders and other civilized advancements. As organized law became prevalent the days of the stock detective came to an end. The saga of Tom Horn summed up these final days of the free riding stock detective. |
