The Goodnight Legacies

Charles Goodnight was one of the outstanding men of the early beef cattle era and was a key contributor to the growth of the cattle industry in the mid-nineteenth century West. He was primarily a self-educated man, possessing a strong entrepreneurial mind and superb innovating attributes to become successful. Goodnight’s strong moral character, far-ranging insight, inventiveness, and his ability to attract and establish beneficial relationships established the foundation of what today is the oldest ranch in the Texas Panhandle, having operations in Colorado, the JA Ranch. If you ever read Larry McMurtry’s Lonesome Dove, you likely have dipped into the essence of Charles Goodnight and his friend and partner, Oliver Loving. The Goodnight Legacies walks through the periods of Goodnight’s life, establishment of the Goodnight-Loving Trail, some of the lesser known aspects of his life, and answers some tangential questions like, “Why did ‘Brazos’, become the mustering cry of the Texas Rangers?”

Presented by Larry Schlupp, Vice President and webmaster of Historic Douglas County, Inc.