An American Icon

From massive thundering herds to near extermination, the American bison has remained a symbol of the American West. At one point, a large portion of the country was one giant bison range, and explorers encountered blankets of grazing bison stretching for miles. Native Americans used nearly every part of the animal, including bones, hide, and organs, for clothing, shelter, tools, bowstrings, and meat, and because storage and trade were limited, they rarely took more than they could carry. More than 30 million bison roamed the plains in the early 1500s, but professional hide hunters exploited that abundance, and between 1874 and 1877, during the Great Slaughter, the vast southern herd was nearly eliminated. By 1888, fewer than 1,000 bison remained. In 1878, after hearing orphaned bison near their home, Mary Ann Goodnight urged her husband Charles to gather some and raise them on their JA Ranch. That small herd grew and eventually helped supply herds raised by conservationists across the country. In 1997, the JA Ranch donated its remaining bison to the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, creating the official Texas State Bison Herd, whose descendants now live in several state parks.

Texas · United States