Named for one of several Atakapan-speaking Native American tribes originally connected by it, the Opelousas Trail ran from La Bahia, later Goliad, to the Mississippi River in Louisiana. Evidence of cultural interchange between tribes indicates the presence of such a trail for hundreds of years. Spanish explorers, soldiers, and vaqueros used this route, and by the 1750s French traders had been traveling it for about twenty years. After 1820, settlers began arriving from Louisiana and other southern states. Don Martin de Leon and Anglo cattlemen such as James Taylor White and William B. Duncan drove large droves of cattle, mules, and horses to market in New Orleans. A post route was established along the Opelousas in early 1836, and that spring Texas pioneers fled along this path during the Runaway Scrape. Later, Santa Anna was led down the trail toward New Orleans and ultimately to Washington, D.C., as a prisoner of war. After 1850, a stage and mail route followed the trail, and during the Civil War the Confederate Army used the road to move troops. Use of the route continued throughout the 20th century, and many segments of the trail were incorporated into U.S. Highway 90 from Liberty to Orange.