Chisholm Trail Memorial Park, originally known as Palmer Park, was rededicated to the memory of the old trail drivers of the Yoakum-Bovine, Texas, area who passed this way from 1867 to 1887. In the centennial year of 1936, Yoakum’s Tom-Tom Festival in June featured the theme “Old Trail Drivers and Cowboys of Yoakum 60 years ago,” and old trail drivers and cowboys gathered at Seekamp’s Barn at Irvine Street and West Morris Street, where the photo originated, before later being present at this site for the dedication of the Texas Centennial Granite Marker standing due west. Those pictured were Frank Williams, John Connor, Leo Tucker, Jim Hickey, Jim North, Tom Stell, John Richardson, Tom Burkett, Bob Humphreys, Jim Humphreys, Jeff Vick, Anthony Hickey, John Schrimpcher, and, seated, John Steen, John Ridgeway, Frank Petit, John Day, and John Airhart; the boy was John Vick’s grandson, J.H. Landry, and the man in the background by the flag was Mr. Fuller, the cook. In the years following the Civil War, Texas was devastated and bankrupt, and thousands of wild Longhorn cattle grazing on the plains of South Texas were its chief asset. Individuals collected these cattle and drove them north to beef-hungry markets, turning them into cash that Texas desperately needed. Known as “Texas Gold,” these cattle became an economic savior of the state. Between 1865 and the late 1880s, thousands of Longhorn were gathered in this area and launched up what was commonly known as the Chisholm Trail to various destinations.