Misplaced Pages

#955044

46-621: Lancaster Crossing formed where an arroyo on the west side of the river washed out rock and gravel from a canyon in the mountains, creating low banks and a wide shallow river bottom. It was first used by the Native Americans of West Texas who crossed the Pecos on their way to and from raids on Mexico, discarding items taken from their captives at the site, giving it its early name of "Indian Ford." The U. S. Army survey expedition of Lieutenant Colonel Joseph E. Johnston that established

92-420: A cold semiarid climate ( Köppen BSk ), characterized by long, hot summers and cold winters. Rainfall is relatively low; the entire region receives fewer than 23 in (580 mm) of rainfall annually, and the western part receives as little as 14 in (360 mm). High summer temperatures (average high July temperature above 90 °F or 32 °C) mean that most of the small amount of precipitation

138-553: A Democrat for president since 1948 . The Rolling Plains to the east remained Democratic substantially longer: although Walter Mondale 's 1984 campaign lost Texas by 27.50%, he won three counties in this region. Since 2000, this region swung very rapidly toward the Republican Party due to its population's intransigent opposition to the liberal social policies of the Democratic Party, and by 2016, it had nearly

184-656: A bone." In the latter part of the 19th century, the Llano was a refuge for the bands of Kiowas and Comanches who did not wish to be confined to reservations in Indian Territory , in present-day Oklahoma . One of their last battles against the US Army was fought on 28 September 1874 in the Battle of Palo Duro Canyon . Charles Goodnight described what it takes to be a scout: "... the trained ear should be able to tell

230-647: A precipitous cliff about 300 feet (100 m) high, lies between the Llano and the red Permian plains of Texas; while to the west, the Mescalero Escarpment demarcates the eastern edge of the Pecos River valley. The Llano has no natural southern boundary, instead blending into the Edwards Plateau near Big Spring, Texas . This geographic area stretches about 250 miles (400 km) north to south, and 150 miles (240 km) east to west,

276-471: A route with stakes over this vast desert, and hence its name." Other sources refer to "stakes" used to mark routes on the featureless plain, often meaning piles of stone, bone, and cow dung . According to Place Names of New Mexico , others have speculated that "stakes" refers to the yucca plants that dot the plains. Leatherwood opines in the Handbook of Texas that such way markers could plausibly explain

322-490: A total area of some 32,000 square miles (83,000 km ), larger than Indiana and 12 other states. It covers all or part of 33 Texas counties and four New Mexico counties. The area is susceptible to frequent dust storms because of its low relief, frequent turbulent winds, lack of vegetation, and loose topsoil. The landscape is dotted by numerous small playa lakes , depressions that seasonally fill with water and provide habitat for waterfowl . The Llano Estacado has

368-466: Is a region almost as vast and trackless as the ocean—a land where no man, either savage or civilized permanently abides ... a treeless, desolate waste of uninhabitable solitude, which always has been, and must continue uninhabited forever. During the 1854 Marcy-Neighbors expedition, Dr. George Getz Shumard noted, "Beyond the mountain appeared a line of high bluffs (the Llano Estacado) which in

414-566: Is a wedge of sediments built up eastward of the Rocky Mountains as they were uplifted in the Miocene , with the consequent alluvial fans referred to as the "Gangplank". The Ogallala Aquifer is the main freshwater source for the region and consists of braided stream deposits filling in valleys during humid climatic conditions, followed by a sub-humid to arid climate and thick eolian (wind-blown) sand and silt. Caliche layers cap

460-518: Is lost to evaporation, making dryland farming difficult. The Texas State Historical Society states it covers all or part of 33 Texas counties, six fewer than as depicted by a US Geological Survey map, and four New Mexico counties. As depicted by a US Geological Survey map, the Llano Estacado includes all or part of these Texas counties: It also includes all or part of the following New Mexico counties: Several interstate highways serve

506-751: Is precisely how the edge of the plains appear when viewed from below the caprock . The Llano Estacado lies at the southern end of the Western High Plains ecoregion of the Great Plains of North America; it is part of what was once called the Great American Desert . The Canadian River forms the Llano's northern boundary, separating it from the rest of the High Plains. To the east, the Caprock Escarpment ,

SECTION 10

#1732793852956

552-706: The Brazos River . Use of a single line, though, seems to preclude the use of other separators, such as an area— Central Texas . Texas is part of the American South and the American Southwest at the same time, while the semiarid and desert climates of West Texas are clearly characteristic of the American Southwest . West Texas is often subdivided according to distinct physiographic features. The portion of West Texas that lies west of

598-599: The Pecos River is often called "Far West Texas" or the " Trans-Pecos ", a term introduced in 1887 by geologist Robert T. Hill . The Trans-Pecos lies within the Chihuahuan Desert and is the aridest part of the state. Another part of West Texas is the Llano Estacado , a vast region of high, level plains extending into Eastern New Mexico and the Texas Panhandle . East of the Llano Estacado lies

644-677: The Permian Basin , the highest producing oil field in the United States. This likely inclines the region to support the Republican Party over the Democratic Party , as the latter supports environmentalism and action on climate change . Several counties in the Midland-Odessa area were some of the first parts of Texas to abandon the state's " Solid South " Democratic roots; two counties have not supported

690-542: The San Antonio-El Paso Road in 1849 used the ford and established a ferry a mile upstream of the ford at Pecos Crossing, at a site that was used off and on for decades. This first ferry was described by Robert A. Eccleston , a civilian forty-niner travelling with that expedition on his way to California : When I first came up I supposed the Army encampment to be on this side (east) of the river, when I

736-1069: The Texas Tech Red Raiders , and the UTEP Miners . NCAA Division II teams include the West Texas A&;M Buffaloes , the Texas–Permian Basin Falcons , and the Lubbock Christian Chaparrals and Lady Chaps . El Paso hosts the El Paso Chihuahuas , a AAA baseball team, and the El Paso Locomotive FC which plays in the USL Championship , the second tier of the American soccer pyramid . The Midland RockHounds and Amarillo Sod Poodles represent

782-563: The defense industry . West Texas has become notable for its numerous wind turbines producing clean and alternative electricity . As of 2018, the West Texan economy was in a prosperous economic period , which has been described as the "West Texas oil boom". While there are no major league teams in the West Texas region, sports fans are faithful to their local high school and college teams. NCAA Division I college teams include

828-563: The "upper route" trail from San Antonio to El Paso in 1849 for emigrants during the California Gold Rush , "... travelling across an elevated plateau almost covered by rock ..." After his 1852 expedition to explore the headwaters of the Red and Colorado Rivers, General Randolph Marcy wrote: "[not] a tree, shrub, or any other herbage to intercept the vision ... the almost total absence of water causes all animals to shun it: even

874-546: The Indians do not venture to cross it except at two or three places." In his report for the United States Army : When we were upon the high table-land, a view presented itself as boundless as the ocean. Not a tree, shrub, or any other object, either animate or inanimate, relieved the dreary monotony of the prospect; it was a vast-illimitable expanse of desert prairie . ... the great Sahara of North America . it

920-620: The Llano Estacado. Interstate 40 crosses the northern portion from east of Amarillo to Tucumcari, New Mexico. Interstate 27 runs north-south between Amarillo and Lubbock, while Interstate 20 passes through the southern portion of the Llano Estacado west of Midland and Odessa. Spanish conquistador Francisco Coronado , the first European to traverse this "sea of grass" in 1541, described it as follows: I reached some plains so vast, that I did not find their limit anywhere I went, although I traveled over them for more than 300 leagues ... with no more land marks than if we had been swallowed up by

966-481: The Ogallala, which reflect today's arid conditions. Pleistocene rainfall over the flat terrain caused water to pond at the surface, resulting in a High Plains characteristic, innumerable round ponds called playa lakes . Spearing goes on to say, When the weather is dry, they are dusty, round, gray, usually unvegetated flats, as observed from the highway. But after a High Plains thunderstorm, water quickly fills

SECTION 20

#1732793852956

1012-479: The Pecos River southeast of Sheffield. 30°39′24″N 101°46′9″W  /  30.65667°N 101.76917°W  / 30.65667; -101.76917 West Texas West Texas is a loosely defined region in the U.S. state of Texas , generally encompassing the arid and semiarid lands west of a line drawn between the cities of Wichita Falls , Abilene , and Del Rio . No consensus exists on

1058-732: The Rio Grande into Chihuahua , "the trail ran southwesterly through Big Spring to the Horsehead Crossing of the Pecos River , then forked southward to the Comanche Springs where it divided, one part of the trail crossing the great river near Boquillas and the other at Presidio ." Rachel Plummer , while a captive of the Comanche in 1836, mentioned the "table lands between Austin and Santa Fe". Robert Neighbors and Rip Ford , guided by Buffalo Hump , blazed

1104-496: The Rocky Mountains. The economy of the Llano Estacado is predominantly agricultural, with farming of various crops prevalent, as is cattle ranching . Oil and gas production is also intense throughout the Llano Estacado making it one of the most productive petrochemical areas in the United States. Overuse of the aquifer in the past has persuaded some farmers to return to dryland crops, leading to less rainwater reaching

1150-571: The area are irrigated with water from underground sources, such as the Ogallala Aquifer . Irrigation withdrawal, and water taken out farther north for the needs of El Paso and Juarez, Mexico , have reduced the Rio Grande to a stream in some places, even dry at times. Parts of West Texas have rugged terrain, including many small mountain ranges, while most parts of the state are closer to sea level. The northern parts of West Texas and

1196-586: The area while hunting buffalo in June 1874: "All of us hunters acquainted with the habits of the buffalo knew that the herds would soon be coming north from the Staked Plains region where they had spent the winter ... moved by that strange impulse that ... caused them to change their home and blacken the Plains with their countless, moving forms." Zane Grey , in his novel The Thundering Herd (1925), offered

1242-402: The boundary between East Texas and West Texas. While most Texans understand these terms, no boundaries are officially recognized and any two people are likely to describe the boundaries of these regions differently. The historian and geographer Walter Prescott Webb has suggested that the 98th meridian separates East and West Texas; writer A.C. Greene proposed that West Texas extends west of

1288-465: The distance looked like clouds floating upon the horizon." Herman Lehmann was captured by the Apache in 1870 and described the Llano Estacado as "open, but not exactly a desert". Robert G. Carter described it in 1871 while pursuing Quanah Parker with Ranald S. Mackenzie , "... all were over and out of the canyon upon what appeared to be a vast, almost illimitable expanse of prairie. As far as

1334-523: The eye could reach, not a bush or tree, a twig or stone, not an object of any kind or a living thing, was in sight. It stretched out before us-one uninterrupted plain, only to be compared to the ocean in its vastness." In August 1872, Mackenzie was the first to successfully lead troops across the Staked Plains preparatory to the Battle of the North Fork of the Red River . Billy Dixon described

1380-606: The following explanation for the name Llano Estacado: "Thet name Llano Estacado means Staked Plain," said the Texan. "It comes from the early days when the Spanish Trail from Santa Fe to San Antone was marked by 'palos,' or stakes. There was only two trails across in them days an' I reckon no more now. Only the Indians know this plain well an' they only run in heah to hide awhile. Water an' grass are plentiful in some parts, an' then there's stretches of seventy miles dry an' bare as

1426-1677: The higher elevations of the mountain ranges of the Trans-Pecos region are prone to occasional heavy snowfall during winter, whereas snow is less common in other areas of West Texas. The 72 counties of West Texas are Andrews , Bailey , Borden , Brewster , Brown , Callahan , Castro , Cochran , Coke , Coleman , Comanche , Concho , Crane , Crockett , Crosby , Culberson , Dawson , Deaf Smith , Dickens , Eastland , Ector , El Paso , Fisher , Floyd , Gaines , Garza , Glasscock , Hale , Haskell , Hockley , Howard , Hudspeth , Irion , Jeff Davis , Jones , Kent , Kimble , King , Knox , Lamb , Loving , Lubbock , Lynn , Martin , Mason , McCulloch , Menard , Midland , Mitchell , Motley , Nolan , Pecos , Presidio , Reagan , Reeves , Runnels , Schleicher , Scurry , Shackelford , Stephens , Sterling , Stonewall , Sutton , Taylor , Terrell , Terry , Throckmorton , Tom Green , Upton , Ward , Winkler , and Yoakum . Smaller West Texas cities and towns include Alpine , Andrews , Anthony , Brownfield , Canutillo , Coyanosa , Crane , Fabens , Fort Davis , Fort Stockton , Hale Center , Horizon City , Iraan , Kermit , Lamesa , Levelland , Littlefield , Marathon , Marfa , McCamey , Mertzon , Monahans , Ozona , Pecos , Post , Rankin , Ransom Canyon , San Elizario , Seminole , Slaton , Snyder , Sweetwater , and Van Horn . Major industries include livestock , petroleum and natural gas production, textiles such as cotton , grain , and because of very large military installations such as Fort Bliss ,

Lancaster Crossing - Misplaced Pages Continue

1472-493: The more reliable Ogallala water sands. Predictably, the consequent high dependency on groundwater has removed more water than is naturally replaced, raising concern for Panhandle citizens and planners as to future water supplies. The Pecos and Canadian rivers have eroded the Llano Estacado region down to the Triassic and Permian redbeds resulting in a distinctive color contrast besides separating it from source rocks in

1518-633: The movie was filmed there. Llano Estacado The Llano Estacado ( Spanish: [ˈʝano estaˈkaðo] ), sometimes translated into English as the Staked Plains , is a region in the Southwestern United States that encompasses parts of eastern New Mexico and northwestern Texas . One of the largest mesas or tablelands on the North American continent, the elevation rises from 3,000 feet (900 m) in

1564-566: The origin of the name, but that the "comparison of cliff formations and palisades made by explorers argues more convincingly for the geological origin". In his Roadside Geology of Texas , Geologist Darwin Spearing also prefers the geological solution to the etymology: The 'Staked Plains' tale is deeply entrenched in Texas mythology, but the real interpretation of Llano Estacado is sensible geologic: it means 'stockaded' or 'palisaded' plains - which

1610-586: The plains. Leatherwood writes that Francisco Coronado and other European explorers described the Mescalero Ridge on the western boundary as resembling "palisades, ramparts, or stockades" of a fort, but does not present the original Spanish. In Beyond the Mississippi (1867), Albert D. Richardson , who traversed the region from east to west in October 1859, wrote that "the ancient Mexicans marked

1656-412: The playas. "Cotton, grain sorghum, corn, wheat, peanuts, sunflowers, grapes, vegetables, and cattle produced in the region literally go around the world. Their economic impact on our area is in the billions of dollars ... and the availability of water is a key factor influencing the region's agribusiness economy." One of the largest economic drivers on the Llano Estacado is in energy production, with

1702-422: The ponds, only later soaking into the underlying porous sandstones just below the surface to add to the groundwater in the Ogallala aquifer. Early pioneers depended dearly on water from these surface ponds for themselves and their livestock, considering how few streams are on the High Plains. But rains didn't always come, and the ponds dried up frequently. The 20th century has witnessed a concerted effort to tap

1748-626: The region in double-A baseball. Junior hockey is also present in the region, with the Odessa Jackalopes of the Tier II North American Hockey League. Except for the Trans-Pecos region, West Texas has become well known as a stronghold for conservative politics. Some of the most heavily Republican counties in the United States are in the region. Former U.S. President George W. Bush spent most of his childhood in West Texas. The region includes much of

1794-473: The river running 6 miles an hour, and sent their herd of cattle to swim across the river a mile down at the ford. He also mentions that some cattle swimming across the river at the ferry had to be hauled by ropes up the steep banks on the other side if they missed landing at the cut in the bank on the other side. Today the ford lies just south of the Texas State Highway 290 bridge, which crosses

1840-535: The same Cook PVI as the Panhandle. "West of the Pecos" has become a metaphor for the universe of Westerns . "Fastest draw west of the Pecos" and similar superlatives are a cliche, and the title character of Chisum observed "There’s no law west of Dodge, and no God west of the Pecos”. Cormac McCarthy 's novel No Country for Old Men and its subsequent film adaptation take place in West Texas, and much of

1886-619: The sea ... there was not a stone, nor bit of rising ground, nor a tree, nor a shrub, nor anything to go by. In the early 18th century, the Comanches expanded their territory into the Llano Estacado, displacing the Apaches who had previously lived there. The region became part of the Comancheria , a Comanche stronghold until the final defeat of the tribe in the late 19th century. The Comanche war trail extended from Llano Estacado to

Lancaster Crossing - Misplaced Pages Continue

1932-655: The sound, whether it was made by man or beast or bird ... as a human voice echoes more than all others ... of course, on the Staked Plains we have not this advantage as there is nothing to create an echo." Today, most of the area's population is localized in the principal cities of Amarillo , Lubbock , Midland and Odessa , Texas. The vast majority of the area is rural , covered by large ranches and irrigated farms. Several small- to medium-sized towns do exist, however, including Andrews , Hereford , Plainview , Levelland , Big Spring, and Lamesa , Texas, and Hobbs , Clovis , and Portales , New Mexico. The Ogallala Formation

1978-411: The southeast to over 5,000 feet (1,500 m) in the northwest, sloping almost uniformly at about 10 feet per mile (2 m/km). The Spanish name Llano Estacado is often interpreted as meaning "Staked Plains", although " stockaded " or " palisaded plains" have also been proposed, in which case the name would derive from the steep escarpments on the eastern, northern, and western periphery of

2024-408: The water of the color of prepared cacoa without milk. Its depth here is about 10 ft.; the banks are perpendicular. The water is not as unpalatable as was reported. It tastes a little saltish, but when cleared by the aid of a prickly pear, ..., it is quite drinkable. The horses & cattle seem very fond of it. Eccleston says they crossed their wagons, draught animals and horses on the ferry with

2070-477: The “ redbed country ” of the Rolling Plains , and south of the Llano Estacado lies the Edwards Plateau . The Rolling Plains and Edwards Plateau subregions act as transitional zones between eastern and western Texas. West Texas receives much less rainfall than the rest of Texas and has an arid or semiarid climate, requiring most of its scant agriculture to depend heavily on irrigation. Northern portions of

2116-480: Was surprised by finding the River Pecos ... running close to our wagon. Were it not for the road that is cut through the bank and the tall grass that is flattened, you would be unable to discover that a river flowed here until within one or two feet of it. Not a solitary tree or clump of brush marks its course. The river is about 70 feet wide where the ferry boat crossed it. It is uniformly wide, generally, &

#955044