The King Ranch is the largest ranch in the U. S., covering 825,000 acres. If you do the math, that's 1289 sections or 35.8 townships! Think about an area 36 miles square... The Ranch is a privately held corporation that operates through four divisions, ranging in size from just 50,000 acres to 260,000 acres. The first picture shows the King Mansion in the distance. The mansion is still very much a private home for the extended King family.
The King Ranch was started by an Irish orphan who made his way to the Gulf Coast at age 11, was a riverboat pilot by age 19, and began ranching in what was known as the Wild Horse Desert. He received a land grant of about 16,000 acres from Mexico (when the area was part of Mexico), and several years later purchased 50,000 acres from the Republic of Texas.
The third picture shows a fifth generation ranch hand, a descendant of a group of Mexicans brought to Texas by the ranch founder in about 1850. King went to Mexico to purchase cattle and persuaded most of the members of a small community to come to the ranch as well.
About 450,000 acres of the ranch's acreage today is devoted to private lease hunting, the ranch's largest source of income. Hunting on the ranch includes white tail deer, wild turkey, quail, javelina, wild hogs, and a non-native antelope, Nilgai, which can weigh up to 600 pounds. The King Ranch were pioneers in wild life conservation in Texas and still have their own game management operation.
King Ranch operations today are highly diversified. They developed the Santa Gertrudis cattle breed and still raise them. Picture 2 shows a group of cows, which are involved in an effort to further improve the breed.
The Ranch was an early developer of the American Quarter Horse. Wimpy, the number 1 horse in quarter horse registry, was owned by the Ranch. The final picture is of a stable. Note the architecture which is common in the era and resembles the famed Alamo facade.
King Ranch also has large farming operations where they raise cotton and milo. They are now the largest producer of pecans in the U. S. If you buy pecans at Walmart, look for the running W (the ranch brand) on the package. They have large citrus production operations in Florida. They own a John Deere dealership in a nearby town.
We recommend a visit to the King Ranch Museum in Kingsville prior to visiting the ranch.
1 comment:
I've always wanted to visit the King Ranch. Did you see any of the horses?
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