EPILOGUE TO THE BLACK BLIZZARD AND LINE RIDER
Perhaps you the reader are confused after reading the above. Much has been written about the huge ranches of the old west and some still are operating. At one time the riders often stayed at line camps overnight or even for weeks at a time. The reason was simple. A horse and rider could not go from the headquarters and accomplish what needed to be done at a distant point. As a matter of fact the Love Ranch in eastern Colorado which joined the Turkey Track, where I worked, maintained at least one line camp and probably more. It was not so in Sheridan County, Kansas. It is true that cattle grazed much of the unclaimed land but the large outfits were west of here. Extreme Southwest and Northwest Kansas also contained some large holdings. Much of this was held by an army of riders that rode for the brand and intimidated people who were seeking a home. My grandfather and grandmother first met in one such incident. The homestead laws and the railroads that came after the Civil War altered the picture. Indian troubles slowed the migration but once set in motion nothing stopped the inflow of people. Sheridan County was established in 1880. There were some sizeable holdings in Sheridan County. Tom L. Pratt, Big Tom, as he was known, owned 20 sections in two locations. He held it until his death, about 1940. My father worked for him and knew him well. Hugh Wigginton remembered that Big Tom would take the wife and family to church then come by and visit until it was time to take them home. He must have owned an excellent team, because that amounted to several miles of driving. My brother-in-law, much older than I, rode for the George Pratt outfit. He ran a sizeable operation near Studley. George and Tom were brothers. Grandfather Morgan served for a time as scout for the U.S. Army during the days after the Civil War. He first came here in 1868. He must have liked what he saw. In 1871 he established a base of operations on Museum Creek near Studley. As a commemoration of this he used the 71 as his brand. He later sold his right to that layout to the afore mentioned George Pratt. In one sense or another we all live between the times. That identifies my feelings. In a sense I revere the past, live in the present and look to the future. God Bless our native land.