The Butterfield Trail Through The Concho Valley and West Texas

by Tom Ashmore

West Texas before and after the Civil War saw an explosion of immigrants making their way through the area on their way west. The Butterfield Stage line ran from 1857 to 1861, but the road was used by settlers, cattle drives and trade caravans long after. The West Texas section was so severe they had to construct special wagons driven by hardy, wild mules. Because the trail ran through a dry and unpopulated country the trail trace can still be seen by a trained eye through satellite imagery...