In South Texas, in an area known as the Nueces Strip, cattle rustling is a huge problem and it comes with an additional layer of complication: many of the rustlers are from Mexico. They ride across the border, steal Texas cattle, and drive the cattle to Mexico. In 1875, Captain Leander McNelly and his militia company are dispatched to the Rio Grande Valley to stop the rustlers from Mexico. Shortly after they arrive, they find themselves in a pivotal fight on the Palo Alto prairie.

SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY

“The Texas Rangers: Wearing the Cinco Peso, 1821-1900” by Mike Cox

“The Ranger Ideal, Vol. 1&2” by Darren L. Ivey

“Lone Star Justice: The First Century of the Texas Rangers” by Robert M. Utley

“The Texas Rangers” by Walter Prescott Webb

“Captain L.H. McNelly: Texas Ranger” by Chuck Parsons & Marianne E. Hall Little

“Taming the Nueces Strip” by George Durham

“Cult of Glory: The Bold and Brutal History of the Texas Rangers” by Doug J. Swanson

“Charles Goodnight: Cowman and Plainsman” by J. Evetts Haley

“Comanches: A History of a People” by T.R. Fehrenbach

“The Earth Is Weeping: The Epic Story of the Indian Wars for the American West” by Peter Cozzens

Join Black Barrel+ for ad-free episodes and bingeable seasons: blackbarrel.supportingcast.fm/join

Apple users join Black Barrel+ for ad-free episodes, bingeable seasons and bonus episodes. Click the Black Barrel+ banner on Apple to get started with a 3-day free trial.

On YouTube, subscribe to LEGENDS+ for ad-free episodes and bingeable seasons: hit “Join” on the Legends YouTube homepage.

For more details, visit our website www.blackbarrelmedia.com and check out our social media pages. We’re @OldWestPodcast on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices