The Allen Ranch, or Sam Allen Ranch, was one of the first and longest running

ranch A ranch (from /Mexican Spanish) is an area of landscape, land, including various structures, given primarily to ranching, the practice of raising grazing livestock such as cattle and sheep. It is a subtype of farm. These terms are most often ap ...

es in the history of the state of Texas in the

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. The ranch was started a few years after the

Texas Revolution The Texas Revolution (October 2, 1835 – April 21, 1836) was a rebellion of colonists from the United States and Tejanos (Hispanic Texans) against the Centralist Republic of Mexico, centralist government of Mexico in the Mexican state of ...

in what is now southeast

Houston Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...

and Pasadena. The ranch itself extended from Clear Lake to

Harrisburg Harrisburg ( ; ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), U.S. commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat, seat of Dauphin County, Pennsylvania, Dauphin County. With a population of 50, ...

(in modern east Houston). The cattle range covered much of southeast Harris County and Galveston County covering many of the modern communities around Galveston Bay. The financial success of the Allen Ranch and its associated businesses substantially influenced the early development of Houston,

and Pasadena, and contributed significantly to

Galveston Galveston ( ) is a Gulf Coast of the United States, coastal resort town, resort city and port off the Southeast Texas coast on Galveston Island and Pelican Island (Texas), Pelican Island in the U.S. state of Texas. The community of , with a pop ...

's economy in the 19th century. Texas State Historical Association. "''Samuel Allen was a rancher and a partner in the Galveston-based firm of Allen and Poole, the largest shippers of cattle in Southeast Texas ...''"

Beginnings

As a young man Samuel W. Allen (no relation to the Allen Brothers who founded Houston) came to the newly established

Republic of Texas The Republic of Texas (), or simply Texas, was a country in North America that existed for close to 10 years, from March 2, 1836, to February 19, 1846. Texas shared borders with Centralist Republic of Mexico, the Republic of the Rio Grande, an ...

in 1842 in search of opportunity. He arrived at the young town of

(modern east Houston) and soon after married into the Thomas family which had come to Texas as part of Stephen F. Austin's original colony. Usurping the traditional lands of the Karankawa, Atakapa, and Akokisa tribes, he utilized the land from the Thomas grant which was located along the Buffalo Bayou between Harrisburg and Galveston Bay (what is now Pasadena) Sam Allen launched a cattle ranch in 1844.Texas State History Association. Allen Ranch His cattle range extended much farther down the shoreline of the bay. Like many ranchers in Texas, Allen began his herd by gathering Longhorn cattle, descended from Spanish cattle brought to the

New World The term "New World" is used to describe the majority of lands of Earth's Western Hemisphere, particularly the Americas, and sometimes Oceania."America." ''The Oxford Companion to the English Language'' (). McArthur, Tom, ed., 1992. New York: ...

, which ran wild throughout Texas. Allen's herd grew rapidly such that by the 1860s had gained exclusive shipping rights for cattle to

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and

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from the Morgan Lines, Texas' first

steamship A steamship, often referred to as a steamer, is a type of steam-powered vessel, typically ocean-faring and seaworthy, that is propelled by one or more steam engines that typically move (turn) propellers or paddlewheels. The first steamships ...

company, which was later to become a major factor in establishing Houston as an important Texas port and railroad shipping center.

Boom times

Allen's fortunes grew rapidly after the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

. Through partnerships and acquisitions Allen's main ranch expanded and he gained ranch lands in other areas of the state. He established processing plants for cattle hides and

tallow Tallow is a rendered form of beef or mutton suet, primarily made up of triglycerides. In industry, tallow is not strictly defined as beef or mutton suet. In this context, tallow is animal fat that conforms to certain technical criteria, inc ...

along the Buffalo Bayou near his range as well as

. The Galveston, Houston and Henderson Railroad was built through the Allen Ranch in the 1850s and later the Gulf, Colorado and Santa Fe Railway and the La Porte, Houston and Northern Railroad. The ranch's docks along the Buffalo Bayou became major shipping points and helped contribute to the growth of what would become the Houston Ship Channel. The ranch even had its own private railway station known as "El Buey."TSHA: Allen, Samuel Ezekiel After the Civil War, Texas Jack Omohundro got his first job in Texas cooking for cowboys on the Allen Ranch before working his way up to working cowboy and finally trail boss. He would later find fame in Ned Buntline's play The Scouts of the Prairie alongside his friend and partner Buffalo Bill Cody. Omohundro wrote about his time as a cowboy for the Allen Ranch in the Spirit of the Times, which was later reprinted in programes and brochures for Buffalo Bill's Wild West.Kerns (2001), pg. 24 Sam W. Allen's son, Samuel E. Allen, took over management of the ranch and, though some of Sam W. Allen's other business ventures failed, the Allen Ranch continued to prosper and grow. It was the largest ranch in the region and one of the largest in the state. By 1900 the Allen Ranch comprised over largely in Harris County with pastures in Galveston County and other surrounding counties. The main portions of the ranch covered much of modern Pasadena, southeast Houston, Clear Lake City, La Porte, and other areas. The Allens invested heavily in area business development, in Galveston and Harrisburg, and then later Houston (notably they founded the Oriental Textile Mills, once the world's largest press cloth manufacturer in the cotton industry). They were also wealthy socialites known throughout the region.

Modern era

Following Sam E. Allen's death in 1913, much of the family's ranch holdings were sold off to new development around Pasadena and the growing city of Houston. Sam E. Allen's son, Sam M. Allen, continued to operate the remaining portion on the main ranch in Harris County as well as the ranch lands in Brazoria County. Following Sam M. Allen's death in 1947, the remainder of the ranch was liquidated. Today many areas of Houston, Pasadena, and other cities bear names referring to the Allen family and the ranch properties.

Notes

References

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External links