Former Texas Rangers Benton McCaleb, Will Elliot, and Brazos Gifford ride with Charles Goodnight as he rounds up thousands of ornery, unbranded cattle for the long drive to Colorado. From the Trinity River brakes to Denver, they’ll battle endless miles of flooded rivers, parched desert, and whiskey-crazed Comanches. And come face-to-face with Judge Roy Bean and legendary gunslingers like Clay Allison. For McCaleb and his hard-riding crew, the drive is a fierce struggle against the perils of an untamed land. A fight to the finish where the brave reach glory—or die hard.

From bestselling author Ralph Compton-an extraordinary saga of the hard-driving Texans who locked horns with a ruthless railroad baron in a bloody battle for an untamed land. In the aftermath of the Civil War, cash-starved Texans turned to the only resource they possessed in abundance: longhorn cows. Despite the hazards of trailing longhorns across some three hundred miles of Indian Territory, this was the only way to access the railroad... THE WESTERN TRAIL Benton McCaleb and his band of bold-spirited cowboys traveled long and hard to drive thousands of ornery cattle into Wyoming's Sweetwater Valley. They're in the midst of setting up a ranch just north of Cheyenne when a ruthless railroad baron and his hired killers try to force them off the land. Now, with the help of the Shoshoni Indian tribe and a man named Buffalo Bill Cody, McCaleb and his men must vow to stand and fight. Outgunned and outmanned, they will wage the most ferocious battle of their lives-to win the right to call the land their own. "Very seldom in literature have the legends of the Old West been so vividly painted." - Tombstone Epitaph

Armed with only a Colt rifle, a Bowie knife, and courage as big as the West, Ten Chisholm—the bold, illegitimate son of frontier scout and plains ambassador Jesse Chisholm and a Cherokee woman—arrives in the heart of Comanche country with a price on his head. His only loving the beautiful daughter of a powerful New Orleans gambler who has promised her to a wealthy man she hates. Now that Ten has returned to the harsh Texas brakes with a team of battle-toughened cowboys and ex-soldiers—and a vow to return to Priscilla and make her his wife—he must round up wild longhorns, ward off angry Comanches, and survive treacherous outlaw attacks as he crosses the Red River and sets off on a brazen quest to open a new trail to Kansas on the savage frontier.

The only riches Texans has left after the Civil War were five million maverick longhorns and the brains, brawn and boldness to drive them north to where the money was. Now, Ralph Compton brings this violent and magnificent time to life in an extraordinary epic series based on the history-blazing trail drives. Set on rescuing their old friend Clay Duval who is trapped inside war-torn Mexico, Gill and Van Austin, nephews of Texas founder Stephen Austin, cross the border after him and soon discover half of Mexico's army wants them dead. Taken prisoner by Santa Anna's soldiers, the brothers make a daring escape and head into Durango country, where they stumble on a valley full of longhorns—and a chance to build a future north of the border. All they have to do now is break Duval out of prison and drive the cattle to safety. But faced with outlaws, soldiers and the cunning plans of a beautiful woman, the Austins are finding out that this isn't a trail drive, it's a war to reach the Bandera Range alive. And the only way to do it is the Texan way—figting for every bloody, dusty mile ahead.

Please don't delete. This is an alternate cover for ISBN 0312951698. Gold fever had hit California, and suddenly, the land was full of hungry pioneers. For Gil and Van Austin, two Texas brothers, it meant the chance to sell well-grazed longhorns after years of hard ranching and a treacherous cattle drive up through Mexico. The only trouble was that California was on the other side of a searing desert, swollen rivers, a barrage of Indian attacks, and a whole passel of outlaw trouble. And while the Texans and their men were ready and willing to take it all on, there was one thing they weren't prepared for: the ultimate act of treachery and deceit in a land of schemers, dreamers and gold!

Librarian's note: An alternate cover edition can be found here Stampedes, rustlers, and hostile Indians wouldn't slow them down. They were bound for Kansas, and a Texas-sized fight! The only riches Texans had left after the Civil War were five million maerick longhorns and the brains, brown and boldness to drive them north where the money was. Now, Ralph Compton brings this violent and magnificent time to life in an extraordinary epic series based on the history-blazing trail drives. The Shawnee Trail Long John Coons, the Cajun son of a conjuring woman, was driving 2,000 head of cattle north from Texas to the railroad in Kansas—through Indian Territory and outlaw strongholds. At his side was a beautiful woman with a sordid past, three ex-cattle rustlers, some renegate Indians, Mexican vanqueros and a straight-laced young trail boss. And while Long John tried to keep his hot headed crew from killing each other before they reached the end of the line, the biggest dangers was waiting up ahead—where an all-out war in Kansas make the Texas fight together, or die at the same time.

Through a thousand miles of dust, fists, and guns, they found the courage to keep on driving. The only riches Texans had left after the Civil War were five million maverick longhorns and the brains, brawn and boldness to drive them north to where the money was. Now, Ralph Compton brings this violent and magnificent time to life in an extraordinary epic series based on the history-making trail drives. The Virginia City Trail With a dream of building a ranching empire in Montana, Nelson Story sets off on one of the most extraordinary journeys in frontier history. By his side was a bunch of misfits and renegades-hard-fighting, war-bitten Texans with nothing left to lose. On his tail as the worst kind of enemy-brutal outlaws fixing to bleed his trail drive dry. Pushing his way through four harsh territories and three brutal seasons, Story would defy the Union Army, get a hold of a hundred Remingtons, and take on a thousand riled-up Sioux warriors, before he reached Virginia City-and came face-to-face with the man who wanted him dead...

For a brave band of Texas pioneers, new enemies awaited on the thundering trail. But old enemies were the deadliest of all. The only riches Texans had left after the Civil War were five million maverick longhorns and the brains, brawn and boldness to drive them north to where the money was. Now, Ralph Compton brings this violent and magnificent time to life in an extraordinary epic series based on the history-making trail drives. The Dodge City Trail Dodge City was a businessman's dream. And a cattle drive north-with thousands of unbranded longhorns and a remuda of stolen Mexican horses-was a dream of Texans like Dan Ember, who'd come home from the war to find a rich man's hired guns living on his land. Now Dan and his neighbors would risk everything on a drive across the Llano. Along the way, two bands of killers would fight over them, the gunslinger Clay Allison would join up with them, and Quanah Parker's Comanches would try to thwart them-in a bold adventure fueled by the courage to face death, the pride to keep going, and the knowledge that now, there was no turning back.

They Risked Their Lives To Bring Cattle to Missouri. Now They Faced A Journey Twics As Dangerous... The only riches Texans had left after the Civil War were five million maverick longhorns and the brains, brawn and boldness to drive them north to where the money was. Now, Ralph Compton brings this violent and magnificent time to life in an extraordinary epic series based on the history-making trail drives. The Oregon Trail Lou Spencer, Dill Summer, and their fourteen Texas cowboys briught a herd up to Independence, Missouri, and sold half to a wagon train heading West. Then the Texans hired on, leading the battling greenhorn pioneers across the Missouri River, across Nebraska Territory, and into the wilds past Forts Laramie and Bridger. With winter closing in, Spencer's men were running out of time to reach the wide-open land of Oregon. And with a fortune in gold hidden in one of the pilgrims' wooden wagons-and outlaws circling like wolves-there were miles of shooting and dying still ahead.

An extraordinary saga of the trail-blazing cowboys who made their fortune driving cattle from Texas to the Great Frontier. They left Missouri and were headed to Santa Fe. Standing in their way was a parched desert, a land of outlaws and enemies-and one man's dangerous past. He was a wealthy englishman with two beautiful daughters. They were five dusty texans and a gambling man. And they were all on the ride of their lives. The only riches Texans had left after the Civil War were five million maverick longhorns and the brains, brawn and boldness to drive them north to where the money was. Now, Ralph Compton brings this violent and magnificent time to life in an extraordinary epic series based on the history-making trail drives. The Santa Fe Trail Gavin McCord and his brawling cowboys came to Missouri with a 3,500 longhorns and not one buyer. That's where Gladstone Pitkin came in. A man with money and a dream of ranching in New Mexico, Pitkin bought McCord's cattle and hired his Texans for a trail drive from Independence to Santa Fe. But with an ill-fated gambler on the drive, the courageous, hardened riders weren't just a thousand brutal miles from Santa Fe-they were heading into a death trap.

An extraordinary saga of the trail-blazing cowboys who made their fortune driving cattle from Texas to the great frontier. Hard-riding Texans were braving mountains, desert and Indian war—for the promise of a golden land called California... Over one million copies of Ralph Compton's Trail Drive novels in print! Missouri was closed to Texas cattle. Santa Fe was closed by murder. Now, they had one cross desert mountains and hostile Indian land—to a place called California... The only riches Texans had left after the Civil War were five million maverick longhorns and the brains, brawn, and boldness to drive them north to where the money was. Now, Ralph, Compton brings this violent and magnificent time to life in an extraordinary epic series based on the history-blazing trail drives. For the ranchers riding with Rand Hayes, things had gone from bad to worse. The Santa Fe man who'd contracted five thousand head of cattle was dead—murdered by renegades. Now the Texans had a herd of longhorns and only one cross two mountain ranges and the Mojave Desert to the gold-fevered market at Los Angeles. A trail blazed by ancient Spaniards, this was a route that would lead through a brutal, wondrous land, where a hostile Ute nation was only one danger the cattle drive faced, and California was a shooting war away...

They had beaten the harsh odds of the frontier. But for the two powerful ranchers, the most formidable trail lay ahead. There had never been a trail drive like this before... The only riches Texans had left after the Civil War were five million maverick longhorns and the brains, brawn, and boldness to drive them to market along treacherous trails. Now, Ralph Compton brings this violent and magnificent time to life in an extraordinary series based on the history-blazing trail drives. For veteran ranchers Nelson Story of Montana, and Benton McCaleb of Wyoming, it was an opportunity a man didn't pass up. In gold camps of the Black Hills, miners were hungry for beef, at boomtown prices. But within the two outfits were Indians, gunmen, Texans, lovesick cowboys, and high-spirited women. Worse, the drive would pass through Crow and Sioux territory, when Custer's defeat at the Little Big Horn was just hours away. The drives were tangled by violent grudges, stampeding herds, and dangerous deception. The two brawling outfits had one thing in common: a deadly surprise awaiting them at the end of the trail...

The year was 1853. For handful of cowboys turned California Gold Rushers, it was time to go home. Then Lonnie Kilgore and his fellow Texans met Western legend and former mountain man Jim Bridger, who told them of a lush range waiting to be claimed in northern Utah. Now, the Texans have purchased land on the Green river and come to San Antonio to gather up some longhorns. But with Indian trouble, law trouble, and woman trouble along for the ride, the cowboys are finding out the truth about this paradise: to live on land you bought and paid for, you have to be willing to die...

Hoping to save his destitute hometown of Wisdom, Texas, Dick Hodson returns from the Civil War and plans a cattle drive run by greenhorn children, but a ruthless gang of cutthroats, hired by the evil Bryan Phelps, will do anything to stop them. Original.

Three daring individuals—James Cason, son of the owner of the Long Shadow ranch; vigilante Duke Faglier; and Revelation Scattergood, a suspected rustler out to build a new life for herself—brave the perils of the trail to drive a herd of cattle from San Antonio, Texas, to the Dakota Territory. Original.

There's no such thing as safe passage in this western in Ralph Compton's USA Today bestselling series. Ben McCullough was once an officer in the Confederate Army. Now, he’s a rancher in the Texas hill country, hoping to earn enough money to settle down and marry. With eight hundred head of cattle to drive north, Ben is relying on his ex-sergeant, Hap, to watch over the bunch of greenhorns he’s recruited to help. These young cowboys have their work cut out for them as they confront the dangers of cattle driving. But stampedes, raging rivers, and nature’s worst elements are nothing compared to the threat that awaits them—a gang of outlaws determined to rustle the herd… More Than Six Million Ralph Compton Books In Print!

New from the USA Today bestselling author Clint's wild streak will be the death of Hamp. But a good man stands behind his friend-and steps up when the bullets start flying.

The trail to riches is lined with danger in this Ralph Compton western... The ranchers of Frio Springs are praying that Sam Ketchum will succeed in driving their cattle to the richer markets of Nebraska. Sure, there’s no one more reliable. But ghosts still haunt Sam from his last drive—and the road north has only become tougher. Comanches and cattle thieves lie hidden in the brush, poised to ambush, and notorious gunslingers lurk in every town along the way. And to make matters worse, the Wagner brothers have picked a fight back home, sparking a deadly family feud that Sam may have to settle before the trail finally ends… More Than Six Million Ralph Compton Books In Print!

A thousand-mile journey begins with a single step in this Ralph Compton western... Some think he’s crazy. But Felix Dagstaff has signed on to drive 4,000 head of wild longhorns from his ranch near Quitaque, Texas, up the Palo Duro Canyon to Cheyenne, more than a thousand miles away. Even if the passage were flat, you couldn’t pay most men enough to take on such a job. But poor odds have never stopped Dag before… He’ll have to drive his cattle through blinding storms and swollen rivers. But the setbacks of Mother Nature pale in comparison to the sedition of his own one drover’s not who he claims to be; another tries to make off with part of the herd. With months of heat and hardship stretching before him like the treacherous but impossibly beautiful canyon, the chances of getting ahead are slim. But if he fails, Dag will lose everything he has fought for… More Than Six Million Ralph Compton Books In Print!

Bad blood runs deep in this Ralph Compton western... Jock Kane would do anything for his buddy Chad Becker—except drive the rancher’s longhorns to the Ellsworth railhead in Kansas. Having lost his fortune and his faith on the last trail, and his beloved wife, Twyla, to a killer, Jock’s not looking for adventure. What gets him off his tail is finding out who’s vying with Chad for the Kansas sale. It’s none other than Twyla’s cold-blooded killer himself—Jock’s own brother, Abel, now in cahoots with a Yankee carpetbagger. Now there’s no hailstorm violent enough, no Apache savage enough, and no trail-drive turncoat dirty enough to stop Jock from redefining justice and revenge… More Than Six Million Ralph Compton Books In Print!

Ed Wright has one last chance to prove himself. The former cowboy and Ranger gets back on the horse to drive a herd of cattle from Texas to Kansas-but must contend with a rival outfit who will stop at nothing to see him fail.

Doc Blaine needs to drive 3,000 head of cattle from Texas to Kansas, and needs his sons Jared and Miles to help. Unfortunately, his sons are in love with the same woman-and have vowed to kill each other on sight...

BLOOD AND BANKERS Dane Kramer looks forward to the day when his sprawling Oklahoma cattle ranch will truly be his—no strings attached. With only one more bank payment to make, and a buyer in Omaha ready to pay top dollar for a herd of Herefords, he should finally have the banker Earl Throckmorton off his back. But Earl has a plan to keep the ranch for himself, and if he has his way, Dane’s herd will never make it across the Omaha Trail—and Dane won’t make it home alive… Up against Earl’s hired gang of outlaws, Dane must do whatever it takes to bring in the herd—but Earl has more than one trick up his sleeve. Planting one of his own men in Dane’s newly hired team of cowhands could be just the insurance he needs…

Two old ranch hands lead one last trail drive but they can't escape death along the way in a brand new thrilling western in Ralph Compton's trail drive series. Big Jake Motley had been running the Big M spread in Texas for over 30 years. In that time, he's driven thousands of head of cattle to market in Kansas. Now, while both the Nineteenth century and the era of trail drive are coming to an end, Big Jake is determined to make one last drive to Kansas. The only thing is, he doesn't have the cowhands to move that much beef. He drafts his old friend, Chance McCandles, into service, and together, the two aging cowboys put together a crew. The trail to Kansas is fraught with dangers both natural and man made, but when Chance is killed by rustlers, Big Jake has one more task in before him, extract vengeance for his old friend.

In this brand-new Ralph Compton Western, the drovers of the Bar X ranch will face sandstorms, renegades, and outlaws along the historic Cimarron trail. After a child is accidentally killed in a shootout, Art Catlin decides to give up his life of bounty hunting and finds a new career as a drover, working for the Bar X ranch. The trail is 770 miles from Santa Fe to Independence, Missouri, and Art isn't fool enough to think it'll be an easy journey. As they head east, they seem to come upon countless threats, from environmental to personal. If they're to make it all the way with the herd intact, Catlin will need to use all of the skill and knowledge he's acquired over his long and violent career.