Bandera - the Cowboy Capital of the World – will celebrate the National Day of the Cowboy on the 26th of July with a parade.
In 1874, Bandera was the staging area for the last cattle drives on the Great Western Trail. The herds were large, up to 2,500 cows or more. It took at least 10 cowboys to move them. Cowboys in 1874 lived by a code that boiled down to grit, teamwork and care for each other. Called The Cowboy Code, it shaped the Old West and protected cowboys on often dangerous trips, herding cattle 650 miles from Texas to Kansas or 800 miles further north to Nebraska. In 1874, cowboys were 15 to 25 years old.
They came from all walks of life. Among others, they included ex-Civil War soldiers, freed slaves and a few women. The Cowboy Code they lived by still exists in Bandera.
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