King made a fortune hustling cotton during the Civil War

CMWinkler

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Murphy Givens
King made a fortune hustling cotton during the Civil War

Richard King’s original ranch house was built between the Santa Gertrudis and San Fernando creeks in 1857. The house, enlarged over the years, burned in 1911.

Richard King's friend Mifflin Kenedy joined him in the ranching operation in 1860. They were already partners, with Charles Stillman, in the steamboat business on the Rio Grande.

When the Civil War broke out, King and Kenedy had 20,000 cattle and their longhorns were trailed to New Orleans to help feed the Confederacy. As the U.S. Navy tightened its blockade of Southern ports, cotton traveled down the Cotton Road to Mexico. It was not a "road" but a line of transit marked by tufts of cotton snagged on bushes.

More: http://www.caller.com/columnists/mu...83-ad51-4460-e053-0100007f4e7b-363334131.html
 
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