Round Rock by Sable Hunter

 

I have lived several places in my life, but they’ve all either been in Texas or Louisiana. For the last ten years, I’ve been in Central Texas – in and around Austin. I’ve had a blast exploring all the small towns in the Hill Country and learning the history of the region. Round Rock is one of the cities that has merged with Austin, by that I mean you can’t tell where Austin ends, and it begins. When I first came here, I had no idea Round Rock would become so important to me, but it has. One, for the people I’ve met there and two, for the interesting things I’ve discovered about the place.

Initially, I didn’t give the name of the town much thought – I guess because I was so used to seeing the exit sign when I would go back and forth from East Texas to Austin. I always considered Round Rock to be the gateway, when we would get that far, I knew we were almost home. When I decided to write a book set in the area, the name of it was SAXON’S CONQUEST, I started digging and was surprised to learn that a branch of the Chisholm Trail went right smack through the town. A surprising fact emerged that Round Rock was named after a particular rock in Brushy Creek that the cowboys would look for to know that creek was safe to drive the wagons across. So, I knew the rock existed at one time – but didn’t know it was still around. And then, I made a discovery! I found the round rock in Round Rock! And there it is – an actual, large round rock. A piece of history.

The old Chisolm Trail was the major route the cattle drivers would take to herd longhorn cattle north from Texas to sell in the Midwest during the 1800's. Much of the mystique of the old west emerged from this time, young cowboys on mustangs brought a distinct Texas flavor to the cattle industry and went a long way in making the cowboy an iconic folk hero.

From beginning to end, the trail was approximately eight hundred miles, and the journey took between two and three months to complete. The trail was closed in 1885 due to a quarantine in Kansas and the growing use of barbed wire by landowners. During its brief hiatus, more than five million cattle and a million mustangs were driven along the trail, making it the greatest migration of livestock in human history.

To make this more real for you, let me show you a photo of the wagon ruts still visible in the hard ground near the round rock. I don’t know about you, but it does something to me to see this tangible evidence of history – for me, it’s similar to a dinosaur footprint.


                                                                  

This is a photo of Brushy Creek today, still a beautiful stretch of water. I can imagine how it looked back them.

                                                                   

The street where you can access this part of the creek and the round rock is aptly named Chisholm Trail. There is a beautiful park there where there are bronzes to commemorate the historical significance

This is what is known as a Bell Steer, a particularly clever longhorn that exhibited a great deal of leadership. He would have a calm demeanor and a knack for following the trail. The cowboys learned to value this type of animal, many times hanging a bell around the steer’s neck. If he proved to be trustworthy he would be saved from the slaughter, taken home, and be allowed to repeat the journey again and again. The most famous bell steer belonged to Mr. Charles Goodnight, his name was Old Blue. Old Blue became a pet and when he would get the cattle settled for the night, he’d sleep around the campfire with the cowboys and dine on pones of cornbread. He made drives for eight years and retired to the ranch where he lived to be twenty years old.  Here is another bronze statue commemorating the cowboys who rode the Chisolm Trail. 

                                                                         

Another point of interest about this particular spot is a road nearby called Hairy Man. The first time I spotted it, it didn’t sound good to me. I had visions of unkempt, icky men. But when I drove down it, I fell in love. It looked like home to me. Here was this road in the middle of the city that was densely wooded on both sides with a creek running next to it. I could’ve been in Deep East Texas if I didn’t know better. Anyway, the history behind the road was compelling and tied into the story of the Chisholm Trail. According to legend, a young pioneer boy fell off one of the wagons as it crossed Brushy Creek and he lived wild among the animals in the woods around Round Rock. His absence wasn’t detected right away, and his folks never found him. How sad. He grew up as a hermit, wary of the presence of others. He was also known to have long shaggy hair. This poor individual made his presence known by frightening those who passed by. Sometimes he would hide in the trees, drag his feet over the top of the stagecoach, or drop down on wagons – attempting to terrorize anyone who came into his territory. He is said to have met his demise when he lost his balance and fell in front of a wagon to be trampled. However, he is not gone. The Hairy Man still haunts the road to this day, hiding in the foliage next to Brushy Creek. Of course, there’s also the Hairy Man Festival held in his memory. The last winner of the contest was awarded a trip to Cozumel!

You can imagine my excitement when I stumbled upon the real, honest to God round rock in Round Rock. You know, this stuff - even for a weirdo like me - isn't just readily available. You can find it - - - but as in my case…you have to get out of the recliner - ha!

Thanks for reading,

Love Sable