Trail Drive S.

7 primary works

The Goodnight Trail

by Ralph Compton

Published 15 August 1992

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.

The Chisholm Trail

by Ralph Compton

Published 15 April 1993

From the Texas brakes to the Canadian River they blazed a trail with courage, blood and tears. 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 of blazing trail drives. Armed with only a Colt rifle, a Bowie knife and courage as big as the West, Ten Chisholm, the bold, half-breed son of Indian scout Jesse Chisholm, leaves New Orleans with a price on his head. His only crime - loving the beautiful daughter of a powerful New Orleans gambler who has promised her to a wealthy man she hates. With a team of battle-toughened cowboys and ex-soldiers and a vow to return to Priscilla and make her his wife. Ten rides into the harsh Texas brakes and the heart of Comanche country. Now, he must round up wild longhorns and set off across the Red River, through a thousand miles of swollen rivers, angry Comanches and treacherous outlaw attacks - on a brazen quest to open a new trail to Kansas on the savage frontier.

The Bandera Trail

by Ralph Compton

Published 15 September 1993

There were a thousand ways to die on a trail drive through Mexico. 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. Set on rescuing their old friend, Clay Duval, who is trapped inside war - torn Mexico, Gil and Van Austin, nephews of Texas founder Stephen Austin, cross the border after him and soon discover half of Mexico's army want 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 - fighting for every bloody, dusty mile ahead.

The California Trail

by Ralph Compton

Published 15 January 1994

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 rives, 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!

The Shawnee Trail

by Ralph Compton

Published 23 September 1994

The Virginia City Trail

by Ralph Compton

Published 27 January 1995

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...

The Dodge City Trail

by Ralph Compton

Published 24 March 1995

Dodge City was a businessman's dream. And a cattle drive north - with thousands of unbranded long-horns 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 neighbours 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 fuelled by the courage to face death, the price to keep going and the knowledge that now, there was no turning back.