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XIT Ranch: Three Million Acres Traded for the Texas State Capitol

The XIT covered ten Texas counties and, at its peak, ran about 150,000 cattle on land the state paid out for its new capitol.

Why Was the XIT Ranch Created?

Texas needed a new capitol and had more land than cash. In 1879 the legislature set aside 3,000,000 acres of Panhandle land to pay for one, and in 1882 a special session struck a deal with a Chicago syndicate led by the Farwell brothers. According to the XIT Ranch article on Wikipedia, the total cost of the building was $3,744,630.60, of which the syndicate paid $3,224,593.45.

The Farwells then raised money in London, forming the Capitol Freehold Land and Investment Company, Limited, financed by 5 percent debentures with mostly British investors. The company existed until 1909, when all its bonds were redeemed.

How Big Was the XIT?

According to its entry on the ranch's land and counties, the ranch covered more than three million acres across Dallam, Hartley, Oldham, Deaf Smith, Parmer, Castro, Bailey, Lamb, Cochran and Hockley counties. It ran about 200 miles along the New Mexico border. Headquarters began at Buffalo Springs on the northern boundary and moved to Channing in 1890, with the range divided into divisions such as Middle Water, Ojo Bravo, Rito Blanco, Escarbada, Spring Lake and Yellow Houses.

Fencing and water made the range workable. Surveyor W. S. Mabry laid out four-strand barbed wire, reaching 781 miles of fence by 1886 and about 1,500 miles with cross fences by the late 1890s. By 1900 there were 335 windmills and about 100 earthen dams.

The XIT Brand and the Cattle

Trail driver Ab Blocker designed the XIT brand, built from a five-inch bar applied five times, to resist alteration by rustlers. Calves carried XIT on the side, the last digit of the year on the shoulder and the division number on the jaw. The popular cowboy explanation of the brand's meaning is not supported by evidence.

The first herds were Texas Longhorns. The ranch began adding Hereford and polled Aberdeen Angus cattle in 1889 and bought registered herds in 1892. From 1886 to 1897 it drove 10,000 to 12,500 steers a year about 1,000 miles north to the Montana range near Miles City.

Why Did the XIT Lose Money?

Cattle prices crashed in 1886 and 1887, and by fall 1888 the ranch could not sell its cattle at a profit. It operated at a loss most years, with rustling and predators adding to the damage. The syndicate had also planned from the start to colonize and sell the land, treating ranching as temporary.

Management drew criticism too. One account describes the ranch under general manager B. H. Campbell as a haven for bad men and criminals, and A. L. Matlock took over management in 1887.

The Key to Why It Mattered

The XIT matters less as a profit story than as an example of a government turning land into infrastructure through private capital. Its record shows how big ranching depended on public land policy and foreign money.

  • The land-for-capitol swap let Texas build a major public building without paying cash.
  • British and Chicago capital financed fencing, windmills and cattle at scale.
  • Water development, not just grass, made the dry Panhandle usable.
  • Breeding upgrades from Longhorns to Herefords and Angus followed the market.
  • The model was always temporary: sales began in 1901 to pay off the bonds.

Land Sales and the End of the XIT

The syndicate began selling acreage in 1901, a sequence laid out in the same article's section on land sales. George W. Littlefield bought 235,858.5 acres of the Yellow Houses division that year, and about 800,000 acres were divided into 160 square-mile tracts in 1905. The last XIT cattle were sold on November 1, 1912. In 1918 Texas sued, arguing that surveys exceeded the stipulated acreage, and recovered about 57,800 acres.

Visit or Learn More

Dalhart hosts the XIT Museum and the annual XIT Rodeo and Reunion each August. For more on Texas ranching, see the ranching pages at farm.FM and a farm.FM story about the XIT Ranch.

Timeline

  1. 1879Texas legislature reserves 3,000,000 Panhandle acres to pay for a capitol
  2. 1882Farwell syndicate contracts to build the Capitol in exchange for the land
  3. 1885XIT Ranch begins operating
  4. 1886781 miles of fence in place; first northern trail drives begin
  5. 1890General headquarters moves to Channing
  6. 1901Syndicate begins selling land to retire bonds
  7. 1909Capitol Freehold bonds fully redeemed
  8. 1912Last XIT cattle sold on November 1
  9. 1918Texas sues over excess acreage and recovers about 57,800 acres

Frequently asked questions

What does XIT stand for?

The brand was designed by trail driver Ab Blocker as a five-inch bar applied five times, hard to alter. A popular cowboy meaning for the letters is not supported by evidence.

Why was the XIT Ranch built?

A Chicago syndicate agreed to build the Texas State Capitol in Austin in exchange for 3,000,000 acres of Panhandle land, then used that land to run a large cattle ranch from 1885.

How big was the XIT Ranch?

It covered more than 3,000,000 acres across ten Texas counties, about 200 miles long and 20 to 30 miles wide, and at its peak handled about 150,000 head of cattle.

When did the XIT Ranch end?

The last XIT cattle were sold on November 1, 1912, after land sales that began in 1901 to pay off the bonds.

Sources and further reading

Profiles are compiled from public sources and reviewed against them. See our editorial policy to suggest a correction.

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