The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 53, July 1949 - April, 1950 Page: 366
538 p. : ill., maps ; 23 cm.View a full description of this periodical.
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Southwestern Historical Quarterly
On the afternoon of his death the Colonel expressed no desire
to live for himself, but he said he would like to live a few years
longer to place his business in a secure position for his wife and
infant child. Before his death he told his wife the details of his
business and instructed her to take over.
At eight o'clock in the evening on June 14, 1881, a Cattle King
of Texas died as the results of injuries received in line of duty.
Following the death of her husband, Mrs. Mabel Day took
personal charge of the Day Ranch and assumed the responsibility
of paying off the $117,000 claims and debts against the estate.
At'a time when women were unwelcome in the business world,
she developed into the most outstanding business woman of her
period in Texas. She refinanced her business by organizing a
$200,00o Kentucky corporation known as the Day Cattle Ranch
Company, in which she retained the controlling stock and man-
agement. In 1885 she was running 9,000 cattle on the Day Ranch.
She lost over a hundred miles of fence in the fence cutting war
of 1883. Although heavily in debt, she survived when Cattle
Kings went broke all around her. In 1889, when she married
Captain Joseph C. Lea, "The Father of Roswell," she was men-
tioned by the press of Texas, Kansas, Colorado, and New Mexico
as "The Cattle Queen of Texas." In New Mexico, she started
what is now New Mexico Military Institute in her Roswell
home.22 She wound up her life by colonizing over five hundred
families on the Day Ranch in Coleman County, Texas.
22Captain J. C. Lea Letters, March 9, 1891, and others undated. In personal
possession of James T. Padgitt, Coleman, Texas.366
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Texas State Historical Association. The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 53, July 1949 - April, 1950, periodical, 1950; Austin, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth101126/m1/470/?rotate=90: accessed March 30, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Texas State Historical Association.