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Llano Estacado

April 09, 2023

The Llano Estacado (Spanish: [ˈʝano estaˈkaðo]), sometimes translated into English as the Staked Plains,[2] is a region in the Southwestern United States that encompasses parts of eastern New Mexico and northwestern Texas. One of the largest mesas or tablelands on the North American continent,[2] the elevation rises from 3,000 feet (900 m) in the southeast to over 5,000 feet (1,500 m) in the northwest, sloping almost uniformly at about 10 feet per mile (2 m/km).[3]

Llano Estacado
"Staked Plains"[1]
Southwestern United States
Northwest escarpment of the Llano Estacado
Shaded relief image of the Llano Estacado. The escarpments marking the eastern edge of the Llano are visible, running roughly in a north–south line through the middle of the Panhandle. The western edge is on the New Mexico side of the border, with the Texas–New Mexico border running considerably closer to the western edge of the Llano than to the eastern.
Coordinates: 33°N 102°W / 33°N 102°W / 33; -102Coordinates: 33°N 102°W / 33°N 102°W / 33; -102
Country United States
StateNew Mexico and Texas
Area
 • Total97,000 km2 (37,000 sq mi)
Population
 (2013)
 • Total1,230,000
 • Density13/km2 (33/sq mi)

Naming

The Spanish name Llano Estacado is often interpreted as meaning "Staked Plains", although "stockaded" or "palisaded plains" have also been proposed,[2][4]: 355  in which case the name would derive from the steep escarpments on the eastern, northern, and western periphery of the plains. Leatherwood writes that Francisco Coronado and other European explorers described the Mescalero Ridge on the western boundary as resembling "palisades, ramparts, or stockades" of a fort, but does not present the original Spanish.[2] In Beyond the Mississippi (1867), Albert D. Richardson, who traversed the region from east to west in October 1859, wrote that "the ancient Mexicans marked a route with stakes over this vast desert, and hence its name."[5] Other sources refer to "stakes" used to mark routes on the featureless plain, often meaning piles of stone, bone, and cow dung. Leatherwood opines in the Handbook of Texas that such way markers could plausibly explain the origin of the name, but that the "comparison of cliff formations and palisades made by explorers argues more convincingly for the geological origin".[2] In his Roadside Geology of Texas, Geologist Darwin Spearing also prefers the geological solution to the etymology:

The 'Staked Plains' tale is deeply entrenched in Texas mythology, but the real interpretation of Llano Estacado is sensible geologic: it means 'stockaded' or 'palisaded' plains - which is precisely how the edge of the plains appear when viewed from below the caprock.[4]: 355 

Geography and climate

 
The northern edge of the Llano Estacado in New Mexico

The Llano Estacado lies at the southern end of the Western High Plains ecoregion of the Great Plains of North America; it is part of what was once called the Great American Desert. The Canadian River forms the Llano's northern boundary, separating it from the rest of the High Plains. To the east, the Caprock Escarpment, a precipitous cliff about 300 feet (100 m) high, lies between the Llano and the red Permian plains of Texas; while to the west, the Mescalero Escarpment demarcates the eastern edge of the Pecos River valley. The Llano has no natural southern boundary, instead blending into the Edwards Plateau near Big Spring, Texas. This geographic area stretches about 250 miles (400 km) north to south, and 150 miles (240 km) east to west, a total area of some 37,500 square miles (97,000 km2), larger than Indiana and 12 other states. It covers all or part of 33 Texas counties and four New Mexico counties.[2] The area is susceptible to frequent dust storms because of its low relief, frequent turbulent winds, lack of vegetation, and loose topsoil.[6][7] The landscape is dotted by numerous small playa lakes, depressions that seasonally fill with water and provide habitat for waterfowl.[8][9]

The Llano Estacado has a cold semiarid climate (Köppen BSk), characterized by long, hot summers and cold winters. Rainfall is relatively low; the entire region receives fewer than 23 in (580 mm) of rainfall annually, and the western part receives as little as 14 in (360 mm). High summer temperatures (average high July temperature above 90 °F or 32 °C) mean that most of the small amount of precipitation is lost to evaporation, making dryland farming difficult.[2]

The Texas State Historical Society states it covers all or part of 33 Texas counties, six fewer than as depicted by a US Geological Survey map, and four New Mexico counties.[2]

As depicted by a US Geological Survey map, the Llano Estacado includes all or part of these Texas counties:[10][11]

It also includes all or part of the following New Mexico counties:

Several interstate highways serve the Llano Estacado. Interstate 40 crosses the northern portion from east of Amarillo to Tucumcari, New Mexico. Interstate 27 runs north-south between Amarillo and Lubbock, while Interstate 20 passes through the southern portion of the Llano Estacado west of Midland and Odessa.[12]

History

Spanish conquistador Francisco Coronado, the first European to traverse this "sea of grass" in 1541, described it as follows:

I reached some plains so vast, that I did not find their limit anywhere I went, although I traveled over them for more than 300 leagues ... with no more land marks than if we had been swallowed up by the sea ... there was not a stone, nor bit of rising ground, nor a tree, nor a shrub, nor anything to go by.[2][13]

In the early 18th century, the Comanches expanded their territory into the Llano Estacado, displacing the Apaches who had previously lived there. The region became part of the Comancheria, a Comanche stronghold until the final defeat of the tribe in the late 19th century.[14] The Comanche war trail extended from Llano Estacado to the Rio Grande into Chihuahua, "the trail ran southwesterly through Big Spring to the Horsehead Crossing of the Pecos River, then forked southward to the Comanche Springs where it divided, one part of the trail crossing the great river near Boquillas and the other at Presidio."[15]: 122 

Rachel Plummer, while a captive of the Comanche in 1836, mentioned the "table lands between Austin and Santa Fe".[16]

Robert Neighbors and Rip Ford, guided by Buffalo Hump, blazed the "upper route" trail from San Antonio to El Paso in 1849 for emigrants during the California Gold Rush, "... travelling across an elevated plateau almost covered by rock ..."[15]: 114 and 121 

After his 1852 expedition to explore the headwaters of the Red and Colorado Rivers, General Randolph Marcy wrote: "[not] a tree, shrub, or any other herbage to intercept the vision ... the almost total absence of water causes all animals to shun it: even the Indians do not venture to cross it except at two or three places."[2] In his report for the United States Army:

When we were upon the high table-land, a view presented itself as boundless as the ocean. Not a tree, shrub, or any other object, either animate or inanimate, relieved the dreary monotony of the prospect; it was a vast-illimitable expanse of desert prairie . ... the great Sahara of North America. it is a region almost as vast and trackless as the ocean—a land where no man, either savage or civilized permanently abides ... a treeless, desolate waste of uninhabitable solitude, which always has been, and must continue uninhabited forever.[17]

During the 1854 Marcy-Neighbors expedition, Dr. George Getz Shumard noted, "Beyond the mountain appeared a line of high bluffs (the Llano Estacado) which in the distance looked like clouds floating upon the horizon."[18]: 145 

Herman Lehmann was captured by the Apache in 1870 and described the Llano Estacado as "open, but not exactly a desert".[19]

Robert G. Carter described it in 1871 while pursuing Quanah Parker with Ranald S. Mackenzie, "... all were over and out of the canyon upon what appeared to be a vast, almost illimitable expanse of prairie. As far as the eye could reach, not a bush or tree, a twig or stone, not an object of any kind or a living thing, was in sight. It stretched out before us-one uninterrupted plain, only to be compared to the ocean in its vastness."[20]

In August 1872, Mackenzie was the first to successfully lead troops across the Staked Plains preparatory to the Battle of the North Fork of the Red River.[21]

Billy Dixon described the area while hunting buffalo in June 1874: "All of us hunters acquainted with the habits of the buffalo knew that the herds would soon be coming north from the Staked Plains region where they had spent the winter ... moved by that strange impulse that ... caused them to change their home and blacken the Plains with their countless, moving forms."[22]

Zane Grey, in his novel The Thundering Herd (1925), offered the following explanation for the name Llano Estacado: "Thet name Llano Estacado means Staked Plain," said the Texan. "It comes from the early days when the Spanish Trail from Santa Fe to San Antone was marked by 'palos,' or stakes. There was only two trails across in them days an' I reckon no more now. Only the Indians know this plain well an' they only run in heah to hide awhile. Water an' grass are plentiful in some parts, an' then there's stretches of seventy miles dry an' bare as a bone."

In the latter part of the 19th century, the Llano was a refuge for the bands of Kiowas and Comanches who did not wish to be confined to reservations in Indian Territory, in present-day Oklahoma. One of their last battles against the US Army was fought on 28 September 1874 in the Battle of Palo Duro Canyon.

Charles Goodnight described what it takes to be a scout: "... the trained ear should be able to tell the sound, whether it was made by man or beast or bird ... as a human voice echoes more than all others ... of course, on the Staked Plains we have not this advantage as there is nothing to create an echo."[23]

Today, most of the area's population is localized in the principal cities of Amarillo, Lubbock, Midland and Odessa, Texas. The vast majority of the area is rural, covered by large ranches and irrigated farms. Several small- to medium-sized towns do exist, however, including Andrews, Hereford, Plainview, Levelland, and Lamesa, Texas, and Clovis, Portales, and Hobbs, New Mexico.

The Llano Estacado is slightly larger in area than the state of Indiana. The southern extension of the High Plains, the region is some 250 miles north to south and 200 miles east to west. The roads are straight and meet mostly at right angles. Cotton is an essential crop with irrigation, but faces declining prices at times on the world market. The Llano Estacado is sometimes humorously described as "85 percent sky and 15 percent grassland."[24]

Notable lawmakers include George H. Mahon, Kent Hance, and Robert L. Duncan. The area has a large number of churches per capita. Lubbock, known for a wide variety of denominations, also holds the distinction of being the most populous city on the High Plains from the Dakotas through Texas. Prohibition did not end on the Texas Plains in 1933 with repeal of the Eighteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, but continued for years at the county level. Even in 2010, some forty Texas counties, most in the Llano Estacado, remain officially "dry" to the sale of alcoholic beverages.[24]

Geology

The Ogallala Formation is a wedge of sediments built up eastward of the Rocky Mountains as they were uplifted in the Miocene, with the consequent alluvial fans referred to as the "Gangplank".[4]: 356  The Ogallala Aquifer is the main freshwater source for the region and consists of braided stream deposits filling in valleys during humid climatic conditions, followed by a sub-humid to arid climate and thick eolian (wind-blown) sand and silt.[4]: 356  Caliche layers cap the Ogallala, which reflect today's arid conditions.[4]: 356  Pleistocene rainfall over the flat terrain caused water to pond at the surface, resulting in a High Plains characteristic, innumerable round ponds called playa lakes.[4]: 357  Spearing goes on to say,

When the weather is dry, they are dusty, round, gray, usually unvegetated flats, as observed from the highway. But after a High Plains thunderstorm, water quickly fills the ponds, only later soaking into the underlying porous sandstones just below the surface to add to the groundwater in the Ogallala aquifer. Early pioneers depended dearly on water from these surface ponds for themselves and their livestock, considering how few streams are on the High Plains. But rains didn't always come, and the ponds dried up frequently. The 20th century has witnessed a concerted effort to tap the more reliable Ogallala water sands. Predictably, the consequent high dependency on groundwater has removed more water than is naturally replaced, raising concern for Panhandle citizens and planners as to future water supplies.[4]: 357 

The Pecos and Canadian rivers have eroded the Llano Estacado region down to the Triassic and Permian redbeds resulting in a distinctive color contrast besides separating it from source rocks in the Rocky Mountains.[25]

Economy

 
Agricultural land and canyons on the eastern side of the Llano Estacado

The economy of the Llano Estacado is predominantly agricultural, with farming of various crops prevalent, as is cattle ranching. Oil and gas production is also prevalent on the Llano Estacado.[citation needed]

Overuse of the aquifer in the past has persuaded some farmers to return to dryland crops, leading to less rainwater reaching the playas.[26]

"Cotton, grain sorghum, corn, wheat, peanuts, sunflowers, grapes, vegetables, and cattle produced in the region literally go around the world. Their economic impact on our area is in the billions of dollars ... and the availability of water is a key factor influencing the region's agribusiness economy."[27]

One of the largest economic drivers on the Llano Estacado is in energy production, with the region experiencing significant activity for producing oil and natural gas associated with the Permian Basin. Additionally, solar and wind farms have proliferated on the Llano Estacado due to the region's dry and windy climate making it a favorable location for the production of renewable energy.[citation needed]

In popular culture

  • The 2020 song "West Texas In My Eye" by The Panhandlers features the lyrics, "Where the Llano Estacado rises up to meet the sky/I ain't crying, that's West Texas in my eye."[28]
  • María Dolores Gonzales wrote a creative nonfiction memoir about her time in Llano Estacado, called Atop the Windmill: I Could See Forever.[29]
  • The region is mentioned in the song “Sweet Amarillo” by the band Old Crow Medicine Show.
  • It is possible, but unverifiable, that the region is the origin for the term ‘the sticks’, which refers to a rural, undeveloped area.

See also

References

  1. ^ Cummins, W.F., 1892. Report on the geography, topography, and geology of the Llano Estacado or Staked Plains with notes on the geology of the country west of the Plains. In: Dumble, E.T. (Ed.), Third annual report of the Geological Survey of Texas 1891. Austin: Henry Hutchings, State Printer, pp. 129-223.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Leatherwood, Art (June 15, 2010). "Llano Estacado". Handbook of Texas Online. Texas State Historical Association.
  3. ^ Wendorf, F., 1961. Paleoecology of the Llano Estacado, Vol. 1, Santa Fe: NM, The Museum of New Mexico Press, Fort Burgwin Research Center Publication
  4. ^ a b c d e f g Spearing, Darwin (1991). Roadside Geology of Texas. Missoula, Mont.: Mountain Press Publishing Company. ISBN 0-8784-2265-X.
  5. ^ Richardson, Albert (1867). Beyond the Mississippi: From the Great River to the Great Ocean. Hartford, Conn.: American Publishing Company. p. 232. ISBN 9780598277770. Retrieved 19 August 2021.
  6. ^ Laprade, Kerby E. (1957). "Dust-Storm Sediments of Lubbock Area, Texas". AAPG Bulletin. 41 (4): 709–726. doi:10.1306/0BDA5852-16BD-11D7-8645000102C1865D.
  7. ^ Stout, John E. (November 2015). "Diurnal patterns of blowing dust on the Llano Estacado". Journal of Arid Environments. 122: 85–92. Bibcode:2015JArEn.122...85S. doi:10.1016/j.jaridenv.2015.06.013.
  8. ^ Bolen, Eric G.; Smith, Loren M.; Schramm, Harold L. (October 1989). "Playa Lakes: Prairie Wetlands of the Southern High Plains". BioScience. 39 (9): 615–623. doi:10.2307/1311091. JSTOR 1311091.
  9. ^ Proctor, Vernon W. (January 1990). "Characeae of Llano Estacado (Texas and Adjacent New Mexico) Playas". Journal of Biogeography. 17 (1): 75–84. doi:10.2307/2845189. JSTOR 2845189.
  10. ^ "Texas Conservation Action Plan Ecoregions" (PDF). As depicted by the southern half of the High Plains--in conjunction with an aerial map of the region: Texas Parks and Wildlife Department. 20 May 2011. Retrieved 1 October 2013.
  11. ^ "Ecoregions of Texas" (PDF). As depicted by items 25i,25j,25k on the map in conjunction with a county names map: U.S. Geological Survey. Retrieved 1 October 2013.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: location (link)[permanent dead link]
  12. ^ Rand McNally the road atlas 2010 : United States/Canada/Mexico. Chicago: Rand McNally. 2010. pp. 68, 98. ISBN 978-0528942488.
  13. ^ 300 Spanish leagues ≈ 780 mi or 1,255 km
  14. ^ Hämäläinen, Pekka (2008). The Comanche Empire. Yale University Press. pp. 36–37, 334–339. ISBN 978-0-300-12654-9. Online at Google Books
  15. ^ a b Ford, J.S., 1963, Rip Ford's Texas. Austin: University of Texas Press, ISBN 0292770340
  16. ^ Plummer, R. (1839). Narrative of the Capture and Subsequent Sufferings. Morning Courier Office. ASIN B0006CIXBU.
  17. ^ William T. Hagan, Charles Goodnight: Father of the Texas Panhandle (Norman, Oklahoma: University of Oklahoma Press, 2007), pp. 30-31
  18. ^ Neighbors, K.F., 1975, Robert Neighbors and the Texas Frontier, 1836-1859, Waco: Texian Press
  19. ^ Lehmann, H., 1927, 9 Years Among the Indians, 1870-1879, Albuquerque, University of New Mexico Press, ISBN 0826314171
  20. ^ Carter, R.G., On the Border with Mackenzie, 1935, Washington D.C.: Eynon Printing Co., p. 187
  21. ^ Carter, Robert Goldthwaite (2007). On the border with Mackenzie, or, Winning west Texas from the Comanches. Austin: Texas State Historical Association. ISBN 978-0876112465.
  22. ^ Dixon, O. (1914). Life and Adventures of "Billy" Dixon. Guthrie: Co-operative Publishing Company. p. 181. ASIN B000ZBYIZM.
  23. ^ Goodnight, C., The Making of a Scout, manuscript, Panhandle Plains Historical Museum, Canyon, Texas
  24. ^ a b Stephen D. Bogener, West Texas A&M University, "High and Dry on the Llano Estacado: Religion, Morality, Alcohol on the High Plains", West Texas Historical Association annual meeting in Fort Worth, Texas, February 26, 2010
  25. ^ Calvert, J.B., The Llano Estacado, University of Denver, 1999
  26. ^ Playa Lakes United States Environmental Protection Agency. Retrieved: 2012-10-15.
  27. ^ Llano Estacado Regional Water Planning Group
  28. ^ "Lyrics". The Panhandlers. Retrieved 2022-04-05.
  29. ^ Gonzales, María Dolores. "Atop the Windmill I Could See Forever". Amazon.

External links

 
Wikimedia Commons has media related to
Llano Estacado.
  • Public domain photos of the Llano Estacado
  • "The Definition of 'Llano Estacado' in the U.S. and Around the World", ThoughtCo.
  • El Llano Estacado: The Vast, Staked, Palisaded Plain
  • Detailed map of the Llano Estacado in KML (Google Earth) format

April 09, 2023
llano, estacado, spanish, ˈʝano, estaˈkaðo, sometimes, translated, into, english, staked, plains, region, southwestern, united, states, that, encompasses, parts, eastern, mexico, northwestern, texas, largest, mesas, tablelands, north, american, continent, elev. The Llano Estacado Spanish ˈʝano estaˈkado sometimes translated into English as the Staked Plains 2 is a region in the Southwestern United States that encompasses parts of eastern New Mexico and northwestern Texas One of the largest mesas or tablelands on the North American continent 2 the elevation rises from 3 000 feet 900 m in the southeast to over 5 000 feet 1 500 m in the northwest sloping almost uniformly at about 10 feet per mile 2 m km 3 Llano Estacado Staked Plains 1 Southwestern United StatesNorthwest escarpment of the Llano EstacadoShaded relief image of the Llano Estacado The escarpments marking the eastern edge of the Llano are visible running roughly in a north south line through the middle of the Panhandle The western edge is on the New Mexico side of the border with the Texas New Mexico border running considerably closer to the western edge of the Llano than to the eastern Coordinates 33 N 102 W 33 N 102 W 33 102 Coordinates 33 N 102 W 33 N 102 W 33 102Country United StatesStateNew Mexico and TexasArea Total97 000 km2 37 000 sq mi Population 2013 Total1 230 000 Density13 km2 33 sq mi Contents 1 Naming 2 Geography and climate 3 History 4 Geology 5 Economy 6 In popular culture 7 See also 8 References 9 External linksNaming EditThe Spanish name Llano Estacado is often interpreted as meaning Staked Plains although stockaded or palisaded plains have also been proposed 2 4 355 in which case the name would derive from the steep escarpments on the eastern northern and western periphery of the plains Leatherwood writes that Francisco Coronado and other European explorers described the Mescalero Ridge on the western boundary as resembling palisades ramparts or stockades of a fort but does not present the original Spanish 2 In Beyond the Mississippi 1867 Albert D Richardson who traversed the region from east to west in October 1859 wrote that the ancient Mexicans marked a route with stakes over this vast desert and hence its name 5 Other sources refer to stakes used to mark routes on the featureless plain often meaning piles of stone bone and cow dung Leatherwood opines in the Handbook of Texas that such way markers could plausibly explain the origin of the name but that the comparison of cliff formations and palisades made by explorers argues more convincingly for the geological origin 2 In his Roadside Geology of Texas Geologist Darwin Spearing also prefers the geological solution to the etymology The Staked Plains tale is deeply entrenched in Texas mythology but the real interpretation of Llano Estacado is sensible geologic it means stockaded or palisaded plains which is precisely how the edge of the plains appear when viewed from below the caprock 4 355 Geography and climate Edit The northern edge of the Llano Estacado in New Mexico The Llano Estacado lies at the southern end of the Western High Plains ecoregion of the Great Plains of North America it is part of what was once called the Great American Desert The Canadian River forms the Llano s northern boundary separating it from the rest of the High Plains To the east the Caprock Escarpment a precipitous cliff about 300 feet 100 m high lies between the Llano and the red Permian plains of Texas while to the west the Mescalero Escarpment demarcates the eastern edge of the Pecos River valley The Llano has no natural southern boundary instead blending into the Edwards Plateau near Big Spring Texas This geographic area stretches about 250 miles 400 km north to south and 150 miles 240 km east to west a total area of some 37 500 square miles 97 000 km2 larger than Indiana and 12 other states It covers all or part of 33 Texas counties and four New Mexico counties 2 The area is susceptible to frequent dust storms because of its low relief frequent turbulent winds lack of vegetation and loose topsoil 6 7 The landscape is dotted by numerous small playa lakes depressions that seasonally fill with water and provide habitat for waterfowl 8 9 The Llano Estacado has a cold semiarid climate Koppen BSk characterized by long hot summers and cold winters Rainfall is relatively low the entire region receives fewer than 23 in 580 mm of rainfall annually and the western part receives as little as 14 in 360 mm High summer temperatures average high July temperature above 90 F or 32 C mean that most of the small amount of precipitation is lost to evaporation making dryland farming difficult 2 The Texas State Historical Society states it covers all or part of 33 Texas counties six fewer than as depicted by a US Geological Survey map and four New Mexico counties 2 As depicted by a US Geological Survey map the Llano Estacado includes all or part of these Texas counties 10 11 Andrews Armstrong northwest northcentral and far southwest portions Bailey Borden far northwestern portion Briscoe western portion Carson Castro Cochran Crane northern half Crosby northwest through northeast portions Dawson southern and eastern portions Deaf Smith entire county except northwest portion Dickens northwest portion Ector Floyd all but the far northeast portion Gaines Garza western portion Glasscock Gray west and north portions Hale Hockley Howard western half Lamb Lubbock Lynn Midland Martin Oldham south central to southeast portions Parmer Potter southern portion Randall Reagan northwestern to far northeastern corner Roberts south central portion Swisher Terry Upton northern half Ward northeastern portion Winkler eastern half YoakumIt also includes all or part of the following New Mexico counties Curry Lea Quay RooseveltSeveral interstate highways serve the Llano Estacado Interstate 40 crosses the northern portion from east of Amarillo to Tucumcari New Mexico Interstate 27 runs north south between Amarillo and Lubbock while Interstate 20 passes through the southern portion of the Llano Estacado west of Midland and Odessa 12 History EditSpanish conquistador Francisco Coronado the first European to traverse this sea of grass in 1541 described it as follows I reached some plains so vast that I did not find their limit anywhere I went although I traveled over them for more than 300 leagues with no more land marks than if we had been swallowed up by the sea there was not a stone nor bit of rising ground nor a tree nor a shrub nor anything to go by 2 13 In the early 18th century the Comanches expanded their territory into the Llano Estacado displacing the Apaches who had previously lived there The region became part of the Comancheria a Comanche stronghold until the final defeat of the tribe in the late 19th century 14 The Comanche war trail extended from Llano Estacado to the Rio Grande into Chihuahua the trail ran southwesterly through Big Spring to the Horsehead Crossing of the Pecos River then forked southward to the Comanche Springs where it divided one part of the trail crossing the great river near Boquillas and the other at Presidio 15 122 Rachel Plummer while a captive of the Comanche in 1836 mentioned the table lands between Austin and Santa Fe 16 Robert Neighbors and Rip Ford guided by Buffalo Hump blazed the upper route trail from San Antonio to El Paso in 1849 for emigrants during the California Gold Rush travelling across an elevated plateau almost covered by rock 15 114 and 121 After his 1852 expedition to explore the headwaters of the Red and Colorado Rivers General Randolph Marcy wrote not a tree shrub or any other herbage to intercept the vision the almost total absence of water causes all animals to shun it even the Indians do not venture to cross it except at two or three places 2 In his report for the United States Army When we were upon the high table land a view presented itself as boundless as the ocean Not a tree shrub or any other object either animate or inanimate relieved the dreary monotony of the prospect it was a vast illimitable expanse of desert prairie the great Sahara of North America it is a region almost as vast and trackless as the ocean a land where no man either savage or civilized permanently abides a treeless desolate waste of uninhabitable solitude which always has been and must continue uninhabited forever 17 During the 1854 Marcy Neighbors expedition Dr George Getz Shumard noted Beyond the mountain appeared a line of high bluffs the Llano Estacado which in the distance looked like clouds floating upon the horizon 18 145 Herman Lehmann was captured by the Apache in 1870 and described the Llano Estacado as open but not exactly a desert 19 Robert G Carter described it in 1871 while pursuing Quanah Parker with Ranald S Mackenzie all were over and out of the canyon upon what appeared to be a vast almost illimitable expanse of prairie As far as the eye could reach not a bush or tree a twig or stone not an object of any kind or a living thing was in sight It stretched out before us one uninterrupted plain only to be compared to the ocean in its vastness 20 In August 1872 Mackenzie was the first to successfully lead troops across the Staked Plains preparatory to the Battle of the North Fork of the Red River 21 Billy Dixon described the area while hunting buffalo in June 1874 All of us hunters acquainted with the habits of the buffalo knew that the herds would soon be coming north from the Staked Plains region where they had spent the winter moved by that strange impulse that caused them to change their home and blacken the Plains with their countless moving forms 22 Zane Grey in his novel The Thundering Herd 1925 offered the following explanation for the name Llano Estacado Thet name Llano Estacado means Staked Plain said the Texan It comes from the early days when the Spanish Trail from Santa Fe to San Antone was marked by palos or stakes There was only two trails across in them days an I reckon no more now Only the Indians know this plain well an they only run in heah to hide awhile Water an grass are plentiful in some parts an then there s stretches of seventy miles dry an bare as a bone In the latter part of the 19th century the Llano was a refuge for the bands of Kiowas and Comanches who did not wish to be confined to reservations in Indian Territory in present day Oklahoma One of their last battles against the US Army was fought on 28 September 1874 in the Battle of Palo Duro Canyon Charles Goodnight described what it takes to be a scout the trained ear should be able to tell the sound whether it was made by man or beast or bird as a human voice echoes more than all others of course on the Staked Plains we have not this advantage as there is nothing to create an echo 23 Today most of the area s population is localized in the principal cities of Amarillo Lubbock Midland and Odessa Texas The vast majority of the area is rural covered by large ranches and irrigated farms Several small to medium sized towns do exist however including Andrews Hereford Plainview Levelland and Lamesa Texas and Clovis Portales and Hobbs New Mexico The Llano Estacado is slightly larger in area than the state of Indiana The southern extension of the High Plains the region is some 250 miles north to south and 200 miles east to west The roads are straight and meet mostly at right angles Cotton is an essential crop with irrigation but faces declining prices at times on the world market The Llano Estacado is sometimes humorously described as 85 percent sky and 15 percent grassland 24 Notable lawmakers include George H Mahon Kent Hance and Robert L Duncan The area has a large number of churches per capita Lubbock known for a wide variety of denominations also holds the distinction of being the most populous city on the High Plains from the Dakotas through Texas Prohibition did not end on the Texas Plains in 1933 with repeal of the Eighteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution but continued for years at the county level Even in 2010 some forty Texas counties most in the Llano Estacado remain officially dry to the sale of alcoholic beverages 24 Map of Texas counties with population density Lubbock Texas the largest city on the Llano A shot of downtown Amarillo Texas Midland The Tall City of West Texas Downtown OdessaGeology Edit Caprock Escarpment south of Ralls Texas The Ogallala Formation is a wedge of sediments built up eastward of the Rocky Mountains as they were uplifted in the Miocene with the consequent alluvial fans referred to as the Gangplank 4 356 The Ogallala Aquifer is the main freshwater source for the region and consists of braided stream deposits filling in valleys during humid climatic conditions followed by a sub humid to arid climate and thick eolian wind blown sand and silt 4 356 Caliche layers cap the Ogallala which reflect today s arid conditions 4 356 Pleistocene rainfall over the flat terrain caused water to pond at the surface resulting in a High Plains characteristic innumerable round ponds called playa lakes 4 357 Spearing goes on to say When the weather is dry they are dusty round gray usually unvegetated flats as observed from the highway But after a High Plains thunderstorm water quickly fills the ponds only later soaking into the underlying porous sandstones just below the surface to add to the groundwater in the Ogallala aquifer Early pioneers depended dearly on water from these surface ponds for themselves and their livestock considering how few streams are on the High Plains But rains didn t always come and the ponds dried up frequently The 20th century has witnessed a concerted effort to tap the more reliable Ogallala water sands Predictably the consequent high dependency on groundwater has removed more water than is naturally replaced raising concern for Panhandle citizens and planners as to future water supplies 4 357 The Pecos and Canadian rivers have eroded the Llano Estacado region down to the Triassic and Permian redbeds resulting in a distinctive color contrast besides separating it from source rocks in the Rocky Mountains 25 Economy Edit Agricultural land and canyons on the eastern side of the Llano Estacado The economy of the Llano Estacado is predominantly agricultural with farming of various crops prevalent as is cattle ranching Oil and gas production is also prevalent on the Llano Estacado citation needed Overuse of the aquifer in the past has persuaded some farmers to return to dryland crops leading to less rainwater reaching the playas 26 Wind turbines Cotton grain sorghum corn wheat peanuts sunflowers grapes vegetables and cattle produced in the region literally go around the world Their economic impact on our area is in the billions of dollars and the availability of water is a key factor influencing the region s agribusiness economy 27 One of the largest economic drivers on the Llano Estacado is in energy production with the region experiencing significant activity for producing oil and natural gas associated with the Permian Basin Additionally solar and wind farms have proliferated on the Llano Estacado due to the region s dry and windy climate making it a favorable location for the production of renewable energy citation needed In popular culture EditThe 2020 song West Texas In My Eye by The Panhandlers features the lyrics Where the Llano Estacado rises up to meet the sky I ain t crying that s West Texas in my eye 28 Maria Dolores Gonzales wrote a creative nonfiction memoir about her time in Llano Estacado called Atop the Windmill I Could See Forever 29 The region is mentioned in the song Sweet Amarillo by the band Old Crow Medicine Show It is possible but unverifiable that the region is the origin for the term the sticks which refers to a rural undeveloped area See also Edit Texas portalCaprock Canyons State Park and Trailway Caprock Chief Canyon Valley Double Mountain Fork Brazos River Duffy s Peak Estacado Texas List of geographical regions in Texas Mushaway Peak Mount Blanco Ogallala Aquifer Palo Duro Canyon Prairie Dog Town Fork Red River Salt Fork Brazos River Settles Hotel Yellow House CanyonReferences Edit Cummins W F 1892 Report on the geography topography and geology of the Llano Estacado or Staked Plains with notes on the geology of the country west of the Plains In Dumble E T Ed Third annual report of the Geological Survey of Texas 1891 Austin Henry Hutchings State Printer pp 129 223 a b c d e f g h i j Leatherwood Art June 15 2010 Llano Estacado Handbook of Texas Online Texas State Historical Association Wendorf F 1961 Paleoecology of the Llano Estacado Vol 1 Santa Fe NM The Museum of New Mexico Press Fort Burgwin Research Center Publication a b c d e f g Spearing Darwin 1991 Roadside Geology of Texas Missoula Mont Mountain Press Publishing Company ISBN 0 8784 2265 X Richardson Albert 1867 Beyond the Mississippi From the Great River to the Great Ocean Hartford Conn American Publishing Company p 232 ISBN 9780598277770 Retrieved 19 August 2021 Laprade Kerby E 1957 Dust Storm Sediments of Lubbock Area Texas AAPG Bulletin 41 4 709 726 doi 10 1306 0BDA5852 16BD 11D7 8645000102C1865D Stout John E November 2015 Diurnal patterns of blowing dust on the Llano Estacado Journal of Arid Environments 122 85 92 Bibcode 2015JArEn 122 85S doi 10 1016 j jaridenv 2015 06 013 Bolen Eric G Smith Loren M Schramm Harold L October 1989 Playa Lakes Prairie Wetlands of the Southern High Plains BioScience 39 9 615 623 doi 10 2307 1311091 JSTOR 1311091 Proctor Vernon W January 1990 Characeae of Llano Estacado Texas and Adjacent New Mexico Playas Journal of Biogeography 17 1 75 84 doi 10 2307 2845189 JSTOR 2845189 Texas Conservation Action Plan Ecoregions PDF As depicted by the southern half of the High Plains in conjunction with an aerial map of the region Texas Parks and Wildlife Department 20 May 2011 Retrieved 1 October 2013 Ecoregions of Texas PDF As depicted by items 25i 25j 25k on the map in conjunction with a county names map U S Geological Survey Retrieved 1 October 2013 a href Template Cite web html title Template Cite web cite web a CS1 maint location link permanent dead link Rand McNally the road atlas 2010 United States Canada Mexico Chicago Rand McNally 2010 pp 68 98 ISBN 978 0528942488 300 Spanish leagues 780 mi or 1 255 km Hamalainen Pekka 2008 The Comanche Empire Yale University Press pp 36 37 334 339 ISBN 978 0 300 12654 9 Online at Google Books a b Ford J S 1963 Rip Ford s Texas Austin University of Texas Press ISBN 0292770340 Plummer R 1839 Narrative of the Capture and Subsequent Sufferings Morning Courier Office ASIN B0006CIXBU William T Hagan Charles Goodnight Father of the Texas Panhandle Norman Oklahoma University of Oklahoma Press 2007 pp 30 31 Neighbors K F 1975 Robert Neighbors and the Texas Frontier 1836 1859 Waco Texian Press Lehmann H 1927 9 Years Among the Indians 1870 1879 Albuquerque University of New Mexico Press ISBN 0826314171 Carter R G On the Border with Mackenzie 1935 Washington D C Eynon Printing Co p 187 Carter Robert Goldthwaite 2007 On the border with Mackenzie or Winning west Texas from the Comanches Austin Texas State Historical Association ISBN 978 0876112465 Dixon O 1914 Life and Adventures of Billy Dixon Guthrie Co operative Publishing Company p 181 ASIN B000ZBYIZM Goodnight C The Making of a Scout manuscript Panhandle Plains Historical Museum Canyon Texas a b Stephen D Bogener West Texas A amp M University High and Dry on the Llano Estacado Religion Morality Alcohol on the High Plains West Texas Historical Association annual meeting in Fort Worth Texas February 26 2010 Calvert J B The Llano Estacado University of Denver 1999 Playa Lakes United States Environmental Protection Agency Retrieved 2012 10 15 Llano Estacado Regional Water Planning Group Lyrics The Panhandlers Retrieved 2022 04 05 Gonzales Maria Dolores Atop the Windmill I Could See Forever Amazon External links Edit Wikimedia Commons has media related to Llano Estacado Public domain photos of the Llano Estacado The Definition of Llano Estacado in the U S and Around the World ThoughtCo El Llano Estacado The Vast Staked Palisaded Plain Detailed map of the Llano Estacado in KML Google Earth format Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Llano Estacado amp oldid 1145499826, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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