A number of problems prevented the cowboys on a trail drive from slipping into a routine. Even though many days on the trail were uneventful, trouble and danger were constant threats—to cowboys and cattle alike.

Rustlers and Other Dangers

Some of the most dangerous hazards faced by Texas trail drivers were human. Cattle rustlers would stampede a herd on purpose, and afterward collect the strays and claim them. In the Indian Territory, an area that is now Oklahoma, Native American nations such as the Cherokee were angry about cattle drives across their land. They had their own cattle and did not want thousands of strange animals passing through, depleting the grazing land.

To even the score, Cherokees along one well-used trail charged trail drivers a toll of 10 cents a head for crossing through their land. They enforced the toll by...