A Flavor of the Old West - Bandera, Texas
by Carl Burnham

With its rich history, Bandera is known today as the Cowboy Capital of the World, with ranches all around. It was not always this way though. An old trail near Bandera was used for many years by Indians and later disputed by the Spanish. When a treaty was reached, it is said that a flag was placed on the trail and it became known as Bandera Pass. By the 1850s, settlers began to arrive, especially with calvary forts being established throughout the West for protection against the Indians. One of these forts, Camp Verde, was the site where Jefferson Davis as the head of the Secretary of War, brought in camels to carry supplies along the trails to California prior to the start of the Civil War.

Cowboys later used this trail along with the Western Trail in the large cattle drives which took place. With its rich history, Bandera is known today as the Cowboy Capital of the World, with ranches all around. In the summer, you can tube or canoe down the Medina River. Be sure to stop in at the OST Restaurant for meals fit for a cowboy, with John Wayne and Western memorabilia lining the walls and leather saddles to sit on at the bar. There is the old courthouse in town, along with several antique shops and restaurants, including one in the old bank. Be sure to tour the Frontier Times Museum which stores a rich collection of Western and worldly artifacts. We looked at an ancient wooden throne used by royalty from Venice, Italy dating to the 15th century. There is a shrunken head of a Jibaro Indian girl from Ecuador. Many more fascinating historical finds can be seen from a visit, and a step back in time, to Bandera.