Wild West

STAMPEDES!

Stampedes—whether of cattle, horses or buffalo—weren’t uncommon out West, but most would agree that two stampedes in the very same spot, nearly four decades apart, is certainly unusual. But that’s just what happened at aptly named Stampede Creek in Bell County, Texas. A historical marker on a farm road near Moody commemorates the site of both the first stampede on June 4, 1839, six years before the Republic of Texas was admitted to the Union as the 28th state, and the second stampede on July 4, 1876, the centennial of the United States.

The 1839 stampede came in the aftermath of a bitter fight on Bird Creek between Texas

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