04/21/08 King Ranch legacy part one

No one really knows what the "Running W" brand stands for, some think it symbolizes the horns of long horn cattle, others a figurative diamond back rattlesnake. Irregardless, if you are lucky enough to own a horse with this brand you share in the rich legacy of the West. I'm Jeff Keane and I will be back with more on America's Ranching history. The Running W made famous by the King Ranch in Texas has come to mean far more than quality horses and cattle, it symbolizes what many consider to be the beginning of American cattle ranching, Here Susan Allen with the King Legacy. Jeff, Capt. Richard King was a visionary. In 1853 riding through scrub land dubbed the "desert of the dead " between Corpus Christi and Brownsville Texas, he saw opportunity not only in gathering the wild longhorns but also in the people, the vaqueros that would come to be known as Kineno's meaning generations of Hispanics that lived out their lives on the King Ranch. While he was credited for many firsts in the cattle and horse industry, Capt. King is also known for initiating new labor practices; the first time vaqueros received the same wage as cowboys, year round work rather than seasonal and providing less taxing work for elderly ranch hands, rather than firing them. Today Kineno's are proud of their heritage and still well taken care of, with housing, medical and retirement plans even K-8 schooling provided by the King Ranch.