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By Chester Moore, Jr.
 The YO Ranch and surrounding Texas Hill Country has a rich, colorful history.
In 1880, Captain Charles Schreiner purchased a ranch from J.W. Taylor and James Clements. In so doing, he also acquired a herd of valuable Texas Longhorn cattle. These cattle carried the YO brand which could have belonged to a local rancher named Youngs O. Coleman, but there is no written record to verify this.
The YO brand has been in the Schreiner Family ever since, and today symbolizes the YO Ranch and has become a registered trademark.
In his heyday, Captain Schreiner traveled the Western trails and drove as many as 300,000 Longhorns to the big markets in Dodge City, Kansas. These cattle drives earned him fortunes and allowed him to create an empire that at one time covered as many as 550,000 acres. That's almost 1,000 square miles.
During the last 120 years the YO Ranch has changed dramatically. After selling off most of the acreage, the Schreiner family now owns "only" 40,000 acres. The YO still maintains a herd of more than 1,000 registered Longhorns which is one of the largest herds in the world.
One of the most popular attractions at the YO is the annual cattle drive where average citizens get to participate in a legitimate cattle round up. Ranch officials say this event really took off once the movie "City Slickers" came out back in the mid 90s.
The YO is considered the premier breeder of exotic game animals with more than 50 species roaming the ranch. The YO's success at breeding exotic animals is famous and is linked directly to the variety of habitat found on the ranch.
When blackbuck antelope were first brought to the ranch in the 1940s, they were common in the native land of India. Now they're endangered. In fact, there may be as many blackbuck on the YO as there are in India. In the 1970s and 1980s, YO officials were involved in a program with the Indian government to stock Texas blackbuck back in India. They've also engaged in successful breeding of the scimitar-horned oryx, a species of antelope now extinct in Africa. Hundreds of these regal animals roam the vast acreage.
According to the Kerrville Chamber of Commerce, the area surrounding the YO is rich in Native American culture. "As Evidenced by campfire sites and burned rock mounds, the land in and around the area known as Kerr County was a favorite hunting ground for the Apache, Comanche and Kiowa Indians. Fertile soil and cypress timbers in the Guadalupe Basin also drew many settlers to the area."
"One settler was Charles Armand Schreiner, who immigrated from Germany with his family in 1852. After buying land in Kerr County, he began raising cattle. In 1880 he sent 1,500 head of cattle to Dodge City, and the last cattle drive was in September of 1941."
"After the Civil War, his son, Captain Charles Schreiner, joined with his brother-in-law Casper Real at Turtle Creek to begin a ranch. Using the power and availability of the Guadalupe River, he started many industries, one of which was a flour mill and cotton gin in downtown Kerrville."
"The sheep and goat industry has been a maintstay of the Hill Country since the early part of the century. Rolling hills, fresh water springs, dense cedar breaks and live oak trees and shin oak thickets provided the perfect pasturage, turning the wool and industry into a major source of income for many ranchers."
 At the turn of the 20th century, Kerr County was the healthiest spot in the nation according to the National Health Bureau, an opinion upheld by the Rockafeller Foundation in 1920. Part of this designation had to do with the various recreational opportunities available there including numerous kids camps. Children rode the Southern Pacific Railroad, which established an "end of the line" depot in Kerrville, a 12-hour trip from Dallas or Houston to visit these camps. Parents often stayed while their children were in camp, establishing Kerr County as a relaxing vacation spot. Today more than 50,000 kids stay at camps in Kerr County annually.
Today Industries include Mooney Aircraft, James Avery Silversmith. Major annual event is Texas State Arts & Crafts Fair, Memorial Day weekend, provides opportunity to see works of more than 200 of Texas' finest artists and craftsmen. Music festivals featuring folk and country/western stars are held 18 days in May & June, and on Labor Day weekend at Quiet Valley Ranch south of Kerrville.
Texas is a state rich with symbols. In fact Texans seem to have symbols and mascots for virtually everything. The following is a list for some of the official Texas state symbols.
Bird: Mockingbird
Tree: Pecan
Flower: Bluebonnet
Gemstone: Blue Topaz
State Dish: Chili
Song: "Texas Our Texas"
Insect: Monarch Butterfly
Small Mammal: Armadillo
Large Mammal: Longhorn
Motto: "Friendship"
Nickname: "The Lone Star State"
Time Zone: Central & Mountain
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