Where We Are:
The South
Meets the West
The Red River begins in Palo Duro Canyon, just south of Amarillo, Texas. It forms the boundary
between Texas and Oklahoma, then makes a bend in the southwestern region of Arkansas and enters
Louisiana. The river becomes navigable south of Shreveport and, after a series of locks and dams,
merges with the mighty Mississippi.

The landscapes, counties, parishes, towns, cities, and parks around the Red River are filled with
important and tangible history that mirror European westward migration. From Louisiana through
Eastern Texas and Southeastern Oklahoma, a distinct "southern" flair is evident in the towns, homes,
and people. Further west up the river, open prairies and plains, bisected by the forbidding Cross
Timbers, became the domain of cowboys, the Plains Indians, and military forts.
The Red River truly reflects the historical and geographical region where the South met the West.

Two distinct eco-systems converge along the Red River Valley: the open plains of the west
gradually give way to the piney woods of the east. This topographical change is reflected in the
history of the valley, where large cattle ranches upriver are the descendants of the antebellum
cotton plantations downriver.
Oklahoma

Courtesy www.digital-topo-maps.com
Texas

Courtesy
www.digital-topo-maps.com
Louisiana

Courtesy Google County
Maps
Arkansas

Courtesy US Census
Data
In case you're curious about my interests in the Red River Valley:

I have both professional and personal ties to the history along the Red River. The professional stems from my
intense interest in two areas: 1)  Native American's cultural adaptations to the cattle drives ; 2) the location,
economic, and ecological impacts of the Red River Raft.

The personal comes from my father's family's history along the Red River. My father, grandparents, great grand
parents, and several grand uncles and aunts are buried along side the Red River in northern Louisiana. They
emigrated up the river from Mississippi (Natchez and Coles Creek Settlement) after the Civil War. I was born not
far from the river in Paris, Texas, and have a lot of family members who live in the Red River Valley to this day.

This river has defined my family and has captured my imagination!