DUANE
Duane's take
The official marker tells it this way, and I'm just the one passing it along. Now, eight miles southwest of here, where Salt Prong meets Hubbard Creek, there's a piece of ground that the Confederacy couldn't have done without — and most folks have never heard of it. Trait drives found it first, back in 1861.
Just stumbled across salt deposits sitting right there on the Texas frontier. And you might think, well, salt's salt. But hold on.
Because the very next year, 1862, a man named W. H. Ledbetter looked at what the Civil War was demanding and decided that patch of ground was worth developing — extensively.
Ledbetter put up a large furnace. He had kettles and materials for refining hauled all the way from East Texas by wagon. That's no short haul across that country, friend.
And once the works got going, salt started flowing to Confederate troops west of the Mississippi, to the State Militia, to area ranches, to the towns of the frontier. Now here's where you have to stop and think about what salt actually meant in that world. Smoking or salting were the only ways to preserve meat.
That was it. That was the whole list. When the South levied a meat tithe — a tax paid in meat — someone had to cure that bacon for the military, and you cannot cure bacon without salt.
So this creek bed in Shackelford County? It wasn't a curiosity. It was a lifeline.
And it didn't stop there. Salt was a must for the horses and mules pulling cavalry, artillery, and supply wagons. Hides were preserved with salt to make shoes and harness.
Rangers used it to treat rattlesnake bites and ailments out on the frontier. Settlers rode and drove from a two-hundred-mile radius just to get it — some leaving with saddlebags full, some with whole wagons loaded down. Of course, something that valuable draws attention of the unwanted kind.
The frontier regiment Texas Cavalry was posted to guard the works and the roads from hostile Indians during the war. And the trouble didn't stop when the war did. Indian troubles continued after the war — which tells you something about how exposed and isolated this place really was.
In 1867, the U.S. Army established Fort Griffin nearby, and the works received a loan that would raise an eyebrow today: a six-pounder cannon, loaned for defense. When your salt works needs its own artillery piece, you understand the stakes.
Production at the Ledbetter Salt Works ran all the way until 1880. Nearly two decades of salt pulled out of the Texas earth — for soldiers, for cavalry horses, for boot leather, for bacon, for settlers who rode two hundred miles because they had no other choice. The State of Texas erected this memorial in 1963 to the Texans who served the Confederacy.
But out here on Salt Prong, Hubbard Creek, the story it's really marking is simpler and stranger than most war stories: that a quiet deposit of salt, discovered by trail drivers and worked by one determined man, held together a corner of a war — one kettleful at a time.
What the marker says
Located 8 miles southwest on Salt Prong, Hubbard Creek. Discovered 1861 by trail drives. W. H. Ledbetter began extensive development of deposits in 1862 with increased Civil War demand for salt. A large furnace was built, kettles and materials for refining were brought from East Texas by wagon. Salt in large quantities was furnished Confederate troops west of the Mississippi, State Militia, area ranches and towns. Smoking or salting were only ways to preserve meat. When South levied a meat tithe, salt was vital to cure bacon for military. Back side Ledbetter Salt Works: Salt was a must for horses and mules used by cavalry, artillery and supply wagons. Hides were preserved with salt to make shoes and harness. Rangers used it to treat rattlesnake bites and aliments. Settlers came from a 200 mile radius for salt, taking it by saddlebag and wagon. The frontier regiment Texas Cavalry guarded the works and roads from hostile Indians during the war. Indian troubles continued after the war. In 1867, nearby U.S. Fort Griffin was established, and a "six-pounder" cannon was loaned to the works for defense. Salt was produced until 1880. A Memorial to Texans Who Served the Confederacy Erected by the State of Texas, 1963