Bandera, Texas USA

Bandera, Texas USA. Cowboy Capital of the World. , The town of Bandera was named by Indians. In 1870, a young boy, Herman Lehman, was captured by the Apaches and later lived with the Comanches. At the age of 65 he told this story to Bandera historian J. Marvin Hunter: Lehman said the Comanches told him the Indians named Bandera. After the 1732 battle at Bandera Pass between the Apaches and Spaniards, a council was held and a treaty was made. In token of the agreement, a "Red Flag" was placed on the highest peak of the pass as a warning to both parties. In 1841, at the same pass, a regiment of 40 Texas Rangers led by Captain John Coffee Hayes was attacked by Comanches. The rangers were armed with the new "Colt Six-Shooters" and defeated the Comanches. After the battle, Indians would gather on the hills surrounding Bandera, point their arrows at the tiny town, and say "Bandera," a Spanish word meaning flag. The town of Bandera was founded in the early 1800s by Charles D. Montel, John James, and John Herndon. It has been a historic cowboy town of cattle drives, saloons, dance halls, and gunfights. From the early 1900s, Bandera has been known throughout the USA, Canada, and the world, as the "Cowboy Capital of the World."