Bison Jay

Cattleman Sheriff

Cattleman and sheriff in 1887 Texas. Cowboy action shooter today.

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The journal

Trail Notes

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Bison Jay standing on a caliche road in central Texas dress

BackstoryAugust 18, 2026

Finding Bison Jay

How a night at the Platte crossing gave Bison Jay his name.

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Longhorn cattle and a calf grazing near a limestone ranch house and corrals in central Texas

ResearchAugust 4, 2026

Reading the Central Texas Range

Water, grazing, and the new railroad town of Goldthwaite in Jay’s backstory.

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A worn ledger, folded map, pencil, and plain sheriff star on a wooden table

From the RangeJuly 19, 2026

What Belongs in a Shooting Ledger

Keeping track of match scores, categories, and the equipment used.

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Longhorn cattle and a calf grazing beneath a live oak near Jay's limestone ranch house

The alias

A cattleman with a sheriff’s star.

Joseph Cox was born the same year as Texas and grew up working cattle. After years on the Kansas trails, a stampede at the Platte crossing earned him the name Bison Jay.

By 1887, he is a cattleman in the Big Valley bottoms and the first sheriff of a county forming around the new railroad town of Goldthwaite.

“A feud eats the men who feed it.”

Meet Bison Jay