The Active Historian

Hey, friend! Welcome back to another post! Today, I want to show you around the historic Fort Worth Stockyards. I got to go down to Texas in March 2024 for the COWGIRL Magazine 30 Under 30 festivities and saw a lot of cool stuff that I want to tell you about!

I want to say a huge thank you to COWGIRL for including me the 30 Under 30 Class of 2024! Being able to travel to Fort Worth and meet so many incredible people was the opportunity of a lifetime. I will never forget this weekend.

Now, let’s go check out some of the places I went! They are in no particular order.

Hotel: Hyatt Place in the Stockyards

I chose to stay at the Hyatt Place in the Historic Fort Worth Stockyards. I asked my friends on Instagram where the best place to stay was and this hotel popped up more than once. I spent three nights here and was very impressed. The breakfast was good, the service was great and overall the noise level was pretty quiet. Also, the beds in this hotel were probably the most comfortable hotel beds that I have EVER slept on. I would definitely stay here again!

Cattlemen’s Steak House

Y’all. The steak and steak fries at Cattlemen’s Steak House in the Fort Worth Stockyards was so GOOD! The service was amazing and I definitely plan on eating here again when I’m back in Fort Worth.

Trail Boss Burgers

Trail Boss Burgers was another good place to eat. It was close to the hotel and so good that I ate there twice! The service was fast and the staff was very kind. You also get a lot of French fries which I loved, LOL.

The Herd

Twice a day – every single day – drovers drive a herd of longhorn cattle down the middle of the street in the stockyards. It was cool to see so many people excited to watch cowboys!

Fort Worth Live Stock Exchange

This was a super cool building with a ton of cool history! It houses offices, the Texas Trail of Fame honorees and the Stockyards Museum!

Stockyards Museum

The Stockyards Museum is located inside the Live Stock Exchange Building. It was a cool museum and the two ladies working the desk were so kind! The book selection in their gift shop was amazing – I picked up three books on Texas women’s history that I’m super excited to read.

Texas Trail of Fame

The Texas Trail of Fame stars are on the sidewalk throughout the Fort Worth Stockyards! I took pictures of a bunch of them, but know I didn’t come close to getting all of them… The complete list of honorees is inside of the Live Stock Exchange Building along the walls!

John Wayne: An American Experience

John Wayne: An American Experience was a fun museum to visit where you can learn ALL about John Wayne!

Historic Markers in the Stockyards

As a historian, I’m always on the lookout for historic markers whenever I visit somewhere new. Here are a handful of the markers I found!

Mule Alley

This was a super cool street in the Stockyards. You can find food, entertainment and shopping. Most of the events I attended in Fort Worth took place in Mule Alley.

COWGIRL 30 Under 30 events took place at Tannahill’s and Second Rodeo Brewing in Mule Alley.

American Paint Horse Association Horses

I thought the horses in front of the American Paint Horse Association were really cool – so I included a few photos. This is located in the middle of Mule Alley.

Shopping

We also shopped throughout the Stockyards at Cavender’s, Old Gringo, Double D Ranch and Wrangler! These businesses were a few of the sponsors for the weekend.

Concluding Thoughts

I thoroughly enjoyed my weekend in Fort Worth, Texas and can’t wait to go back again soon! I want to note that there are ton of other things for you to do in the Stockyards – I just didn’t have time to do anything else. You can check out travel websites for other activities in and around the Stockyards!

Next time I’m in Fort Worth, I want to see the Texas Cowboy Hall of Fame and the Sid Richardson Museum! I also want to check out the PBR showcase and the rodeo at the Cowtown Coliseum. If you have other suggestions, please send me a message on my contact page because I know I’ll be back soon.

Happy traveling, friend! I’ll talk to ya soon 🙂