Joseph McCoy (1837-1915) was a 19th century cattle baron. In the 1860's, cattle ranchers in Texas were facing difficulties getting their Longhorn cattle to market. Kansas homesteaders objected to the cattle crossing their land because the cattle might carry ticks which could spread a disease called Texas Fever fatal to some types of cattle. McCoy expected that the railroads companies were interested in expanding their freight operations and he saw this as a good business opportunity. He built a hotel, stockyard, office and bank in a little village along the Union Pacific. This village became known as Abilene, Kansas - one of the first cow towns. His plan was for cattle to be driven to Abilene from Texas and taken from there by rail to bigger cities in The Midwest and The East. He was also the author of Historic Sketches of the Cattle Trade of the West and Southwest (1874).