[5] Apache and Comanche peoples roamed the high plains until various military expeditions of the 19th century pushed them away.

The Red River War of 1874 was a military campaign to drive out the Apaches, Comanches, and Kiowas in Texas.

[6] In 1877, the ill-fated Nolan Expedition crossed the county in search of livestock stolen by Comanche renegades.

[7] The various Indian tribes had moved on by the time of white settlement due to the depletion of the buffalo herds by hunters.

[8] In the early 1880s, sheep and cattle ranchers began to set up operations in the county.

W C. Young of Fort Worth and Illinois Irishman Ben Galbraith established the beginnings of the Curry Comb Ranch in the northwest part of Garza County.

The county remained sparsely settled ranching territory for two decades after 1880.

Farmers began to move into the county and invest in corn, grains, and cotton.

Wilson, 13 miles (21 km) northeast of Tahoka, was established in 1912 to attract farmers to the newly opened lands of the Dixie Ranch.

Farmers later expanded to wheat and sorghum, plus cattle, sheep, hogs, and poultry, chiefly chickens and turkeys.