Members of the Dawson family are descendants of John B. Dawson, a successful cattleman who operated cattle ranches in Texas, New Mexico and Colorado. The boundaries of Dawson's ranch on the Vermejo River in New Mexico, which was carved out of the Maxwell Land Grant of 1844, became hotly contested once enormous coal deposits were discovered beneath the soil. Litigation and drought eventually forced Dawson to sell the land in 1901, and he moved his cattle business to Routt County, Colo. Dawson's ranch in Colorado also sat atop substantial coal deposits, and Dawson sold the land in 1915. He died three years later. The family cattle business was carried on by Si Dawson, one of John B. Dawson's sons. In 1918, Si Dawson moved his family to Brazil where he had accepted a position as superintendent of a large ranch named Fazenda Morungava.
From the description of Papers, 1852-1950. (University of California, San Diego). WorldCat record id: 37788614
