Later, during the 17th and 18th centuries, the canyon was a favorite resting place of the buffalo hunters and Indian traders who frequented the Plains. The canyon was also popular during the first half of the 19th century, for it was then that it was occupied by the Comanches and served as a trade center for the Spaniards and Indians who came from New Mexico. These traders, called _comancheros_, bartered for loot taken by the Comanches on their raids of early settlements and wagon trains that passed through the Panhandle-Plains region. This same era marked the beginning of American interest in the Palo Duro country. During this period the area was visited by several expeditions including those of Long and Pike and the Texas-Santa Fe Expedition of 1841. However, the canyon was not fully explored or mapped until 1852. This important survey was carried out by a party which was under the supervision of Captain R. B. Marcy. But it was not until 1876 that the first white man established permanent residence in Palo Duro Canyon. In 1876—just two years after McKenzie’s rout of the Comanches—Colonel Charles Goodnight herded more than 1,600 head of cattle into the canyon. Here he laid out his first permanent ranch and lived in a primitive earthen dugout. Not only was Goodnight’s Palo Duro Ranch the first in the canyon, it is also thought to have been the first commercial cattle ranch in the Texas Panhandle. In later years Colonel Goodnight formed a partnership with John Adair of Ireland, and together they developed the famous JA Ranch—a vast spread of some 600,000 acres. Today’s visitor to Palo Duro Canyon can visit a partially restored dugout similar to that occupied by the canyon’s early settlers (fig. 30). [Illustration: Fig. 3. The face carved on this boulder can be seen along the track of the Sad Monkey Railroad (p. 35). It is believed to have been carved by Indians.] [Illustration: Fig. 4. The war bonnet, war lance, and head feathers of Comanche Chief Quanah Parker can be seen at the Panhandle-Plains Historical Museum in Canyon. (Photograph courtesy Panhandle-Plains Historical Museum.)] From the late 1800s until about 1930, the Palo Duro country remained the domain of the Panhandle-Plains cattleman. It was, nonetheless, a favorite picnic and camping spot of the residents of nearby towns and cities. In 1933 the recreational potential of the canyon was finally recognized and land for the Palo Duro Canyon State Park was purchased by the State of Texas with money obtained through a public revenue bond issue. Today, most of the park revenue received through gate admissions, concession receipts, and mineral leases goes into a fund that pays off the remaining balance of the revenue bonds. During the initial phase of the park’s development, most of the improvements in the area were made by members of the Civilian Conservation Corps who worked under the supervision of the National Park Service.