Henrietta Maria Chamberlain King was an American rancher. Her mother died when she was three years old. King became self-reliant at an early age. Her father was a missionary. She was often left alone in their home, being an only child.
In 1849, King’s father went to Brownsville, Texas to begin a Presbyterian mission; and King went with him. While there, King taught at the Rio Grande Female Institute. In 1854, she married Richard King. The young couple lived in small hut located in a cattle ranch in Santa Gertrudis Creek. This ranch grew to 53,000 acres in time.
The King’s ranch became the receiver of the cotton of the Confederacy, who were moving to Mexico during the Civil War. The cotton were shipped to England. In 1863, the ranch was captured by the Union troops. Richard had to escape to avoid being captured. King and her five children fled to San Antonio. King became the sole owner of the ranch in 1868 where she raised horses, cattle, goats and sheep.
King and her son-in-law Robert Justus Kleberg managed the ranch well and experimented on several breeding programs. When King died in March 1925, the ranch measured 500,000 acres.
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