Loosely organized police force in Texas.
The first members were "minutemen" hired by U.S. settlers as protection against Indian attacks in the 1830s. They did not wear uniforms or salute their officers but were highly disciplined and known for their marksmanship, making the six-shooter (the Colt revolver) the weapon of the West. At their peak in the 1870s, the Rangers brought law and order to hundreds of miles of Texas frontier. In 1935 they were merged with the state highway patrol.