Cyanotype photograph depicting a dirt-street commercial block on Main Street in Mineola, Texas, a North Texas railroad town closely tied to the regional cattle and beef trade at the turn of the 20th century. The central storefront is clearly identified as J.A. Thomas Meat Market, with a painted longhorn steer prominently displayed on the false-front façade, a visual marker typical of meat markets serving ranching and rail-shipping communities.

A period-typed caption mounted above the image reads, “Main St. in a town in the ‘Beef Country,’ Texas,” language consistent with outsider or documentary labeling and reinforcing the town’s economic identity within North Texas cattle country. The unpaved street, wooden sidewalks, and simple false-front architecture place the scene firmly in the late 1890s to early 1900s, prior to widespread street paving and brick commercial construction.

The image was produced as a cyanotype with a circular vignette, a format commonly used by amateur or travel photographers in the period. Overall condition shows expected toning and minor mounting wear consistent with age. A strong and evocative early Texas streetscape, combining identifiable local commerce with clear regional cattle-industry context.