The Farmers' Alliance was founded in central Texas in 1877, through the efforts of farmers at self-protection from 'land sharks,' merchants, horse thieves, and cattle ranchers. The constitution of the initial Texas order, drafted in 1882, denied membership to blacks on the grounds that the Alliance was a social organization "where we meet with our wives and daughters." But, leaders of the Alliance realized that it was impossible to establish a profitable agricultural system while a large black population served as potential competitors and a source of cheap, exploitable labor.