Indian Territory
Cattle Trails
Chapter 11
 Transport
cattle from Texas
to railroad station in Kansas
or Missouri so that cattle
could be taken by train to
large cities in the northeast
Purpose
 eastern
Indian Territory (late
1860s)
 Major rail stop is Kansas City,
MO
Shawnee Trail
 central
Indian Territory (early
1870s)
 Major rail stops are Abilene
and Wichita, KS
Chisholm Trail
 western
Indian Territory
(early 1880s)
 Major rail stop is Dodge City,
KS
Western Trail
A
cattle rancher could earn
$50 to $200 per head when
selling the cattle at the rail
stations.
 Herds along the trails ranged
from 2000 to 4000 head.
Profitable
 Taxes
placed on cattle crossing
through their reservations
 Leasing of land for cattle to graze
 Goods and services sold to the
cattle drovers (cowboys)—hotels,
hot baths, warm meals, items in
general stores, saloons,
prostitutes
Profitable for Indians
 Railroad
construction further
west and further south
 Dawes Act giving Indians
individual plots of land for
farming
 Use of barbed wire to help
protect farmland
End of an Era