THE WILD WEST
COWBOYS &
CATTLE DRIVES
THE CATTLE KINGDOM
• The next mass movement of people into the West was
into the Southern Plains area of Texas and surrounding
areas to ranch and herd cattle on what was called the
Cattle Frontier.
• At the end of the Civil War and after the cattle industry in
the East was destroyed by the war and there was a massive
influx of immigrants into the Eastern Coast cities, a new source
of meat (cattle) was needed.
• These conditions and the rising prices in cattle led to cattle herding
on the Great Plains and the growth of the Cattle Kingdom.
THE CATTLE KINGDOM
• The Cattle Kingdom developed on large open field
estates called ranches in Texas.
• The Texas ranchers rounded up
cattle herds that roamed the
area after the Spanish had left
called Texas Longhorns.
wild
• The Texas Longhorns were rough & durable, but were
known as “the butcher’s nightmare: eight pounds of
hamburger on 800 pounds of bone and horn.”
• To identify cattle herds, a brand
burned into the cows side
hot iron poker.
was
with a
THE CATTLE KINGDOM
• The people who worked on the cattle ranches were
mostly Civil War veterans that included Freedmen (blackmen),
Native Americans, and Hispanics known as Cowboys or
Wranglers. (buckaroo, cowpoke, cowhand, and cowpuncher)
• The Cattle were herded on the open range (large public
domain grassland of the Plains) and allowed to graze across it
known as free range cattle.
• Cattle found with no brandings were called mavericks and were
claimed by anyone who found them.
– Mavericks: Cattle left behind from ranchers before the civil
war
COWBOY EQUIPMENT
CATTLE KINGDOM
• The cattle needed to be driven from the Plains region to
railhead cities (place where the train stopped) to be
shipped back east to be butchered.
• To get the cattle to the railheads, cowboys took the cattle
on long drives (marches).
• The long drives were lonely, dangerous, and hard on the cowboys.
• The long drives were hard on the cattle causing weight loss, also
during the transportation to regional slaughtering centers like
Chicago (Armour and Swift slaughterhouses and meatpacking
companies) cattle would die or become sick.
CATTLE KINGDOM
• One thing that helped the Cattle Kingdom
develop into a major business was the
invention of the refrigerated railway car by
Gustavus Swift (actually designed by Andrew Chase).
• This allowed slaughtered meat to be
transported to further locations allowing for
the meat packing industry to grow, thus
creating demand for more meat.
•
• Before cow the choice meat of Americans was pork.
(was smoked and salted, highly unhealthy)
CATTLE KINGDOM
• The long drive crews included a trail captain, chuck
wagon (cook), pointers (led the herd) and drags
(prevented stragglers or weak cattle).
• The four most dominate cattle trails of the
long drives were the Sedalia and Baxter Trail,
Chisholm Trail, Western Trail, and GoodnightLoving Trail.
• During a long drive if the cattle became scared
or spooked and ran uncontrollably this was
called a stampede.
THE CATTLE TRAILS
END OF THE OPEN RANGE
• The Open Range came to a halt when the bubble on
cattle prices fell and bad weather conditions,
• The biggest cause was the fencing off of the Plains by
farmers due to the invention of barb wire by Joseph
Gilden.
• The effect of the Cattle Kingdom was the increased
mileage of railroads, the creation of towns to civilize
the west for famers, but the biggest was the mass
destruction of the wild Buffalo.
THE “END” OF THE BISON
• During the 1840s to 1880s the bison were
hunted to almost extinction with as few as
1,100 left in 1889.
– 2 million + before the Whiteman
• The Buffalo were killed in huge
numbers
for their hide and
tongues.
• Many buffalo were just shot
by
people from trains, just for
sport. (the
carcass was left to rot)
• The mass killing of the buffalo
was also a direct cause of the Indian Wars
during this period.
COWBOYS
• Cowboys were most significant in American history during the time from the end of the
American Civil War through the 1890s. They were used when other forms of transportation
were scarce in the western and southwestern U.S.
• Cattle had to be driven to shipping points over long distances, and the cowboy needed lots of
strength and endurance to complete the journeys. Because there wasn’t good law enforcement,
his duties also included providing security for his ranch and its stock.
MINORITY COWBOYS
• 20% of cowboys were black or Mexican
– Black and white cowboys coexisted. Though racial
discrimination still existed, the black cowboys of Texas
were treated much better on the range than
anywhere else.
• Skills mattered to the ranch bosses, and the black
cowboys proved their value on the ranch.
• They also showed off their skills in local rodeos by
riding bulls and bucking broncos.
• Bill Pickett is one of the most famous black
cowboys of all time.
• Black and white cowboys worked, ate, and slept together. Though racial
discrimination still existed, the black cowboys of Texas were treated
much better on the range than anywhere else.
COWBOY CLOTHING
• Cowboys usually wore a cotton
button down shirt with a leather
vest over it.
• They also wore blue jeans with
brown chaps over the pants
to protect their legs when
riding horses.
• They wore bandanas over
their mouth and/or over
their neck to keep it from
getting sunburned.
COWBOY CLOTHING
• They wore wide rimmed
hats to keep the sun out of
their eyes and to also keep
them from getting sunburn.
• On their feet they wore boots
that were either pointy on the
toe or round. On the shoes
they wore spurs so that they
can kick the horse and
make them go faster.
MYTH VS. REALITY
• Myth
• Reality
• Cowboys were romantic,
self-sufficient, and virtuous
• Cowboys were young, poorly
paid, and did hard labor
• All were white
• 20% were black or Mexican
• Ideal, garden of Eden
• Could make a fortune in
the west
• Western towns were
lawless
• Harmonious race relations on
the trail
• Harsh conditions
• Most made little, if any money
• There were police forces and
order in the West
THE ‘OLD WEST’
• The "Old West" was a post-Civil War phenomenon. It lasted a very
brief time, roughly from about 1865 to about 1890.
– The most recognizable and popular period in US history
• Gave Americans that “cowboy” image throughout the world
– Buffalo Bill’s Wild West and Congress of Roughriders of the World brought the
stories and lifestyles to audiences all over the world.
– The dime novels and the film industry would play the most important role in
keeping the legends and myths alive.
• Also, during these years, three major empires grew
 Mining
 Cattle Ranching