The Boom and Bust of the Cattle Industry in the Wild West

1. Objectives Explain how the cattle industry began. Describe the life of a cowhand on the trail. Discuss the myth of the Wild West. Identify reasons for the end of the cattle boom.

2. Terms and People open range– unfenced land cattle drive– the herding and moving of cattle over long distances vaquero – Spanish word for cowhand, or cowboy cow town– settlement at the end of a cattle trail cattle kingdom– region dominated by the cattle industry and its ranches, trails, and cow towns

3. What factors led to boom and bust in the cattle industry? With mining towns growing and railroad companies racing to build track, another boom swept across the West. the cattle boom

4. For years, herds of wild cattle roamed the open rangeof Texas. Beef was in demand in eastern cities and western boomtowns. But ranchers had no way to move the longhorns to distant markets.

5. That changed, however, as railroads crossed the Plains. Trains could take the cattle to market. All the ranchers had to do was get the cattle to the trains. cattle cattle cattle

6. Texas ranchers began to round up the cattle in the 1860s. They hired skilled cowhands to move the herds north, along trails leading to rail lines. Some of the rail lines were as far away as 1,000 miles, and the long cattle driveslasted two to three months.

7. Well-worn cattle trails led from Texas to rail lines in Wyoming, Nebraska, Kansas, and Missouri.

8. Cowhands on the trail could spend up to 18 hours a day leading herds across rivers, pulling cattle from swamps, fighting grass fires, or chasing off thieves. Lightning could cause a stampede, sending cattle in all directions. Yet despite the hard and dangerous work, cowhands earned less than $1 a day.

9. Cowhands owed much to Spanish and Mexican vaqueros. • how to ride, rope, and brand • Mexican spurs and chaps • broad-brimmed hats • lassos

10. Cattle drives ended at cow towns, where tired and hungry cowhands could find restaurants, hotels, dance halls, and saloons. Abilene, Kansas, was the first of many cow towns to spring up at the end of the cattle trails. Cow town cattle

11. The rough-and-tumble life in cow towns did much to promote the myth of the Wild West. • Place of gun fights, adventure, and opportunity • Reflected in shows by William “Buffalo Bill”Cody Wild West

12. Some of the myths of the Wild West are based on fact. Cowhands did help shape the West. Yet the real West was much more than the land of gunslingers portrayed in frontier shows. Real West • Ranchers • Farmers • Miners • Pioneer families • Native Americans

13. Ranchers in the cattle kingdom made huge profits during the boom years. Profits New breeds of cattle brought in even more money, and small ranches soon grew into huge cattle companies.

14. The cattle kingdom, however, would soon go from boom to bust. By the 1880s, millions of cattle roamed the range, along with sheep—more animals than the land could support. At the same time, farmers began to fence their lands, preventing cattle from freely grazing. Ranchers now had to buy feed for their herds.

15. An economic depression made matters worse. Demand for beef People struggling to find jobs in cities could no longer afford expensive beef. In time, the railroads expanded, moving closer to the ranches. The days of the long cattle drives were over.

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