Cowboys: essential facts
The first cattle
were farmed in Texas on the ‘open range’. In 1861, a lot of ranchers from Texas
went to fight in the American civil war. They returned in 1865 to find that
their herd had increased dramatically, there was now over 5 million Texan
cattle. There needed to be a market for selling cattle, but there wasn’t.
In 1867, the
eastern demand for beef grew and the railroads had reached Kansas, when the
ranchers got their cattle to a railroad, the problem would be solved.
Towns such as
Abilene were created as a ‘stopping off point’ for ranchers.
Joseph McCoy
Chicago cattle
trader, he started the ‘beef bonanza’ by constructing the town of Abilene,
cattle ranchers could sell their cattle for slaughter here.
Charles Goodnight &
Oliver Loving
These two ranchers
decided to sell cows to soldiers in the northern areas of the USA. The trail
they took led right through Indian territory, they became rich, and soon, others
followed.
John Illif
He decided to sell
his beef to railroad workers, he cross bred his cattle with English cows to
achieve the best beef results.
Cow towns were
built along the major cattle trails, Abilene, Dodge City, Kansas and Cheyenne.
The ranchers could bring their meat here to sell.
Severe weather or
sudden loud noises could cause a cattle stampede, and many cowboys were killed
under these circumstances
Floods and dust
storms were common, making it hard for cowboys to reach or see cattle, hot
weather was also an issue.
Both cattle and
cowboys could be swept away by rushing currents in the rivers.
Homesteaders didn’t
like the cattle trespassing on their land.
Indians attacked
cattle and ranches, Oliver Loving was killed by an Indian.
Cattle thieves/
rustlers attacked cowboys and stole cows.
1883, a severe
drought ruined grass patches, better beef was also in high demand, cross breeds
needed to be kept on the farms.
As 1885 passed, the
demand for beef fell dramatically. Finally, the winter of 86-87 was one of the
coldest and most devastating to cattle on record.
Cross breed cattle
needed to be looked after and watched over carefully, the invention of barbed
wire in 1874 helped with the needs of former ranchers. Wind pumps also meant
that water could be collected easily; cowboys did not need to drive their herd
to rivers to be watered. Homesteaders could now settle on the plains
formerly owned by ranchers. Many cowboys became redundant, trails were blocked
by barbed wire and the buffalo were prevented access to their grazing grounds,
therefore killing off the plains Indians.
Matthew Wormald
