Social Studies Lesson 18.2

Cattle on the Plains When the Spanish settled Mexico and Texas, they introduced longhorn cattle. Texas ranchers had plenty of cattle but needed a way to get them to markets in the North and East. As railroads spread, rail stops in towns such as Sedalia, Missouri; Abilene and Dodge City, Kansas; and Cheyenne, Wyoming, became cow towns, places where cattle were driven from Texas for shipment by rail to market. The ability to get the cattle to market quickly by train greatly increased the value of longhorns.

The increase in value of longhorns led to the long drive, the herding and driving of cattle for 1,000 miles or more to get to railroads. Some of the largest long drives led from central Texas to Abilene, Kansas, along the Chisholm Trail. During the Cattle Kingdom heyday, from the late 1860s through the mid-1880s, the trails carried more than 5 million cattle north.

Discussion Question How did the railroads affect the value of cattle? Why? They increased the value of cattle, because they made it possible for ranchers to get their cattle more quickly from places such as Texas to markets for beef in the North and East.

Life on the Trail Many of the cowhands who drove the cattle on long drives from ranches to cow towns were African Americans, Hispanics, and veterans of the Confederate Army. The tradition of cattle herding began with Hispanic ranch hands in the Southwest. They developed many of the skills-riding, roping, branding-that were used on the cattle drives. Much of the language of the rancher and cowhand is derived from Spanish words used by Hispanic cowboys, or vaqueros, for centuries. These words include ranch, which comes from the Spanish word rancho. The cowhand's equipment, such as the wide-brimmed hat, leather leggings called chaps, and the ropes called lariats, were developed from the equipment used by vaqueros.

There were cowhands of all races on the trails There were cowhands of all races on the trails. Although they all worked together, there was discrimination in the West just as elsewhere. African American, Native American, and Hispanic cowhands rarely became trail bosses, and they often received lower pay. Some towns discriminated against African American, Hispanic, and Chinese cowhands. After the cowhands delivered their cattle, they enjoyed some time off in cow towns after weeks on the trail. They drank, gambled, and got involved in fights and gunplay. This made cow towns, such as Dodge City and Abilene, violent and lawless places during the peak period of the cattle drives.

As cattle profits increased, ranching spread north from Texas onto the northern Plains. Ranchers on the northern Plains crossbred longhorns with other breeds, creating a sturdy, plumper breed. The crossbred cattle multiplied, and many ranchers got rich during the cattle boom of the early 1880s. But too many cattle soon glutted the beef market, causing the price of cattle to fall. The price collapse of the mid-1880s marked the end of the Cattle Kingdom. A bitterly cold winter (1885-1886) killed many cattle and forced many ranchers out of business.

Discussion Question How did Hispanic culture influence the development of the American cowhand or cowboy? Cattle herding developed on the ranchos of the Southwest, when the area was a part of Mexico. Hispanic cowhands developed the skills of riding, roping, and branding that were later used by American cowhands. Much of the language and equipment used by cowhands also came' from the Hispanic cowhands, or vaqueros, who preceded the American cowboy.

Farmers Settle the Plains Farmers began to settle the Plains in the late 1860s for several reasons. Railroads made it easier for settlers to get there, the government passed new laws offering free land, and above-average rainfall during the late 1870s made the Plains better suited for farming. The Homestead Act of 1862 spurred settlement of the Plains. It offered 160 acres of free land to settlers who paid a filing fee and lived on the land for five years. Thousands of farmers went to the Plains to homestead, or earn land by settling on it.

In addition to Americans, many immigrants who had begun the process of becoming American citizens also became homesteaders. Advertisements lured many people from foreign countries to the American Plains. By 1880, 100,000 Swedes and Norwegians had settled on the northern Plains in Minnesota and the Dakotas. Single and widowed women could also claim land, and many took advantage of the Homestead Act to acquire property.

Many African Americans, fleeing racism in the South after Reconstruction in the late 1870s, also migrated west to settle. By 1881 more than 40,000 African Americans had migrated to Kansas. There were many natural obstacles to farming on the Great Plains. Farmers had to endure alternating droughts and floods. They also experienced brushfires and plagues of grasshoppers that would strip fields bare of crops. Farming on the Great Plains was a family affair. Men and women worked the fields together, as did children when they became old enough. Women also took care of the home, cooked, preserved food, sewed clothing, and tended to the health and education of children.

The Plains could not be farmed by the conventional farming practices of the 1860s. There was little rainfall and few streams to provide irrigation water. The sad was also too tough for wooden plows to penetrate. Gradually, several inventions made farming on the Plains easier. In the late 1870s, a new steel plow was invented that made it possible to dig into the tough Plains sad to plant seeds more easily. Windmills were developed that could pump water from deep underground. In an area with no wood, the invention of barbed wire finally made it possible to put up fences to protect farm fields.

The Oklahoma Territory was the last area of the Plains to be settled The Oklahoma Territory was the last area of the Plains to be settled. It had been designated the Indian Territory in the 1830s and had been off-limits to settlers. But years of pressure from land dealers and settlers led to the opening of Oklahoma to settlers in 1889. In 1890, shortly after the Oklahoma land rush, the government announced that the frontier no longer existed.

Discussion Question How did the Homestead Act help settle the Great Plains? The land of the Great Plains was not the most desirable because of a harsh climate and difficult soil in which to raise a crop. Offering free land to those who would settle on the Plains helped encourage many people to settle who might not otherwise have done so. It also gave people land who did not have enough money to purchase it on their own.