Chapter 18, Section 2

 Cattle on the Plains  When the Spanish settled Mexico and Texas they brought a tough breed of cattle called longhorns.  Texas was primarily an open range – not fenced or divided into lots.  Ranchers rounded up wild cattle and added them to their herd. Then they would brand – burn a symbol into the animals’ hides to show ownership.  Railroads and Cow Towns  The market for beef was mainly in the North and East.

 Railroads and Cow Towns  In 1866, when the Missouri Pacific Railroad reached Missouri, Texas cattle suddenly increased in value.  Some Texans drove their herds (sometimes as much as 260,000 head of cattle) north to the nearest rail point in Sedalia, Missouri.  Longhorns quickly rose in value from $3.00 each to $  Cattle drives to cow towns – towns located near railroads to market and ship cattle, turned into yearly events.  Major cow towns included: Abilene and Dodge City, Kansas and Cheyenne, Wyoming

 The Long Drive  Long Drive – the herding of cattle 1,000 miles or more to meet the railroad.  The drives left Texas in the spring, so there was enough grass to feed cattle along the way.  Two of the largest Long Drives led from central Texas to Abilene, Kansas on the Chisholm Trail. The Goodnight-Loving Trail swung west through the New Mexico Territory and then turned north.  From the late 1860’s to the mid 1880’s, the trails carried more than five million cattle north.

 Life on the Trail  Cattle driving was hard work. Cowhands rode in the saddle up to 15 hours every day, in driving rain, dust storms, and blazing sun. It was also lonely work because they rarely saw outsiders.  Spanish Influence  Cattle herding began with Hispanic ranch hands. Vaqueros developed skills like riding, roping, and branding. Dress was also adopted from vaqueros: wide- brimmed hats, leather leggings (chaps), ropes called lariats to lasso cattle that strayed.  Hazards on the Trail  Weather, rustlers, driving cattle across rivers, stampedes

 The “Wild West”  Lawlessness was prevalent just as in Boomtowns  The Cattle Kingdom Ends  When cattle prices boomed in the early 1880s, ranchers became rich.  The boom was soon followed by a bust; overgrazing depleted the grasslands, too many cattle flooded the beef market and prices fell, and cold winters killed large numbers of cattle.

 Farmers Settle the Plains for Several Reasons  The railroads made the journey west easier  New laws offered free land  In the late 1870’s above average rainfall made the Plains better suited for farming  The Homestead Act In 1862, Congress pass the Homestead Act, which gave 160 free acres of land to a settler who paid a filing fee and lived on the land for five years.

 Promoting the Plains  Many homesteaders came to the Plains to own land and be independent. They were also paid for by railroads, steamship companies, land speculators, and western states and territories.  Steamship companies advertised the American Plains in Scandinavia. By 1880 more than 100,000 Swedes and Norwegians settled in the Northern Plains  African American settlers called themselves “Exodusters,” from the book of Exodus, referencing the escape from slavery.

 Challenges faced by farmers  Drought  Brushfires  Plagues of grasshoppers or other insects  Severe winters with deep snow  Farm Families  Men worked hard in the fields  Women worked the fields and cared for the home and children (responsible for keeping the farm running)

 New Farming Methods  Plains farmers, known as sodbusters, had to create new methods and tools to work the dry land  A technique called dry farming was to plant seeds deep in the ground where there was some moisture.  Lightweight steel plows were created  Barbed wire was used to protect land because farmers did not have wood to build fences

 Oklahoma Land Rush  The last part of the Plains to be settled was the Oklahoma Territory, which Congress had designated as “Indian Territory”  In 1889, the federal government, pressured by land dealers, opened Oklahoma to homesteaders (April 22, 1889-official opening day)  Where did the name Sooners come from?  Closing the Frontier  According to the 1890 census…the frontier no longer existed  Who faced the greatest changes from Plains settlement?