1. Why did Cattle Ranching Develop & then Decline?
Starter: What do all these images have in common?
Challenge: For each, expand with subject knowledge!

2. What was Cattle Ranching?
The ranches themselves were typically open ranges, unfenced land which was claimed by the rancher. Every open range would need a water supply. Often the boundaries between the ranches were the water sheds.
As the land was not fenced there was a problem of how to establish ownership of the cattle that wandered and mixed on the open range. For that reason the cattle were branded. This also acted as a defence against rustlers who might steal and drive off.
‘During the 1860’s, the cattle ranching developed into a major industry, but by the 1890’s this industry had begun to decline with the fencing off of the open range with barbed wire fences by the Homesteaders.
Cattle Brand Symbols for Texas

3. ‘Open Range Ranching’ (1865 – 1887)

4. The Great Die Up ( )

5. ‘Fenced off, smaller ranches’ (1887 onwards)

6. The buffalo that had previously grazed on the great plains were gone.
The plain’s Indians were defeated and confined to the reservations.
e.g. Opened up a market – reservations required food, so cattle barons could sell beef to reservations for profit.
Leaving the Longhorns to graze on the Great Plains during Winter killed off the ticks.
Why was Cattle Ranching Successful?
The development of the wind pump allowed more land to be used.
 Development of railroads, steam ships and refrigeration.
The Open Range
Activity 2: Review the information on this page and then write a sentence for each point explaining why you think it helped cattle ranching to develop?

7. Defeat of the Plains Indians
As a result of the Plains Wars 1850’s to 1870’s, the Native Americans were defeated and confined to their reservations.
This meant that they were no longer capable of stealing horses or cattle or of trespassing on lands that now ‘belonged’ to the Cattle Ranchers and later the Homesteaders.
Their confinement onto the reservations also provided a ‘captured market’ to whom the Cattle Ranchers could sell their beef via the US Government.
By Unknown - Werner Company, Akron, Ohio, Public Domain,

8. Slaughtering of the Buffalo
The buffalo that had previously grazed on the great plains were gone, slaughtered by hunters.
This destroyed the Native American way of life and helped to force them to live on the reservations on US Government handouts.
The removal of the buffalo left more grazing land for Cattle Ranchers and farm land for the Homesteaders.
Can you think of anything about this development which might help to explain why cattle ranching later declined ?

9. Winter Grazing for the Longhorns
It was discovered that if Texas Longhorns were held on the northern plains during the winter then the cold would kill off the disease carrying ticks.
This increased the amount of cattle that ranchers could rear for market and helped to create a surplus which kept prices lows for customers in the East.
Fun Fact - Another parasite that effects Longhorn is the Screw worms. Soon after a calf is born, blow flies deposit eggs around the cows bottom. The cows instantly lick the worms off the calf and themselves. If the worms infest some part of a longhorn's body that it can't reach, it will stand for hours in deep water, drowning them
How could this lead to the decline of cattle ranching in the future?

10. Development of railroads, steam ships & refrigeration.
The railroads that were crossing the plains were able to take the cattle to market.
The cattle were shipped live to Chicago where they were slaughtered. Then they were refrigerated and sent east for sale.
This was made possible by the development of refrigerated rail cars.
This technology was also developed to ship beef across the Atlantic to Europe. The downside of this was that it also allowed South American and European farmers to also ship their beef to the USA.
How could this development help lead to the decline of cattle ranching in the future?

11. The development of the wind pump
The development of the wind pump allowed more land to be used for both cattle ranching and farming.
They pumped water from deep underground and removed the need to have a river or stream running through your ranch.
This invention encouraged smaller cattle ranchers to set up as well as mark out their boundaries with barbed wire.
How could this development lead to the decline of cattle ranching in the future?

12. The Development of the ‘Open Range’
There were huge areas of 'open range‘ on the Great Plains - unfenced land which was free for anyone to use, including Homesteaders.
Charles Goodnight is reputed to have invented the crazy quilt - by buying small patches of land here and there over an area, he could effectively control all of it.
By 1885, just 35 cattle-barons owned 8 million hectares of range, and owned perhaps 1.5 million cattle.
This allowed the cattle-barons to produce enormous quantities of cheap beef.
How could this development lead to the decline of cattle ranching in the future?

13. Falling beef prices in the 1880’s
The success of cattle-ranching on the Great Plains
The Great Die Up
Why did Cattle Ranching start to decline?
Other?
Introduction of Barbed Wire
The Wind Pump
Activity 4: Copy this diagram into your book (3 min)

14. The success of cattle-ranching on the Plains
The success of cattle-ranching on the Plains led to more ranchers settling on the Plains. This increased the number of cattle and put pressure on the grass stocks leading to overgrazing.
A US Farm on the Great Plains / Mid West in the 1930s. Over grazing can lead to the top soil turning into sand and blowing away, as the grass which holds the soil together can’t reproduce fast enough.

15. Falling beef prices in the 1880’s
Beef prices started failing in the 1880’s as it lost its popularity to other meats such as lamb.
Rather than sell their cattle at a low price, some ranchers kept them on the Plains. This increased pressure on the grass stocks even more. Some ranchers actually sold up.
Beef prices

16. The Great Die Up
In spring 1886 there was a drought, followed by a scorching hot summer, reaching a temperature of up to 43°C.
This was followed by a winter storm in January 1887, in which the temperature dropped to -43°C.
Half the cattle on the plains died in a single year. As a result many cattle- men went bankrupt.

17. Introduction of Barbed Wire
More and more Homesteaders were coming onto the plains, and fencing off their farms with barbed wire, patented in 1874.
This prevented cattle from ranging on the open range.
The remaining cattlemen decided they had to do the same as it kept other cattle away from their grass, and cut labour costs – less cowboys were needed as animals were less likely to stray from the ranch.

18. The development of the wind pump
The development of the wind pump allowed more land to be used for both cattle ranching and farming.
They pumped water from deep underground and removed the need to have a river or stream running through the ranch
This invention encouraged smaller cattle ranchers to set up as well as mark out their boundaries with barbed wire.
The extra cattle put increased pressure on the grass stocks and helped to lower the market value of beef even further forcing even more ranches to go bankrupt. =
Beef prices

19. Learning Task - Card Sort: Decline of Cattle Ranching
Using what you have learnt about why cattle ranching began to decline, complete the card sort exercise.
Don’t forget to check your answers before copying them into your book.

20. Point
Example
Explanation
Cattle industry was almost too successful
More and more ranchers settled on the Great Plains, wanting to copy their success
This increased the number of cattle and put pressure on the grass stocks leading to overgazing and falling beef prices.
The extreme weather of the Great Plains helped to cause the decline of Cattle Ranching
In spring 1886 there was a drought, followed by a hot summer, reaching a temperature of up to 43°C. This was followed by a winter storm in January 1887, in which the temperature dropped to -43°C.
Half of the cattle on the plains died in one year. 15% due to the harsh winter. As a result many cattlemen went bankrupt.
The introduction of barbed wire by Homesteaders caused problems for the cattle ranchers
This prevented cattle from ranging on the open range
The remaining cattlemen decided they had to do the same as it kept other cattle away from their grass, and cut labour costs – less cowboys were needed as animals were less likely to stray fro the ranch.
The development of the wind pump allowed more land to be used for both cattle ranching and farming
They pumped water from deep underground and removed the need to have a river or stream running through their ranch.
This invention encouraged smaller cattle ranchers to set up. The extra cattle helped to lower the market value of beef even further, forcing even more ranches to go bankrupt.