1. Farming/Ranching

2. Ranching on the Open Range
The first West Texas ranchers owned little or no land
Some ranchers bought land along a river or stream to have a reliable water source
Livestock grazed on the open range
Open range – vast area of undeveloped public land held by the state government for future sale
Ranchers marked animals with a brand to show ownership

3. Ranching on the Open Range
Several factors ended the open range in Texas
A key factor was the expansion of railroads in the state
Other factors included land policies, population growth and the spread of farming
In 1850s, the state government offered free public land to encourage internal improvements

4. Changes on the Open Range
Internal improvements – changes made by people which boost a region’s economy and population
Railroads received 90% of this free land
The free land policies forced open range ranchers to change
Many ranchers felt they needed to own the land before someone else bought it
Investors from Eastern United States and Britain provided money to ranchers

5. An End and a Beginning
The end of the open range brought an end to cattle drives
Railroads were built connecting Texas making cattle drives unnecessary
Some states banned Texas cattle out of concern for the “Texas Fever” disease
The open range was “fenced in” with barbed wire making it difficult to drive cattle

6. Changes for Cowboys
The end of the open range and cattle drives meant changes for cowboys, too
Setting fence posts and stringing barbed wire made them feel like ranch hands
In 1883, cowboys went on strike – work stoppage to force an employer to meet certain demands
Strike failed and cowboys lost their jobs
Unhappy over the loss of their old way of life

7. The Big Die-up
Ranchers built a series of “drift fences” from New Mexico to Indian Territory
These fences prevented cattle infected with “Texas Fever” from “drifting” and mingling with healthy herds
In 1885, a huge blizzard struck, cattle fled and drift fences trapped them
Thousands of cattle froze to death long fence line – called the Big Die-up
Marked start of modern ranching industry

8. Closing the Frontier
The Big Die-up

9. Railroads Change Ranching
Rail lines in Texas changed the cattle business
In 1873, the Texas rail system linked to the nationwide rail network
Texas ranchers began shipping their cattle by rail
By 1890, the railhead at Fort Worth became collection point for Texas cattle
Fort Worth became one of the largest meatpacking industry plants in 1901

10. Railroads Change Farming
Railroads changed the way Texans farmed
Farmers who grew more than his family needed could ship the surplus to market
After the Civil War, Texans practiced commercial agriculture
Commercial agriculture – is the growing of crops for sale in order to make a profit
Farmers could also use the railroads to bring in seeds, plows and other supplies

11. Railroads Change Farming
Railroads led people to begin farming the land in West Texas
Growing crops in West Texas required a different method of farming
West Texas climate was drier because there was less rainfall than in East Texas
Railroads changed patterns of trade in Texas
Texans could now deal with distant suppliers, buyers and markets

12. Farming and Growth
By 1870, the Texas population was growing due to immigration
Newcomers were encouraged to come to Texas
The state needed workers to replace the freed slaves
Most newcomers were from the South, mainly Georgia and Tennessee
Cotton was major crop – demand was high worldwide and withstood drought

13. Changes in Texas Farming
When slavery ended, few plantation owners had money to hire workers
The number of tenant farmers grew
Tenant farmers – person who rents a plot of land from its owner and pays for its use with a share of the crop
Tenant farmers provided their own mules, tools and other supplies
They kept 2/3 of crop and paid the rent for the land with 1/3 of the harvest

14. Changes in Texas Farming
Tenant
Farming

15. Changes in Texas Farming
It was hard to succeed at tenant farming:
Landowners gave tenant farmers only small plots of land
Droughts and floods made crop prices unpredictable
Tenant farmers paid interest on the money they borrowed on credit
Interest – price paid for the use of money borrowed

16. Changes in Texas Farming
This made it difficult to get free of the cycle of debt and the tenant farming system
For tenant farmers to succeed, the price of cotton had to be high and amount of cotton to be produced had to be great
When demand was high and supply was low, prices went up
When demand was low and the supply was high, prices went down

17. Farming New Lands
Much of West Texas could not support farming without irrigation – supplying water to land by artificial means
The U.S. experienced 3 economic depressions between s
Depression – period of low economic activity and high unemployment
Thousands of West Texas farms failed
Farmers went out of business, sold farms to wealthy men or became tenant farmers

18. Cotton and Corn Texas was the nation’s leading cotton producing state
Technology changed how farmers harvested cotton
Eli Whitney’s cotton gin – machine that removes the seeds from cotton
Farmers found new uses for cottonseeds removed – cottonseed oil
Corn – became 2nd most important crop in Texas and major food source/feed crop

19. Cotton and Corn
Cotton Gin
Eli Whitney
Cottonseed
Oil

20. Sheep Civil War helped boost demand for wool
Cut off from Southern cotton during the war, northern textile mills began making woolen cloth
The textile mills demanded large amounts of wool and helped the Texas sheep industry boom
Texas ranked as the 2nd largest sheep producer in the nation

21. Quiz
What industry came to Fort Worth in 1900s? A. coal mining B. lumber mills C. meatpacking D. textile mills What two things brought an end to the cattle drives? A. farmers and cattle ranch investors B. barbed wire and railroads C. railroads and land speculators D. barbed wire and farmers

22. Quiz
What caused the death of the cattle in the Big Die-up? A. they were all slaughtered for food B. they froze to death because they were trapped by drift fences C. they starved to death because they could not eat on open range D. they all died from disease and drought What is a strike designed to do? A. drive up the cost of production B. temporarily end work so workers can get a rest C. force an employer to meet certain demands D. create a friendly work atmosphere