U.S. History, Book 2 Lesson 3 Handout 6 he Cattle Kingdom Name_ Date Read the following selection and answer the questions. Be prepare& for class discussion. Before the Civil War, most Americans ate pork rather than beef. Pigs were easier to feed and raise. A single sow could produce a litter of seven to ten piglets each year. Still, Americans developed a desire for the fat, tender, corn-fed beef of the Midwest and South. he demand for beef increased with the need to feed the Union army of the Civil War and later the western frontier. In exas, criollos, Spanish cattle with long horns, had interbred with English longhorns brought west by southern migrants. he resulting cattle were multicolored with long legs, tails, and bodies. Most importantly, they were resistant to exas Fever and required no extra feed. hey were allowed to roam free on the open range, and by 1865, approximately five million head of cattle were in exas alone. he first markets for these cattle were the mines, the military posts, and the Indian reservations of the western frontier. By 1870, the completion of the transcontinental railroad encouraged the establishment of cattle trails linking exas to Kansas ~I~ : ~ ~... _.rwa~s. Jesse Chisholm drove the first herds out of exas across Oklahoma to Abllene, Kansas, where they were loaded onto rail cars and shipped to the East. By 1890, over two million cattle had been driven north on the Chisholm rail. In an effort to produce a heavier animal, exas ranchers,,-4~l~g ~l~t=im~mllt~, bred their longhorns with Herefords and Fnglish Shorthorns. which were more desirable animals, but which were not resistant to tick-borne exas Fever. Eventually Gustavas Swift, taking advantage of the extensive rail system of the West, introduced the refrigerated rail car to the West and began to ship processed beef from Chicago to New York. Cattle were shipped out from southwestern Nevada on the Central Pacific to San Francisco. By the mid-1880s, Nevada cattle were also being shipped to Chicago. From where did the wild cattle of the Southwest come? 2. What were the first markets for the cattle drives of the late 1860s? What encouraged the establishment of cattle trails from exas to Kansas? 5. Why were these men important to the growth of the cattle industry in the West? 6. How did Gustavas Swift change the marketing of beef cattle? 7. What was the initial destination of most Nevada cattle? COPYRIGH, he Center for Learrtlng. Used with permission. Not for resale.
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COPYRIGH, he Center for Learrdng. Used with pe.r~ission. Not for resale. U.S. History, Book 2 Lesson 3 Handout 9 Moving the Herd Name Date Read the following selection and answer the questions. Be prepared~for class discussion. Moving a cattle herd along the trail was tedious dirty work. he trail boss, who knew the trail, and the chuckwagon led the way. he cattle often stretched out over several miles, kicking up clouds of dust with every step. A remuda, or herd of extra horses, moved alongside the herd near the front. Point riders at the front of the herd determined the direction the herd traveled. Swing riders, about one-quarter of the way from the point, moved the herd right to left when the point riders changed direction. Flank riders kept the herd bunched together and moved the herd forward. Drag was the worst position on the drive. At the end of the herd, the drag riders" job was to pick up strays. he riders frequently had to move through heavy clouds of dust and at the end of the day were covered with dust from head to toe. For this reason drag was a rotating position. Usually no one had to ride drag day after day, unless of course the cowboy had broken one of the rules. hen, the trail boss could use riding drag as a punishment. Remuda rail boss Flank Swing Chuck wagon I. What was the remuda? 2. Why do you think it was a necessary part of the drive? 3. What was the duty of the point rider? 4. How did the swing and point riders work together? 5. What were the duties of the flank riders? 6. Why was drag the worst position on the drive?
7-5 Name: COWBOYS: CLOHES AND EQUIPMEN Date: Label the diagram, as follows: A: Wide-brimmed hat F: High boots with B: Bandanna pointed toes, high C: Flap pockets insteps D: Gloves with cuffs G: Saddle horn E: Leather chaps H: Rolled slicker (cape) 2. Beneath each item listing in the diagram is a blank space. ry to think of one more use of the item and write it on the blank line. 3. Color the illustration in any way that you think is appropriate. - Helps hold roped cattle H: - Worn in rain or snow - Protection from sun and rain - Protection from dust if used as a mask over nose and mouth - Keeps tobacco dry F: - Pointed toes for easy slipping into stirr~ups "D: - Helps prevent rope burns - Protection from thorny shrubs and bushes 178
U.S. History, Book 2 Lesson 3 Handout 10 (page I) he Cattle Drive NameDate A trip up the Chisholm or Goodnight rails from exas to take carte to market was an eventful one. In fact. Hollywood has used this western adventure in many movies, such as Red River. A few of the cowboys/ranchers on cattle drives kept journals or later wrote narratives describing their trips. Read the following selection, which reflects what cattle drive participants had to say about their trip to the railroads and "cow towas" of the Great Plains. he diary entries represent the first pm~ of the cattle drive--such trips started in the spring, ended in the fall, and took about six months. Answer the questions which follow and be prepared for class discussion. Hard rain. Stampede. Lost 200 Head. May I May 2 May 6 May I0 May 14 May 19 May 30 June 3 June 9 June 12 June 14 June 18 June 24 July 3 Still raining. Spent the day looking for Beeves. Found 26. Hard rain. Windy. Found 150 Head. DecRied to move on. Discouraged. Still raining. Slow day. Made 14 miles. Ravines flooded. River up. Raft overturned. Some cattle swept downstream, one drover drowned, and some provlsions/equipment lost. Bad thunderstorm in the night. Cattle scattered. Spent day hunting for Beeves. 15 Head lost. Rain, rain, and more rain. Cattle restless, Men discouraged. River crossing. Swimming Beeves is the order of the day. All across by nightfall. Few losses. Hard rainstorm. Stampede. Hunting Beeves agahn. On horse back all night. Cold meal.- Still raining. Made 14 miles. Dozen Indians came. ried to steal cattle. Had to draw gun before they d leave. May come back. Sunburned and blistered. Hot. Cattle thirsty and restless, Hot day. Flies awful. Beeves almost uncontrollable. Bad storm. Stampede. Hunting Beeves again. Men tired.
Name Cowboys Become Folk Heroes Date Class Score REEACHING ACIVIY Chapter 16, Section 3 Directions: Read the flow chart carefully. hen refer to it as you answer the questions that follow. You will then understand how the cattle industry developed on the Great Plains. he Spanish introduced cattle ~ exans had to find some to Mexico and exas. way to transport and exans expanded the ranching distribute the cattle to industry; during the Civil War, Northern markets. these animals reproduced in great numbers. / Joseph G. McCoy built a shipping yard at Abilene, Kansas. Cattle were moved from exas to Abilene along the Chisholm rail. In Abilene, cattle were shipped by railroad to Chicago. he Cattle Drive From eight to eighteen cowboys, a horse wrangler, and a cook made up a trail crew. hey covered ten to twenty miles per day on a drive that lasted three to.~ months. he cowboys endured stampedes, thunderstorms, dangerous river crossings, and droughts. Myth of the Cowboy Cowboy myths began in the late 1880 s. hey were fostered by Buffalo Bill s Wild West Show ~ he Great rain Robbery was the first great cowboy movie. By 1872 the cattle trails had moved to western Kansas. Colorado, Montana, and the Dakotas were used for open grazing. he early 1880 s were a boom time for the cattle industry, as demand for beef was high. he inventions of refrigerator cars and canning machinery boosted the industry. Disasters Strike he blizzards and summer droughts of 1885 and 1886 mined hundreds of cattle ranchers. In the winter of 1886, 1.5 million animals froze to death. Changes in the Cattle Industry Ranchers fenced in their grazing land. hey had to raise hay for winter feed. By 1890 the cattle industry had become part of the meat-packing industry. Fences ended the open frontier. 1. Who introduced cattle to Mexico and exas? 7. What two inventions helped support the boom in the cattle industry in the early 1880 s? 2. Who built a shipping yard in Abilene, Kansas? 3.W~hat was the name of the trail extending from exas to Abilene, Kansas? 4. How long did a cattle drive take? 5. What were three dangers of the trip north? 8.In 1885 and 1886 what brought disaster to the ranching industry? 9. What two changes did ranchers have to make? 10. What industry did the cattle industry become part of? 6. What was the first great cowboy film? 11. What helped end the open frontier? Copyright McDougaI, L~tt~ll & Company 37
17=4 Name: Date: HE AMERICAN COWBOYS DURING 1865-1890 Without cowboys the cattle industry in the West during the years 1865-1890 would have been impossible. Who were the cowboys? Where did they come from? From whom did they learn their sk~ls? he last question can be answered first by stating the simple fact that long before the United States acquired the Southwest, Mexicans were herding the wild cattle found there--the "longhorns." hese animals were so called because their horn spread was nothing less than spectacular, as much as six feet from horn-tip-to-horn-tip. he Mexicans methods of roping, branding, and herding; the kind of saddles they found most useful; and the kind o clothing and equipment necessary to do the work--all of these things were passed on to the earliest American cowboys, who then improved on them and passed their knowledge on to others. he answers to the other two questions are not simple. As one writer put it: "he cowboys were a mixed bag." What he meant by "mixed bag" was that cowboys were of many different nationalities---~nostly American--but als many were Mexican ("vaqueros,"or cowboys), Irishmen, Germans, Englishmen, and others. Many cowboys were exsoldiers from the Confederate and Union armies, some were adventure-seeking young men not more than seventeen years old. A fair number of cowboys were older men who were tired of the drudgery of farming or mining or, perhaps, wanted to remove themselves from the crowded cities in the East. And, there were still others who were running away from places where they may have had some difficulty with the law. No matter what their background, there was on thing for certain: all cowboys had to "pull their own weight" and work cooperatively with others as a team, or els leave! he West was especially attractive to recently freed African-Americans. hey wanted the independence that came with the wide-open spaces of the West, where persons were judged not by the color of their skin, but by their work, their courage, and their endurance. Estimates vary, but it is quite certain that more cowboys were African- American than any other ethnic group. Understanding l. If a statement below is true according to the story and illustration, circle the at the end of the statement. a. Mexicans were the first to herd cattle in th~ Southwest. b. Most longhorns horn spreads spanned more than six feet. c. Cowboys worked as individuals rather than as members of a team when herding cattle. d. One of the things that attracted African-Americans to become cowboys was the opportunity to be independent. e. All of the cowboys in the illustration have ropes. f. he cattle in the illustration are not the longhorn breed. 2. All the statements that follow are true. Underline all of those that are not mentioned in the story. a. Indians were among the early cowboys working for the Spaniards. b. Longhorned cattle were gradually replaced by other breeds of cattle. c. Men from Ireland were part of the "mixed bag" of cowboys. d. More ex-confederate soldiers became cowboys than ex-union soldiers. 177 3. From what you see in the picture, what do you think is happening? Explain your reasons.
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