Changes in Cowboys + Ranchers vs Homesteaders Flashcards

1
Q

Who were cowboys?

A

mostly young single men from different races

Many were former soldiers or drifters

some were criminals on the run

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2
Q

what were cowboys like?

A

tough, hard-working and often hard-drinking

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3
Q

How long did cowboys ride for on long trials

A

between 12 and 24 hours a day in all weathers

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4
Q

Why could life as a cowboy be lonely?

A

because they often worked miles apart

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5
Q

ranches vs trails: work period

A

trails : work was seasonal, from spring round - up to the long drive in the autumn

Ranches: work was year- round and full- time, but fewer were needed

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6
Q

what did cowboys on the trials do as their job?

A

-they rounded up, branded and drove cattle hundreds of miles.
-looked after sick and injured cattle

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7
Q

what did cowboys on the ranches do as their job?

A

-rounded up, branded and drove to the market over much smaller distances
-checked ranch boundaries
-mended fences
-looked after sick and injured cattle

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8
Q

What were the dangers of working on the trail? (7)

A

stampeding cattle,

wild animals,

crossing rivers

quicksand,

rustlers,

hostile Indians

extreme weather

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9
Q

What were the dangers of working on the ranch?

A

rustlers, wild animals and Indian attacks were still threats even though there were fewer dangers than on the trails

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10
Q

ranches vs trails: habitat

A

Trails: slept in the open air and cooked on campfires

Ranches: bunkhouses and use cookhouses

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11
Q

How did trail cowboys spend their free time?

A

visited saloons and brothels in cow town

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12
Q

How did ranch cowboys spend their free time?

A

drinking, gambling, guns and knives were banned. many struggled to adapt to this lifestyle.

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13
Q

Explain ranchers reliance on public land

A

Ranching on the open range needed a lot of land (at least 2,000 acres) in order for cattle to roam around and have a lot to eat

Federal law said everyone could pasture livestock on public land for free

ranchers divided up the range between themselves

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14
Q

What was the rancher’s problem with homesteaders?

A

Under the homestead act, people started filing claims to turn 160-acre plots of public land into homesteads which threatened ranching

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15
Q

What were the tactics that the ranchers used to block homesteaders?

A

-Filing homestead claims themselves to all the parts of the range that homesteaders might be interested in
-Buying and fencing just enough land to block off access to other plots
-taking homesteaders to court over rights to the land, knowing that homesteader s were too poor to pay court fees
-threatening homesteaders with violence, damaging their crops and accused them of rustling cows from the ranch’s herd : this resulted in severe punishments

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16
Q

What were the arguments between ranchers and homesteaders about fencing?

A

-Farmers said ranchers should fence their land to stop cattle roaming onto crops
-Ranchers said their cattle had a right to roam; that fencing was the farmer’s responsibility and they should not harm their cattle

17
Q

What did the arguments between ranchers and homesteaders about fencing result in?

A

these arguments ended up in state court cases.