Cattle Ranching By Zack Dykman

Cattle ranching was growing greatly from 1860 – 1910. Cattle ranch was very hard work. This job is very time-consuming and important in the late 1800’s.

Open Range

Cattle ranchers would move their cattle around so the grass would grow back. The open range is where the cowboys herded the cattle and led their cattle to several places to graze for a month. Before 1870 cattle were allowed to roam the western prairies. The cattle were fenced out of developed land rather than fencing them in a pasture. Cowboys would make sure the cattle didn’t wander off somewhere else.The cowboy would push the herd from the riding in the back. They also had what is called a cattle drive they would herd the cattle and bring them to the market to sell them.

Cattle

The type of cattle they raised was beef cattle. Two types were the longhorn and the angus (which was hornless). The cattle was raised for meat which would be sold back to the north and east. They would send the cattle back to the east to be slaughtered for meat by railroad .

Cowboys life

The life of a cowboy was hard work. They needed to lead the cattle across the land, to take care of them, and bring to market. Cowboys often received low pay and little sleep. The cowboys were usually 16-30 years old. They rode on horse- back and slept out under the stars.

Impotents of Beef

The western cattle ranching was very important to the people of the north and eastern United States.

The beef was very important to get back north to the markets and meat was a big source of food. The rail roads would transport the cattle north where they would be sold to the market. The cattle would then be slaughtered for meat. The meat industry was growing the demand for western beef was high

That is what Cattle ranching was like in the late 1800s. cattle ranching was very hard work. They didn’t get paid a lot at all. But cattle ranching was very important in the late 1800’s.

SourcesUnited States History, Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 2007, Section 1, Miners,

Ranchers, and Railroads, page 586 – 593.

Cowboys - Revelations - The Initial Journey – Life` Issues,http://www.theinitialjourney.com/lifeissues/life_cowboys.html

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