Lesson 6: Western Agriculture

Question 1

Cattle Drive Definition

Answer 1

the herding and moving of cattle, usually to railroad lines

Question 2

Cooperative Definition

Answer 2

a group of people who pool their money to buy or sell goods wholesale

Question 3

Cow Town Definition

Answer 3

a settlement that grew up at the end of a cattle trail

Question 4

Inflation Definition

Answer 4

a rise in prices and a decrease in the value of money

Question 5

Morrill Acts Definition

Answer 5

the acts passed in 1862 and 1890 that provided public land for agricultural colleges

Question 6

Sod House Definition

Answer 6

a house built of soil held together by grass roots

Question 7

Sodbuster Definition

Answer 7

a farmer on the Great Plains in the late 1800s

Question 8

Vaquero Definition

Answer 8

a Spanish or Mexican cowhand

Question 9

Wholesale Definition

Answer 9

the buying or selling of something in large quantities at lower prices

Question 10

During Reconstruction, which rebuilt the South, what was developing in the West?

Answer 10

Cattle ranching (Since 1860)

Question 11

What happened before the boom of cattle ranching in 1860, that helped populate the Southwest with cattle?

Answer 11

Before this time, the Spanish, and then the Mexicans, had set up cattle ranches in the Southwest. Over the years, strays from these ranches, along with American breeds, grew into large herds of wild cattle. These wild cattle were known as longhorns. They roamed freely across the grassy plains of Texas.

Question 12

What did Texas ranchers do as a response to the increase in the demand of meat? What were cattle drives?

Answer 12

After the Civil War, the demand for beef increased. People in the growing cities in the East were eating more meat. Miners, railroad crews, farmers, and growing communities in the West added to the demand. The Texas longhorns were perfect for the commercial market. They could travel far on little water, and they required no winter feeding. In response, Texas ranchers began rounding up herds of longhorns. They drove the animals hundreds of miles north to railroad lines in Kansas and Missouri on trips called cattle drives.

Question 13

Who was Jesse Chisholm? What was the Chisholm Trail?

Answer 13

Jesse Chisholm blazed one of the most famous cattle trails. Chisholm was half Scottish and half Cherokee. In the late 1860s, he began hauling goods by wagon between Texas and the Kansas Pacific Railroad. His route crossed rivers at the best places and passed by water holes. Ranchers began using the Chisholm Trail in 1867. Within five years, more than one million cattle had walked the road.

Question 14

What were the jobs of cowhands, employed by ranchers? Which group made up the majority of cowhands? What other groups were cowhands? What did some cowhands dream of?

Answer 14

Ranchers employed cowhands to tend their cattle and drive herds to market. These hard workers rode alongside the huge herds in good and bad weather. They kept the cattle moving and rounded up strays. After the Civil War, veterans of the Confederate Army made up the majority of the cowhands who worked in Texas. However, it is estimated that nearly one in three cowhands was either Mexican American or African American. Some cowhands dreamed of setting aside enough money to start a herd of their own. Most, in the end, just worked to earn wages.

Question 15

What are some examples of the Spanish influence on cowhands? What are Vaqueros?

Answer 15

American cowhands learned much about riding, roping, and branding from Spanish and Mexican vaqueros (vah KEHR ohs). Vaqueros were skilled riders who herded cattle on ranches in Mexico, California, and the Southwest. The gear used by American cowhands was modeled on the tools of the vaquero. Cowhands used the leather lariat to catch cattle and horses. Lariat comes from the Spanish word for rope. Cowhands wore wide-brimmed hats like the Spanish sombrero. Their leather leggings, called chaps, were modeled on Spanish chaparreras (chah pah REH rahs). Chaps protected a rider’s legs from the thorny plants that grow in the Southwest.

Question 16

How did the physical environment shape a cowhand’s work? What difficulties did cowhands face? What were they given for their efforts? Was this a sufficient amount at the time?

Answer 16

A cattle drive was hot, dirty, tiring, and often boring work. A cowboy’s days could last for nearly 18 hours. The work was so strenuous that cowhands usually brought a number of horses so that each day a fresh one would be available. Cowhands worked in all kinds of weather and faced many dangers, including prairie dog holes, rattlesnakes, and fierce thunderstorms. They had to prevent nervous cattle from drowning while crossing fast-flowing rivers. They had to fight raging grass fires. They also faced attacks from cattle thieves who roamed the countryside. One of the cowhand’s worst fears on a cattle drive was a stampede. A clap of thunder or a gunshot could set thousands of longhorns off at a run. Cowhands had to avoid the crush of hoofs and horns while attempting to turn the stampeding herd in a wide circle. Most cowhands did not work for themselves. Instead, they were hired hands for the owners of large ranches. For all their hard work, cowhands were fed, housed, and lucky to earn $1 per day. Even in the 1870s, this was low pay.

Question 17

How cattle drives lead to the development of settlements and businesses, such as cow towns?

Answer 17

Before long, cattle drives began to influence the settlement of western towns. As more cattle were driven through these areas, businesses offering services to the cowhands began to form in towns. As a result, cattle drives ended in cow towns that had sprung up along the railroad lines. The Chisholm Trail, for example, ended in Abilene, Kansas. Other cow towns in Kansas were Wichita, Caldwell, and Dodge City. In cow towns, cattle were held in great pens until they could be loaded into railroad cars and shipped to markets in the East.

Question 18

In Abilene and other busy cow towns, what served as entertainment for cowhands? Why did this cause sheriffs to have trouble keeping the peace?

Answer 18

In Abilene and other busy cow towns, dance halls, saloons, hotels, and restaurants catered to the cowhands. Sheriffs often had a hard time keeping the peace. Some cowhands spent wild nights drinking, dancing, and gambling.

Question 19

What was found at the main street of a cow town?

Answer 19

The main street of a town was where people conducted business. Almost every town had a general store that sold groceries, tools, clothing, and all sorts of other goods. The general store also served as a social center where people could talk and exchange the latest news. As a town grew, drugstores, hardware stores, and even ice cream parlors lined its main street.

Question 20

What role did religion play in cow towns?

Answer 20

Religion also played an important role for the townspeople. Throughout the West, places of worship grew in number and membership. They served as spiritual and social centers and as symbols of progress and stability. “A church does as much to build up a town as a school, a railroad, or a fair,” noted one New Mexico newspaper.

Question 21

What was the expanse of ranching in the West during the 1870s? What economical gain did the West receive in response to this?

Answer 21

In the 1870s, ranching spread north from Texas and across the grassy Plains. Soon, cattle grazed from Kansas to present-day Montana. Ranchers had built a Cattle Kingdom in the West. They came to expect high profits. Millions of dollars poured into the West from people in the East and in foreign countries who wanted to earn money from the cattle boom. However, the boom did not last.

Question 22

Why did sheepherders and cattle ranchers have conflict over land?

Answer 22

Ranchers let their cattle run wild on the open range. To identify cattle, each ranch had its own brand that was burned into a cow’s hide. Sometimes, there were conflicts on the range. When sheepherders moved onto the Plains, ranchers tried to drive them out. The ranchers complained the sheep nibbled the grass so low that the cattle could not eat it. To protect the range, which they saw as their own, ranchers sometimes attacked sheepherders and their flocks.

Question 23

How did farmers and railroads limit the open range once available to ranchers, resulting in a more organized system of ranchers maintaining private property?

Answer 23

In the 1870s, farmers began moving onto the range. They fenced their fields with barbed wire, which kept cattle and sheep from pushing over fences and trampling plowed fields. As more farmers bought land, the open range began to disappear. Large grants of land to the railroads also limited it. As a result, a more organized system began to develop in which ranchers bought and maintained private property. This protection of property rights further boosted settlement in the West.

Question 24

What natural and biological causes eventually helped lead to the end of the Cattle Kingdom?

Answer 24

Nature, however, imposed limits on the cattle boom. After a time, there just was not enough grass to feed all the cattle that lived on the plains. The need to buy feed and land pushed up the costs. Diseases such as “Texas fever” sometimes destroyed entire herds. Then, the bitterly cold winters of 1886 and 1887 killed entire herds of cattle. In the summer, severe heat and drought dried up water holes and scorched the grasslands.

Question 25

What officially ended the Cattle Kingdom?

Answer 25

Cattle owners began to buy land and fence it in. Soon, farmers and ranchers divided the open range into a patchwork of large fenced plots. The days of the Cattle Kingdom were over.

Question 26

What did the Homestead Act of 1862 state?

Answer 26

Congress passed the Homestead Act in 1862. It was the centerpiece of the government's land policy. The law promised 160 acres of free land to anyone who was head of a household, who had not fought for the Confederacy, and who paid a small filing fee and improved the land over five years.

Question 27

Which groups mainly embark on the opportunity of free land as stated in the Homestead Act of 1862? What actions made settlers struggle to make ends meet?

Answer 27

The main effect of the Homestead Act was a stream of immigrants and easterners took up the offer of free land. Many planted their 160 acres with wheat and corn. By 1900, half a million Americans had set up farms under the Homestead Act. Under the Homestead Act the land was free, but setting up a farm required money and hard work. Many people did not have the money to move west and start a farm. Also, only about 20 percent of the homestead land went directly to small farmers. Land-owning companies took large areas of land illegally and resold it to farmers at a high price. As a result, many settlers struggled to make ends meet.

Question 28

How and why did African Americans settle Kansas? Who were the Exodusters?

Answer 28

African Americans joined the rush for land in the West. Some were able to take advantage of the Homestead Act. The largest group of black settlers moved west at the end of Reconstruction, when the freedoms African Americans had gained after the Civil War were slipping away. In 1879, a group of African Americans moved to Kansas. They called themselves Exodusters, after Exodus, the book of the Bible that tells about the Jews escaping from slavery in Egypt. The Exodusters paid for their land rather than claim it under the Homestead Act. Between 40,000 and 70,000 African Americans had moved to Kansas by 1881, though only some of these were Exodusters.

Question 29

How were Anglos and Mexicanos treated by Eastern settlers that moved West? Who were they? Why were Mexicano groups, such as the Las Gorras Blancas, or “White Caps,” and the Hispanic-American Alliance in 1894, formed?

Answer 29

Easterners who moved to the Southwest found a large established Spanish-speaking population there. As you recall, the United States had gained much of the Southwest through the Mexican War. Many of its inhabitants were people of Spanish or Mexican origin who lived in the region before it became part of the United States. Spanish-speaking southwesterners called themselves Mexicanos. White Americans who lived in the region were known as Anglos. Most Mexicanos lived in small villages, where they farmed and raised sheep. A few wealthy Mexicanos were large landowners and merchants. As more Anglos settled in the Southwest, they acquired the best jobs and land. Often, Mexicanos found themselves working as low-paid laborers on Anglo farms. In New Mexico, in the 1880s, angry farmers known as Las Gorras Blancas, or “White Caps,” demanded fair treatment. Other Mexicanos in Arizona founded the Hispanic-American Alliance in 1894 to protect and fight for their rights.

Question 30

How did the farmers settle Oklahoma with government supervision? Who were the sooners and boomers?

Answer 30

As settlers spread across the West, free land began to disappear. The last major land rush took place in Oklahoma. Several Native American nations lived there, but the government forced them to sell their land. The government then announced that farmers could claim free homesteads in Oklahoma. They could not stake their claims, however, until noon on April 22, 1889. On the appointed day, as many as 100,000 land seekers lined up at the Oklahoma border. At noon, a gunshot rang out. The “boomers” charged into Oklahoma, but they found that others were already there. “Sooners” had sneaked into Oklahoma before the official opening and had staked out much of the best land. The physical characteristics of the Oklahoma environment meant that farmers needed good land in order to succeed. Those who settled on fertile farmland had better chances than those who ended up with less fertile land.

Question 31

What did the Morrill Land-Grant Colleges Act of 1862 state?

Answer 31

Agriculture was becoming more of a business as farmers increasingly grew food for the market at the same time as industry was growing. To train professionals for both agriculture and industry, there was a growing call for publicly supported agricultural and mechanical colleges. The Morrill Land-Grant Colleges Act of 1862, put forth during the Civil War by Justin Smith Morrill of Vermont, offered states a federal land grant to build schools that would teach and promote scientific farming and engineering. States received 30,000 acres of public land per congressional representative, a policy that gave more land to more populous states. Colleges founded on this land had to teach science, classics, agriculture, mechanics, and military tactics.

Question 32

What did the second Morrill Act of 1890 state and set up?

Answer 32

In 1890, a second Morrill Act was passed to extend the benefits of land-grant funding to African American students. It required states either to admit students of all races to their land-grant colleges or to set up separate land-grant colleges for African Americans. Upholding segregation, the South created separate colleges for African American and white students. Many of these agricultural colleges grew into historically black colleges and universities serving African Americans in the South.

Question 33

What were the influences of the two Morrill Acts?

Answer 33

Both of the Morrill Acts had important effects on the country. Private colleges were expensive. The new public schools were more affordable. They made college more available to Americans and affirmed that the government would play a role in supporting higher education. Private colleges also did not teach the practical skills that many Americans needed to find jobs. Land-grant colleges emphasized the training and skills needed in an agricultural and industrial society. The first land-grant college to open was the University of Massachusetts. Large universities also formed in the West and Midwest.

Question 34

How did shelter propose a problem for Western farmers? What were sod houses?

Answer 34

Farmers on the western plains faced many hardships. The first problem was shelter. Because wood was scarce on the Great Plains, many farmers built houses of sod—soil held together by grass roots. Rain was a serious problem for sod houses. One pioneer woman complained that her sod roof “leaked two days before a rain and for three days after.”

Question 35

How did a new steel sodbusting plow help Western farmers?

Answer 35

The fertile soil of the Great Plains was covered with a layer of thick sod that could crack wood or iron plows. A new sodbusting plow made of steel reached the market by 1877. It enabled sodbusters, as Plains farmers were called, to cut through the sod to the soil below.

Question 36

What other technologies were made to help Western farmers?

Answer 36

Technology helped farmers in other ways. On the Great Plains, water often lay hundreds of feet underground. Farmers built windmills to pump the water to the surface. New reapers, threshing machines, and binders helped farmers to harvest crops.

Question 37

What were environmental challenges faced by Western farmers?

Answer 37

The dry climate was a constant threat. When too little rain fell, the crops shriveled and died. Dry weather also brought the threat of fire. A grass fire traveled “as fast as a horse could run.” The summers often brought swarms of grasshoppers that ate everything in their path—crops, food, tree bark, even clothing. Pioneers dreaded the winters most. With few trees or hills to block the wind, icy gusts built huge snowdrifts. The deep snow buried farm animals and trapped families inside their homes.

Question 38

What were the roles of women on the plains?

Answer 38

Women had to be strong to survive the hardships of life on the Great Plains. Since there were few stores, women made clothing, soap, candles, and other goods by hand. They also cooked and preserved food needed for the long winter. Women served their communities in many ways. Most schoolteachers were women. When there were no doctors nearby, women treated the sick and injured. Pioneer families usually lived miles apart. They relaxed by visiting with neighbors and gathering for church services. Picnics, dances, and weddings were eagerly awaited events.

Question 39

What threat did homesteader's dependence on the environment propose? Why were homesteaders self-sufficient?

Answer 39

Homesteaders depended on the environment for their livelihood. They needed the right amounts of water, sunlight, rain, and soil for their crops. This made homesteading risky; there were many difficult harvests and lean years. It also meant that homesteaders put a great deal of care into the land. Those who owned their farms worked hard to keep the land productive. They wanted to ensure that their property would continue to supply the resources they needed to survive. Reliance on the land and distance from more populous eastern cities meant that homesteaders were extremely self-sufficient. They used resources from the environment to meet their needs. If something was broken, they fixed it themselves.

Question 40

What were some economic challenges faced by Western farmers, despite doing very well, at first, financially?

Answer 40

Despite the harsh conditions, farmers began to thrive in the West. Before long, they were selling huge amounts of wheat and corn in the nation's growing cities and even in Europe. Then, farmers faced an unexpected problem. The more they harvested, the less they earned. In 1881, a bushel of wheat sold for $1.19. By 1894, the price had plunged to 49 cents. Western farmers were hurt most by low grain prices. They had borrowed money during good times to buy land and machinery. When wheat prices fell, they could not repay their debts.

Question 41

Remember: As early as the 1860s, farmers began to work together. They learned that they could improve their condition through economic cooperation and political action.

Answer 41

As early as the 1860s, farmers began to work together. They learned that they could improve their condition through economic cooperation and political action.

Question 42

What was the National Grange and what was its goal? What was a cooperative? What was wholesale?

Answer 42

In 1867, farmers formed the National Grange. Grangers wanted to boost farm profits and reduce the rates that railroads charged for shipping grain. Grangers helped farmers set up cooperatives. In a cooperative a group of farmers pooled their money to buy seeds and tools wholesale. Wholesale means buying or selling something in large quantities at lower prices. Grangers built cooperative warehouses so that farmers could store grain cheaply while waiting for better selling prices.

Question 43

How did the National Grange urge farmers to vote for candidates that supported their interest? What benefits did this tactic have? What were the negatives?

Answer 43

Leaders of the Grange urged farmers to use their vote. In 1873, western and southern Grangers pledged to vote only for candidates who supported their aims. They elected officials who understood the farmers' problems. As a result, several states passed laws limiting what could be charged for grain shipment and storage. Nevertheless, crop prices continued to drop. Farmers sank deeper into debt.

Question 44

What was the Goal of the Farmer's Alliance?

Answer 44

Another group, the Farmers' Alliance, joined the struggle in the 1870s. Like the Grange, the Alliance set up cooperatives and warehouses. The Farmers' Alliance spread from Texas through the South and into the Plains states. Alliance leaders also tried to join with factory workers and miners who were angry about their treatment by employers.

Question 45

What did the People's, or Populist, Party demand? Why did Eastern bankers and factory owners oppose their views on silver?

Answer 45

In 1892, farmers and labor unions joined together to form the People's Party, also known as the Populists. At their first national convention, the Populists demanded that the government help to raise farm prices and to regulate railroad rates. They also called for an income tax, an eight-hour workday, and limits on immigration. The key Populist party demand was “free silver.” Populists wanted all silver mined in the West to be coined into money. They said that farm prices dropped because there was not enough money in circulation. Free silver would increase the money supply and make it easier for farmers to repay their debts. Eastern bankers and factory owners opposed this. They argued that increasing the money supply would cause inflation, or increased prices. Business people feared that inflation would wreck the economy. They favored the gold standard with which the government backs every dollar with a certain amount of gold. Since the supply of gold is limited, there would be less money in circulation. Prices would drop.

Question 46

How was the Populist Party gaining support and power? What happened in the election of 1896?

Answer 46

The Populist candidate for President in 1892 won one million votes. The next year, a severe depression brought the Populists new support. In 1894, they elected six senators and seven representatives to Congress. The Populists looked toward the election of 1896 with high hopes. Their program had been endorsed by one of the great orators of the age: Democrat William Jennings Bryan. A young Democratic congressman from Nebraska, Bryan was called the “Great Commoner” because he championed the cause of common people. Like the Populists, he believed that the nation needed to increase the supply of money. At the Democratic convention in 1896, Bryan made a powerful speech against the rich and for free silver. At the end of his speech, referring to the rich, Bryan proclaimed, “You shall not crucify mankind upon a cross of gold.” Both Democrats and Populists supported Bryan for President. However, bankers and business people feared that Bryan would ruin the economy. They supported William McKinley, the Republican candidate. McKinley and the Republican Party called for keeping the dollar tied to the gold standard. Bryan narrowly lost the election of 1896. He carried the South and the West, but McKinley won the heavily populated states of the North and East.

Question 47

Why did the Populist Party break-up after the Election of 1896?

Answer 47

The People's Party broke up after 1896. One reason was that, with Bryan as a candidate, the Democrats adopted several Populist causes. Also, prosperity returned in the late 1890s. People worried less about railroad rates and the gold standard.