The Cattle Industry

Question 1

John Illiff bought cattle which was too ill to move so he ranches them on the Plains. Shows that cattle can survive on the Plains

Answer 1

1861

Question 2

Cows worth $40 each in Chicago. Cows overbred since Civil War

Answer 2

1865

Question 3

Goodnight Loving Trail is established to get cows to Eastern market at Fort Summer

Answer 3

1866

Question 4

Illiff bought his ranch in Wyoming
Joseph McCoy creates the first Cow Town- Abilene. Cowboys bused the Chisholm Trail to get there and using the railroad to sell beef to Chicago

Answer 4

1867

Question 5

Beef Bonanza- the growth of ranching in the Plains. Farming cattle became one of the most profitable jobs in the West. Rich investors,”Cattle Barons” invested in ranches

Answer 5

1870s

Question 6

Three trillion cattle had been driven to Abilene and transported to the East using the railroad
Illiff has 26,000 cattle on his ranch. Open range for cattle had become popular

Answer 6

1872

Question 7

Barbed wire is invested making ranching easier

Answer 7

1874

Question 8

Refrigerated cattle cars begin being used on the trains to transport beef

Answer 8

1875

Question 9

There are now 4.5 billion cattle in the West- half of those are in Colorado, Nebraska and Montana and Dakota

Answer 9

1880

Question 10

The Great Die up- temperatures fall as low as -55 degrees on the Plains.
At least 15% of open range herds died.
End of open range technique
Move towards smaller fenced ranches

Answer 10

1886-1887