The Cattle Industry after 1876 Flashcards
What caused the Beef Bonanza of the 1870s?
Increased demand by large settlements for cattle
What happened to the number of ranches on the Open Range as a result of the Beef Bonanza?
Increased
What happened to the demand for beef as a result of the increase in ranches on the Plains? What impact did this have on the price of cattle
Reduced
Prices went down
What impact did reduced demand for cattle have on the profits of cattle ranchers by 1882?
Profits began to fall
What did ranchers do when their profits began to fall, and why?
Stopped selling cattle
Hoped prices would rise again
When ranchers stopped selling their cattle, what happened to the soil and grass?
More pressure on the soil and grass, leading to damage
What happened to the grass in a drought in 1883?
It withered due to the poor soil
How cold was the Plains in the winter of 1886-87? What impact did this have on the cattle?
-55 degrees Celsius
Deep snows meant it was even harder to reach the grass that remained
What was the cold winter of 1886-87 better known as?
The Great Die-Up
What percentage of Open Range herds were wiped out by the Great Die-Up?
15%
What did ranchers decide to do with their cattle in 1887 and why?
They sold them at a lower price
They were desperate to sell despite their poor condition
What type of ranch had a better time surviving after the Great Die-Up?
The smaller ranches
Why were smaller herds more helpful when the snows closed in?
They could easily be found and be brought closer to the ranch buildings
Why were smaller herds more helpful in times of drought?
Easier to provide water, using wind pumps
Why were smaller herds more helpful when rustlers tried to steal cattle?
They were easier to guard and control
Why were smaller herds more helpful when the price of cattle dropped?
They reduced the supply of beef, with higher quality meat being sold for higher prices
What types of cow did ranchers buy after 1887 and why?
Herefords and Holsteins
They produced higher-quality meat as they were pure-blooded breeds of cow
Why could the Herefords and Holsteins not be allowed to wander freely as cattle had before?
Breeding had to be carefully managed
What did ranchers do to separate their cattle after 1887?
Fence in their land with barbed wire
What did smaller ranches and fencing in cattle mean for the Open Range?
It led to the end of the Open Range
What impact did the end of the Open Range have on cowboys?
Much less demand - those who remained were employed as ranch hands
How did the lives of cowboys change after the end of the Open Range?
They were much less adventurous - no more drives
How did cowboys live from 1887?
In bunkhouses - not very comfortable, thin walls and beds full of lice
Cowboys would “ride the line” after 1887: what was this?
Patrolling the boundary between one ranch and another
Which part of the cowboy’s life remained after the end of the Open Range?
The yearly round-up: searching for stray cattle to be brought back for each ranch to pick out
