WOAHHHH…. Whattt is

thattttt????

What do you think about this ol’ iron

horse???

RAILROADS• “Iron horse” to the Indians

– spitting black smoke & moving at stunning speeds

• for people living in mining towns, railroads meant:– supplies– more people ( population)– rapid means of transporting goods & people

RAILROADS• Transcontinental Railroad: one that

stretches across a continent from coast to coast.– 1863 – Union Pacific Railroad- starts in Omaha, Nebraska

& goes west– Central Pacific Railroad- starts in Sacramento, Cali

& goes east– Gov’t aided both lines because it felt

• 1: competition was good for the economy• 2: rails across the country would increase tradeUnion Pacific

Central Pacific

Look at the word!

RAILROADS• Subsidy: financial aid or land grant from

gov’t. – Congress lends $$ & land to railroad companies– Incentive (think DD): for every mile of track, the

railroad companies receive 40 sections of surrounding land per mile

– Upon completion: both companies own about 45 million acres • what about the Indians????

RAILROADSRAILROADS PROMOTE GROWTH• Both companies meet at

Promontory, Utah on May 10, 1869–Golden spike dropped in the

middle to symbolize the first unity– Important national symbol • WHY?...

RAILROADSFrom here, other lines branch out• With growth came huge cities, with cities came

more people– Populations so large – territories start applying for statehood…

RAILROADSI’VE BEEN WORKING ON THE RAILROAD

• Trouble finding people to work for either company– laborers were short from Civil War– dangerous conditions– long hours– low pay– storms/ avalanches killed workers– tunnels through mountains took 1 day for a

few inches

RAILROADS

Immigrants (African Americans & Mexicans) the only ones willing to work

Central Pacific: thousands from China had to go through rugged Sierra

Nevada Mountains

Union Pacific: thousands from Ireland – had to cut through Rocky Mountains

YOUR TURN !!!

You have just been approached by the U.S. gov’t… they want

you to work on continuing the branches of the r&r that runs throughout the country… You

realize that they’ve been having trouble finding people

to work for them….

On the back of your notes, list your contract: 5 CONDITIONS that must be met in order for

you to go work at building the r&r for the U.S.!!!

Meh… come work for

the r&r, won’t ya?

Hmm… What do I want

from them???

CATTLE KINGDOMWild cattle or longhorns grazed in huge herds

across the plainsAfter civil war: demand for beef increased– people in the growing cities in East– miners, railroad crews, farmers & communities in

West– Longhorns were perfect:

• 1. huge• 2. long travel with little water • 3. no winter feeding required

CATTLE KINGDOMcattle drives: trips where ranchers would corral herds of longhorns &

drive them hundreds of miles north to railroad lines

cowhand: employed by ranchers to tend to cattle/ drive herds to market

in good & bad weather

CATTLE KINGDOMCowhands:

– kept cattle moving & round up strays– hot, dirty, tiring, boring (18 hour shifts)– brought packs of horses as they would die off– weather, prairie dog holes, rattlesnakes, thunderstorms– nervous cattle drown during floods/ crossing river– grass fires– stampede– cattle thieves– majority – veterans of the Confederate army– Many had dreams of becoming ranchers, most never got there– Vaqueros – skilled riders who herded cattle on ranches

in Mexico, California & the Southwest

ALL OF THIS FOR – food, housing & $1 a day!!!

CATTLE KINGDOM

Cow towns: towns along railroad lines where cattle are held in pens until they can be loaded into railroad cars

& shipped to markets in the East.

CATTLE KINGDOMThe end of a mission for cowhands…– saloons, dance halls, hotels, restaurants– a lot of partying/ letting off steam/ celebrating

a job done– sheriffs had hard time keeping peace– doctors, teachers, barbers, artists & bankers

would migrate to cow towns and help them grow into communities

– general store: groceries, tools, clothing, medicine, supplies & goods

CATTLE KINGDOM• CATTLE BOOM– 1870s– people from the East start to see how

profitable the cattle industry COULD BE– begin investing in the West & traveling

by rail to see their investments– cattle grows at exponential rate– ranchers let cattle roam openly• ID with branding

CATTLE KINGDOM• END OF CATTLE KINGDOM• With a growth in curiosity &

investment came more people > more people = more farmers– Farmers begin moving onto the range– Fenced in fields with barbed wire – Ranges become smaller• Don’t forget those gov’t grants too

CATTLE KINGDOM• END OF CATTLE KINGDOM• After time, not enough grass to feed all

cattle– Ranchers had to now buy feed & drive up cost

of cattle meat as a result• This lowered cattle population & sales

– 1886 & 1887 winters killed entire herds of cattle

– summer – severe heat & drought

• Ranchers panic & begin buying land & fencing it in. pretty soon we see the patchwork patterned fields of the Southwest

This is where farmers begin to take over…

CATTLE KINGDOM