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????

RAILROADS

RAILROADS 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…

RAILROADS

I’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