Cattle Drivin’ 1860s – 1880s The Historical Cattle Drive Era

Developed by: Kathy Hazen Greenleaf Friends Academy

1 Cattle DrivDrivin’in’in’in’ 1860s --- 1880s

The content of this lesson will be taught through a teacher-directed game. Each student will be given a game board and seven “herds” of Texas Longhorn cattle along with a few answer strips. The teacher will guide the game by drawing cards from either the “Good Fortune” or the “Tough Luck” cards. (Cards will be kept with the teacher.) These cards are numbered and are placed in a predetermined order by the teacher so that events will occur as they actually did in history. The teacher will choose a student to read each card, and as it is read, students will respond accordingly to the information on their game boards. (Exact instructions for each card are given in the Game Guide.) The instructor is given additional information to supplement the cards on the following Game Guide, and is welcome to add information from their knowledge base on the subject to aid in student understanding. A series of questions will be given throughout the game, and students can earn points on the side of their game board by answering them correctly. Some questions require critical thinking skills or prior knowledge – others are comprehension questions based on the material presented. Teachers should award points for logical and/or thoughtful answers. To speed the answering process for questions during the game, it is recommended that students be in groups of 4 or 5. After a question is asked, groups will be given a short time (recommended 15 seconds to 2 minutes depending on the question) to brainstorm and finalize an answer. This will be written on their answer strip and groups will be awarded points for correct answers. Upon completion of all eleven cards, the teacher will ask additional questions for student points. The group(s) with the most points will win the game.

Materials needed for each student: Game board (copied onto 8 ½ x 11 paper) Seven “herds” of cattle – cut from copied master Game cards – only one set needed (copied on cardstock and cut out) Answer strips (copied for each student – double-sided) Pencil Red crayon, colored pencil or marker

Notes to the teacher: • Although this game is designed to be taught in one 45 minute session, depending on the discussion in the classroom and added teacher explanations, this game could easily be broken into two teaching sessions. Feel free to expand the game as you like, asking more questions and eliciting more student response. • This lesson is specifically designed to have the ability to be graded. Many of the questions are intended to be thought provoking and should not be counted wrong if students are processing through the content.

Rules to be read to the student: This is a game about beef cattle in the mid 1800s. You will want to listen carefully throughout the game as cards are read [ hold up the first Good Fortune card ], and as I give additional information about each card. You will be moving cattle pieces on your board, but you will also be keeping track of points that you earn during the game for correctly answering questions by coloring in trail markers on the left side of the game board. Although each of you has your own game board and answer strips, we will be playing in groups. [ Make certain at this point that students are aware of their groupings. ] You will need to come to a majority decision in your group for the answer to each question, and then will write that answer down on your answer strip. At the end of the game, the group with the most points wins.

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Game Guide: (Underlined words can be found in the key words listing on the Answer Strip.)

*Students begin by placing one herd of longhorn cattle in Texas. Teacher explanation: • In the mid 1800s, the population of the US was growing and shifting westward. The country now held over 20 million individuals, with the bulk of them living on the eastern seaboard. Pioneers and mountain men were exploring territories, missionaries traveled to evangelize Native Americans, and American emigrants were traversing the Oregon Trail. It was a dangerous and exciting time in US history, and adventurous folks were the lead players in this westward expansion. Gold rushes in California and other western territories sent even more daring entrepreneurs traveling. In the meantime, down in Texas, cattlemen were raising Texas Longhorns to supply a growing and ever hungry transforming country. Cattlemen would drive their cattle from Texas to railheads in Kansas, and would then be sent via train to their final destinations. Most of these cattle went to the feed the bustling population on the east coast of the US. In this game, you play the adventurous role of one of these cattlemen.

Question : Why would there be a demand for cattle? What do you think people would have used them for in the 1850s and 60s? (Answer: Cattle were used mainly for their meat, milk, and labor, but they used hides and most other parts of the animal after they were butchered as well. Texas Longhorn cattle were mostly sold for their meat. It was stringy and lean – but it was a hardy breed of cattle that could make long journeys and travel far across the US.) [Give a point for each use identified within the groups.]

------*Teacher chooses a student to take the first “Good Fortune” card (#1) and read it to the class. Student reads: Your herd has grown to 1,500 head of cattle and you decide to drive them up to Kansas to fill the demand in the east and make some money for yourself. You are both the owner of this herd – and the trail boss ! You travel about three months with your crew of cattle and ten cattlemen and finally reach the railhead in Kansas. [Students move their herd of cattle to Kansas on their game boards.] ------

Question: If each of your hired men gets about $30 per month, how much money total would you owe to 10 hired men after the trip? (Answer: $30 x 3 months= $90 per hired man. $90 x 10 men= $900 total.)

Teacher explanation: • $30 to $40 per month was a standard wage for a hired cattleman in the mid 1800s. A trail boss would receive about $100 per month, and the cook would get around $60. If you were taking a herd of 3,000 head of cattle, you would need at least 10 cowboys to help herd. Each needed at least 3 horses – and often had many more than that! A cook would be a necessary addition for the journey to prepare meals for the cattlemen, to drive the chuck wagon , and to provide medical supplies and treatment. A wrangler would be in the company as well to handles the cowboy’s extra horses along the trail. • Cattlemen found early on that they should not drive the cattle more than 10 to 15 miles per day. If they traveled further, the longhorns would lose weight and not be marketable at their destinations.

------*Teacher chooses a student to take the next “Good Fortune” card (#2) and read it to the class. Student reads:

3 While you were away for the past three months, your longhorns at home have continued to breed, and you have many new calves to welcome to your herd. Fellow cattle ranchers have heard of your successful drive north, and are anxious to send some of their longhorns with you on your next trip to Kansas. [Students add another “herd” of cattle to their Texas territory.] ------

Teacher explanation: • It will be spring before you travel to Kansas again, and you make plans with other ranchers to take some of their cattle along with yours. All the herds will need to be marked with their own brand so that you can tell the animals apart when herding them together – and so that everyone gets a fair price when they are sold.

Question: Why do your cattle need to be branded? (Answer: Cattle were branded so that as they were roaming the open grasslands or being herded together, ranchers knew which were theirs.)

------*Teacher chooses a student to take a “Tough Luck” card (#3) and read it to the class. Student reads: Your cattle are ready once again and you are preparing another trip north when you hear about the new legislation that has been passed in Missouri and Kansas. It all centers around an illness that affects cattle called “Texas Fever” – and the Texas Longhorns are the cause! Your cattle drive is postponed while you talk with other ranchers about your common dilemma . Meanwhile, your herd keeps growing…. [Students add another herd to Texas.] ------

Question: Why could it be a problem if you herd continues to grow? (Answer: It costs a lot to care for such big animals; too many cattle without a market will cause prices to drop, etc.) {Reminder teachers: accept any logical or thoughtful answer.}

Teacher explanation: • Texas Fever was a big deal! It was a disease that was caused by ticks that rode on the longhorns. The Texas cattle were immune to the illness, but cattle in other areas (that hadn’t traveled up from Mexico originally) were not. Whole herds in the northern and died because of this dreaded disease. Cattlemen from Texas who tried crossing into populated parts of Kansas were met by angry, gun-bearing mobs – and forced to turn back. The Kansas, Missouri and Arkansas governments backed their farmers, and passed laws to keep the cattlemen from driving their herds on well-used trails through their states.

------*Teacher chooses a student to take the next “Tough Luck” card (#4) and read it to the class. Student reads: The year is 1861 and the Civil War has begun! Surely there will be changes in store for you and your herd. You live in the South, and many of your neighboring ranchers have gone off to fight in the Civil War. Meanwhile, your herd continues to grow. Hopefully you’ll be able to get on the trail soon…. These cattle are expensive to raise. They are eating up everything in sight! [Students add another herd to Texas.] ------

Question: Make a prediction as to what changes the Texas cattlemen will face during the Civil War. [Teachers, accept any thoughtful prediction.]

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Teacher explanation: • During the Civil War, cattle drives came almost to a halt. Many Texan ranchers left their farms to fight for the Confederate Army. Mostly, cattle were left at home unattended where they multiplied! A few ranchers tried their luck on the trail, but it was hard going, and not much money was made during the war.

------*Teacher chooses a student to take the next “Good Fortune” card (#5) and read it to the class. Student reads: The Confederate Army needs longhorns to feed their troops. Yeah for you! You can herd your cattle over, help the troops, and make some money at the same time. This is great news – as it has been a while since you have ridden the trail… [Students move one herd in a southeasterly direction towards Mississippi.] ------

Teacher explanation: • The Civil War is hard on all of the country – and the North and South alike are hungry for beef! In the North, the beef supply is running out as the country directs their attention to the battle and feeding their troops. The situation is different in the South, however. Texas is a huge supplier of beef and could easily feed the soldiers, but problems in transporting cattle continue to arise as the war progresses….

Question: Why do you think cattlemen had a hard time getting their beef to the Confederate soldiers? (Answer: Many ranchers and cattlemen are busy fighting the war and are not at home to tend their herds or drive their cattle to railheads to help. Because it is war time, other issues arise – like road blockages, etc.)

------*Teacher chooses a student to take the next “Tough Luck” card (#6) and read it to the class. Student reads: Luckily, you got your herd of cattle to the troops. But now that you’re back home in Texas, you hear word that the Union Army has blocked passage on your herding trails. In fact, they have gained control of the Mississippi River! They’ll be no more trips for you during this war unless things change! But just like always, there are more and more cattle being born back on the . [Students add two more herds of cattle to Texas.] ------

Question: Who blocked the roads to keep the cattle from coming and why? (Answer: The Union Army blocked the roads in order to keep cattle or anything else coming to aid the South.)

Teacher explanation: • The Civil War lasts four years. Texas herds continue to grow. With such an abundance of cattle, and with no place to sell it, the price goes down drastically to $2 or $3 per head! (Substantially less than it was before.) It looks bad for the Texas beef industry. Overall, in Texas alone, there are more than 3 million excess head of cattle!

------*Teacher chooses a student to take the next “Good Fortune” card (#7) and read it to the class. Student reads:

5 The war is over at last. The North won, which means that the Confederate Army lost. The economy in the South is destroyed. However, there is a great market for cattle in the North that could fetch you over ten times the cattle’s worth in Texas! You hear more big news: Word of a new business in Chicago has spread. Armour and Company is a brand new meat packaging business that will cut, prepare and package meat to sell. This is the first company of its kind! ------

Question: Why do you think it is good news that there is a new meat packaging plant? (Answer: People are able now, for the first time, to buy cuts of meat instead of the whole animal. It saves them the work of cutting, cleaning and packaging on their own. They don’t have to buy more than they need, etc.)

Teacher explanation: • With incoming meat packaging companies, demand for meat was driven up, as people were very excited to get pieces of cut and cleaned meat – without all the work. When a commodity becomes more useful to people, the product generally raises in price. This is partly because more people are willing to buy it, and so more of the product will be needed.

------*Teacher chooses a student to take the next “Good Fortune” card (#8) and read it to the class. Student reads: Because of meat packing plants, and the fact that wartime demand had depleted the supply of beef in the North, beef cattle prices are on the rise. If you can get your herd to the eastern states, you’ll get $40 per head! That is great – because you have a lot of cattle to sell! But what trail can you take? [Student makes no movement on their board.] ------

Teacher explanation: • Six states had now joined the Texas Fever legislation that Texas Longhorns were not welcome in their territories. Included in them were: Kansas, Missouri, Illinois, Kentucky, Colorado and Nebraska. Trails had to keep changing course in order to avoid these cattle cautious states.

Question: Brainstorm some solutions to this problem with your group. What could the cattlemen do to continue to sell their cattle? [Teachers, accept any thoughtful or logical solution.]

------*Teacher chooses a student to take the next “Good Fortune” card (#9) and read it to the class. Student reads: Great News! A new trail is forged further west called the . It bypasses the populated areas of Kansas and Missouri, steering you clear of angry farmers. This really is great, because your cattle herds have continued to grow and grow…. [Students add another herd to Texas.] ------

Teacher explanation: • More interesting news: The Kansas/Pacific Railway ran through a frontier village called Abilene that was largely unsettled grassland. A man named Joseph McCoy knew that railroad companies needed more business and that Texans needed to sell their cattle. So this intelligent and hard working man built a hotel, stockyard, office and bank and made one of the first official “cow towns” of the time. This was a place where you could bring your cattle to sell and then do some well-earned relaxing after your long trek.

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------*Teacher chooses a student to take the next “Good Fortune” card (#10) and read it to the class. Student reads: Finally, you take your herd and head to Abilene on the Chisholm Trail. Your herd is large and should make you a lot of money! [Students move all their cattle on the Chisholm Trail.] ------

Teacher explanation: • Cattle drives flourished between 1866 and 1886. “Cow Towns” were built at railheads where cattlemen could sell their cattle and then enjoy civilization after their long trip. Cowboys became very popular during this time – and became a symbol of the Wild West and masculinity . Cow Towns were often wild, and soon Town Marshals were elected to help keep the peace.

Question: Why do you think that life in a “Cow Town” was so wild? (Answer: Men had just earned a lot of money from driving the cattle and after months on the trail, they had a place to spend it. They did a lot of drinking and gambling, and were excited to see women in the dance halls, etc.)

------*Teacher chooses a student to read the final “Tough Luck” card (#11) and read it to the class. Student reads: At the end of the 1880s, several events occurred that greatly slowed these historic cattle drives: the construction of more railroads, the invention of barbed wire and intense weather conditions. ------

Question: Brainstorm with you group how railroads, barbed wire and weather could put an end to the cattle drives. (Teachers, accept logical and/or thoughtful answers.)

Teacher explanation: • Continuous growth in the West caused a need for more railheads at more cities. The length of a cattlemen’s journey was shortened as a result. Barbed wire also played an important role as settlers used this new invention to make fences around their property. Cattlemen could no longer drive their cattle through some of their well-used trails. Finally, the winter of 1886-1887 was tremendously cold and thousands of cattle died as a result. All of these events caused a huge decline in the cattle driving industry.

Teacher now asks students to answer the following comprehension questions corresponding to the game if time allows. As students answer them correctly, they move up on the point scale on the side of their game board.

1. What was the purpose of a cattle drive? (to transport cattle to sell) 2. Why were cattle herds only driven 10 to 15 miles per day? (if they were driven longer, the herds would be too skinny at the end of the trail) 3. What was the big deal with Texas Fever? ( Texas Fever killed whole herds of cattle that were not immune to the disease. The longhorns were immune however, and they carried the disease with them and infected other cattle along the trail.) 4. How did the Civil War affect the cattle ranchers? (Many cattlemen joined in the fight and left their cattle unattended. Others stayed at home – but didn’t have almost any market for their cattle even though their herds continued to grow. Prices of cattle went way down as a result of the Civil War – and then went way up. The Civil War is actually what precipitated the very lucrative cattle drives.) 7 5. What three things together finally ended this era of cattle driving? (the construction of more railroads, the invention of barbed wire and terrible weather conditions)

Students clear off game boards and attach their answer strips. These can then be turned in for a grade.

Online references for further study: • texasalamanac.com/topics/agriculture/cattle-drives-started-earnest-after-civil-war • tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/aycol • digital.library.okstate.edu/encyclopedia/entries/c/CA076.html • civilwartalk.com/threads/cattle-drives-during-after-the-civil-war.801 • www.kshs.org/kansapedia/cowtowns/15598

8 Answer Strip ______Name ______Date ______

______Key Words and Definitions ______

______brand – a mark made by burning or otherwise to ______indicate ownership ______cattle drive – the movement of cattle from one ______place to another ______chuck wagon – a wagon carrying cooking facilities ______and food for serving working people commodity – a product of worth that is traded or ______sold ______demand – the desire and ability to purchase a ______product ______dilemma – a difficult situation or problem ______drover – a person who drives cattle or sheep to market ______economy – the monetary earnings of a place ______head of cattle – a count of the number of cattle (A ______“head” means one.) ______herd – a number of animals kept feeding or ______traveling together in a group ______immune – protected from a disease, not likely to catch it ______legislation – laws that are made ______masculinity – having “manly” qualities such as ______strength and boldness ______railhead – a railroad depot at which supplies are ______loaded or unloaded; the start or end of a railroad supply – the amount of a product that is available ______for purchase ______ticks – a blood-sucking arachnid that can carry ______disease ______trail boss – a person responsible for driving a herd ______of cattle wrangler – a cowboy that works with horses ______

1 Name______Date______

25 24 23 22 21 20 19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 Cattle Drivin’ 2 1 1860s /1880s 0 The Historical Cattle Drive Era

good fortune #1 good fortune #2

your herd has grown to 1,500 head of cattle and while you were away for you decide to drive them the past three months, up to kansas to fill the your longhorns at thome

demand in the east and have continued to breed, make some money for and you have many new

yourself. you are both calves to welcome to your the owner of this herd - herd. fellow cattle and the trail-boss. you ranchers have heard of

travel about three your successful drive months with your crew of north, and are anxious cattle and ten cattlemen to send some of their and finally reach the longhorns with you on railhead in kansas. your next trip to kansas.

tough luck #3 tough luck #4 your cattle are ready once again and you are preparing the year is 1861 and the another trip north civil war has begun! when you hear about the new surely there will be legislation that has been changes in store for you passed in missouri and kansas. and your herd. you live in it all centers around an the south, and many of illness that affects cattle your neighboring ranchers called “texas fever” – and the texas longhorns are the have gone off to fight in cause! your cattle drive is the civil war. meanwhile, postponed while you talk your herd continues to with other ranchers about grow. hopefully you’ll be your common dilemma. able to get on the trail meanwhile, your herd keeps soon... these cattle are growing…. expensive to raise. they are eating up everything in sight!

good fortune #5 tough luck #6

the confederate army luckily, you got your herd needs longhorns to of cattle to the troops.

feed their troops. but now that you’re back home in texas, you hear yeah for you! you can word that the union army herd your cattle over, has blocked passage on help the troops, and your herding trails. in make some money at fact, they have gained the same time. this is control of the mississippi river! they’ll be no more great news – as it has trips for you during this been a while since war unless things change! you have ridden the but just like always, trail… there are more and more cattle being born back on the ranch. good fortune #7 good fortune #8

because of meat packing the war is over at last. the plants, and the fact that north won, which means that the wartime demand has confederate army lost. the economy in the south is destroyed. depleted the supply of however, there is a great market beef in the north, beef for cattle in the north that cattle prices are on the could fetch you over ten times rise. if you can get your the cattle’s worth in texas! you hear more big news: word of a herd to the eastern new business in chicago has states, you’ll get $40 per spread. armour and company is a head! that is great - brand new meat packaging because you have a lot business that will cut, prepare and package meat to sell. this is of cattle to sell! but the first company of its kind! what trail can you take?

good fortune #9 good fortune #10

tough luck #11

at the end of the 1880s, several events occurred that greatly slowed these historic cattle drives: the construction of more railheads, the invention of barbed wire and intense weather conditions.