By Lynne Lanning
Thank you so much for stopping by for a few minutes to share my adventures on this Historical Western journey. And my, what a thrill it is! The West
was built by a conglomerate of people ranging not only in age and culture, but also the downtrodden trying to survive and live free, to the thrill-seeking entrepreneurs.
Search the history of Western expanse you’ll learn about railroads, cattle drives, new towns built, and range wars. I mention these four, as it seems most of my stories are written around them. You can’t mention one without the others being involved somehow. It’s like a chain of events.
Did you know . . . For over 300 years, the longhorn cattle roamed free across the plains of Texas? No one claimed or wanted them, they had no use for more than a few at a time, and they were considered more dangerous than a herd of buffalo, scaring everyone. The plains of Texas were full and over-running!
Before the railroads, a few rough and tough entrepreneurs decided to take on herding these dangerous beast to far reaches of the West. They could sell beef to the locals, sustaining a living…BUT the big money was in supplying beef to the East. Enter – the cattle drives, with all the hunky, handsome heroes we call cowboys! (But that’s another story…)
For decades, these entrepreneurs (Cattle Barons) became rich, increasing their herds and sending the cattle East. When the railroads came, it became an even more lucrative business. The cattle grazed on free-range land, which was unused land owned by the government. The Cattle Barons may have owned hundreds, or even thousands of acres, but they were using tens of thousands that they didn’t own. For decades, it wasn’t a problem, until…Enter – the Homesteaders.
The government wanted to occupy and settle the West, coming up with some great incentives for people through Homesteaders Acts. But guess where these homesteaders were legally moving to? Right in the midst of free-range grazing land!
Arguments and deadly fights ensued for years. The Homesteaders refused to give up their homes, and the Cattle Barons refused to give up the grazing land they had used for generations. Not only did the Cattle Barons eventually have to move their herds and reduce them drastically, but some had to reroute their trails to cattle markets and railheads by miles around mountains, or pay (by the head) to cross someone’s property. Their lives, and livelihoods changed forever.
The Cattle Barons had done the same as they had for generations; the Homesteaders were legally taking advantage making a better life for themselves; yet hundreds of men, women, and even children died because of it. Some men, (like William Bonney aka Billy the Kid), even became outlaws over it.
I put myself in the shoes of both sides and can see how there was a huge problem.
Several of my books are written about, or at least mention, Range Wars. I am excited to announce that Mail-Order Stone Mason is a Finalist in the 2025 Selah Awards Western Category! Love can blossom even in the midst of such dangerous surroundings!
Buy – Mail Order Stonemason
And…be still my heart…To Trust A Heart is a Finalist in the Historical Romance Category! What an HONOR!
Buy – To Trust a Heart
Two lucky winners will receive another great story that incorporates a small Range War, young entrepreneurs, building a railroad and a town – Mail-Order Station Master. My question for you is what information or fact caught your eye in my post about the West? I’d love to hear your opinions about the Range Wars. We have lots to talk about.
Buy – Mail Order Station Master
The Old West is so intriguing, and that’s where I park my wagon and stay for weeks at a time as I write one incredible tale after another! I can vividly see it in my mind as all those brave ancestors made their way to an adventure of a lifetime…and I’m so glad they did!
Find out more about me and my love of Western Adventures:
https://www.amazon.com/stores/author/B0B6R33BXX?tag=pettpist-20
Fascinating info. I didn’t realize the cattle had been there so long.
Congratulations on being a finalist.
Hi Denise! Thanks for the congratulations! How the cattle came to be had never even entered my mind. It was just one of those things that ‘always was’. But then to find out they were brought here from Spain into the Mexican territory was an eye opener…and of course, it opened doors for more research…which I love.
All of the info was interesting. I did not know the Cattle Barons got rich because of free cattle. Thanks!
Free is a relative word! LOL! They definitely had to work for them though, or pay someone to do the dangerous job of rounding them up. I guess that’s why the average age of a cowboy was 25 years old. It was a rough job, and while on a cattle drive, they worked 20 hours a day! I would be looking for early retirement too!
info about Cattle Barons
There is a library full of interesting info! Prepare to be intrigued. I usually type in my subject and then add “mid 1800’s” to get a wealth of info.
Cattle drives have always interested me. The thought of herding hundreds of cattle weeks on end, in all kind of weather and terrain- sounds scary yet exhilarating at the same time. I never really thought about the range wars or how the homesteading changed the land use for the cattle barons. I often think of the hardships that so many faced to build a life in the wild west. What fortitude and perseverance.
Indeed! If it had been left to me to settle the west, I’m afraid by the time I got to the first steep hill I would have claimed it was far enough! LOL!
It was a very rough and dangerous job. Danger was present in almost every minute. It could be in the form of Indians or rustlers, wild animals, the actual terrain, or extreme weather conditions. Then of course, the cattle could be spooked over any sudden movement or sound, and that could cause a stampede.
I love hearing about the cattle barons. Congratso on your books.
Thank you so much! It is such an intriguing subject with good and bad examples. But, such is life. You have good and bad in every crowd, but some of the articles I’ve read leave me feeling bad for both sides at once. The end results of change may be a good thing for most, but change always hurts for a little while.
I’d heard about the range wars, but had forgotten about them. I love to be reminded, looking forward to reading about them.
Oh no! Don’t forget about them. They were the “pioneer entrepreneurs of the west”! Can you imagine where we would be without their vision of the future? When incorporated into a good story (with a side of romance), there’s nothing any better!
I did a whole project in high school about the invention of barbed wire and its connection to range wars. It got me all the way to the state History Day competition! I was also able to reuse the same project for one of my college history classes. I’m fascinated by that time period in history.
That is interesting! Congratulations! “Devil wire” was one of the most hated things of that time.
So glad you could reuse all the original research, although it’s interesting enough to research again!
Since I was born in and live in the “wild west” I have been exposed to all of this from a very young age. However, I did not realize that the value of the longhorn cattle was ignored for so long! I currently have a home that is surrounded by free range land and it can be cumbersome at times when a gate is left open or a fence damaged leaving the cattle to come down my dirt road LOL! But it doesn’t annoy me and I know the cowboys will be there soon enough to round them up and head them out. Until then I just don’t try to drive down that road.
Yes, that’s the smart thing to do, especially at night. I don’t want my car to meet up with one of them.
I was surprised to find out about them being left unowned and of no great value for 300 years! And considered more dangerous than buffalo??? (Bison) Yeah, this research was full of surprises!
Interesting post. I didn’t realize that they got rich of of free cattle. I have always been interesting it the Long horn cattle but they do look dangerous to me with their long horns.
Indeed they are, especially when spooked – and it was easy to spook them. Just a sudden sound or movement could set them off. I’ve often wondered how they could hold their head up with such big horns.
I enjoyed reading the whole post because I learned something new. I didn’t realize the cattle were so dangerous but it makes sense. Thanks for the chance to win a book prize.
You are very welcome, and good luck! Glad you enjoyed my research.
Open Range is a good western to watch about the Range Wars. I’ve heard of them for years through western movies and TV and western books. I love learning about the Old West. Louis L’Amour is my favorite western author.
He’s my favorite too! I inherited all my dad’s Louis L’Amour paperbacks and I’m working my way through them. He had all but about 5 or 6 and I hope to find the missing ones and complete the collection. Movies and tv shows make much more sense to me now that I know the story behind them.
I didn’t know about the longhorn cattle.
They are massive and can be dangerous! So glad you learned something new.
I have read some books that featured range wars. In my mind, cattle barons could be bullies. Thanks for the great post.
Yes, and most of my books about the subject portray them as such. I’m thinking about putting myself in their shoes when I write my next book about the subject. It’s just so easy to hate the rich cattle baron though! LOL!
The cattle drives are fascinating information. Meaningful and interesting about how their lives were.
It was a tough job though. The average age was 15 – 25 years old. Most of the men (and believe it or not – a few women) grew out of being so adventuresome or at least found an easier way to do so.
I didn’t realize longhorns were there that long! I love reading about cattle drives, probably because of all the western books with them in it, and because of westerns I watched growing up.
Same here! I had no choice but to love it…I grew up watching all those wonderful westerns and then read my dad’s Louis L’Amour books. Love the era and I’m gaining more respect for our ancestors all the time.
The Strength of the cattle barons and their ability to control so much,
Movies and stories portray the ones who were bullies, but in reality, the majority of them were responsible for building towns and settling the west in some way.
Such good information! As a Texas gal, I love longhorns!
Glad you enjoyed it! I also love longhorns (usually on my plate, medium well, LOL!)
Good morning and Congratulations on being a Finalist, that is Awesome!!. Wow, I had no idea about the longhorns that is so very interesting and about the Ranger Wars. Thank you for sharing all this very interesting information, your books sound like great reads and like good page turners, I also love your book covers. Have a great day and a great weekend.
Thank you so much! I’m thrilled that you enjoyed it. I do hope you will try some of my books and enjoy them as well.
What caught my eye was about the Longhorn cattle.
The book sounds really interesting
Thank you so much! I have several that tell about the different aspects of real history. I sometimes wonder when they had the time or energy for romance! But there is always a romance sparking somewhere along the storyline.
The fact that the Texas longhorn cattle were thought to be more dangerous than buffalo and no one wanted them
Isn’t that amazing?!?! Can you imagine the risk those first entrepreneurs took? But the pay-off was well worth it!
The range wars were heartbreaking. I remember reading about the one in Wyoming. I understand both sides.
Me too. And let’s not forget, the west was full of lawlessness at the time, and a lot of bought off lawmen. It was bad circumstances with two opposing sides.
I was surprised by the fact that no one wanted the longhorn cattle.
Yes! Then suddenly, everyone wanted them!
First of all, Congrats on your 2 finalist books!!!!!!!
I didn’t know that the longhorn cattle roamed free for so long even after people started to settle in Texas! Much of the information you shared I didn’t know (or don’t remember knowing lol)!
Thank you so much!
Some articles I’ve read say that Texas was over-run with them. I enjoyed every minute researching this.
Congratulations on your finalist books. Love the information you shared about the longhorn cattle.
Thank you so much! So glad you enjoyed it. I was thrilled and honored to share.
Congratulations on your books! Being a Southwest girl from a ranching family I still enjoy reading more about cattle, etc. thanks for the history lesson!
Thank you! Learning about how things used to be and how they came to be as they are now, is absolutely fascinating!
I knew the Longhorns came with the Spanish. I hadn’t realized they roamed free so long. There have always been some big outfits that try to push others aside. There still are and probably always will be.
After taking Spanish in college and having to watch many videos of bull fights and such, it looks like I would have put two and two together. Sometimes it takes me a while! I am amazed they were left unclaimed and unattended for so long, also.
Yes, sadly you are right. It seems there will always be someone waiting to take advantage of others. But thankfully, as a writer, I make the situation turn out for good!
I knew about the homesteaders and the range wars, and about the amount of land so many of he cattle barons owned. What I hadn’t thought too much about was their using what amounted to public land to graze so many of their cattle. That is continuing today under a regulated system. I had not considered that the trail drives would be affected. When they are written about, it sounds like they were taken on well established routes and ownership of the land is never mentioned. It is hard to imagine a homesteader/farmer allowing several hundred or thousand cattle to cross their land. Any crops would be destroyed, and hay or grazing for their own animals would be ruined. Having an accurate headcount would be difficult, if they even decided to pay. How is a homesteader going to stop a herd thundering across his property. Sadly, many were killed when they tried to stop them or to collect.
It is hard to change your way of life. Some manage relatively well while others refuse causing others to pay the price.
Congratulations with the nomination of TO TRUST A HEART as a finalist. Best of luck in the final voting.
There were a few established routes, FEW…but getting from the ranches to the routes was still a problem depending on where you lived. There could be hundreds of miles between. Of course, as the railroads were established, it helped a lot.
And you’re right about the problems incurred with cattle stomping down crops and such. It was definitely a problem that needed to be settled, causing needless deaths for decades. Greed, pride, and high emotions ruled over compromise and solutions.
These book intrigue me a lot and my thoughts on range wars well something tells me it started with their Ancestors in their Family and each family after that fought range wars why didn’t they just settle it with marking their territories and land and can only imagine how much trouble with cattle rustling they head if they didn’t brand their cattle in some way no I think it would be very hard to discipline them in a just way
Hope I Win
When the cowboys went out and gathered strays, part of their job was to brand the cattle. As for discipline, far too many cattle barons and their workers took the law into their own hands.
It was disgusting to think that a man could die for stealing cattle or a horse, yet they could treat a woman like property, abuse and all…but that’s another subject.
Interesting. Sounds like the government should have communicated better with the cattle barons before selling the land to homesteaders. Proper communication might have helped.
Interesting article. Sounds like a great book to read.
That the cattle had to be rerouted. It makes sense as more homesteaders took up land my guess is they put up fences too.
Congratulations on your book being a finalist!!!
Interesting article! I didn’t know they were more scared of cattle than buffalo.