Texas Cattle Research Paper

When it comes to cattle and the American West, Texas has been a large part of molding it into what it is today. Cattle drives also played a large part in supplying meat to different parts of the West. Due to the driving of cattle from Texas up north or even west, many settlers were able to have things like beef in order to feed their families. The purpose of this paper, is to inform the reader about cattle drives and how they helped shape the American West. In the 19th century, cattle drives played a large economic role in the American West, particularly in 1866-1886. Texas has raised cattle since the 18th century when the Spanish tried to domesticate the Indians. Most cattle were slaughtered for hides and tallow (a form of fat), due to the fact that meat could not be preserved for a very long period of time. Many of the early cattle were in fact longhorns or british cattle. In the early cattle drives, many went west to California during the gold rush after 1850. The drives often took about five to six months to end their journey. Cowboys took the speed and weight of the cattle into consideration because the cattle could lose a massive amount of weight and end …show more content…
A head of 1,000 cattle could stretch over two miles. The drivers would work in pairs, with one on each side of the cattle, with the best up front (pointers) all else in the middle (flank and swing), as well as the drag men who were at the end making sure all the cattle were following. Their only communication was hand signals that had been adapted from the Plains Indian sign language, or they would use gestures with hats in order to get attention from other crew members. The crew would start they cattle drive in the spring time during round up because the grass was plentiful and not only could the cattle build up weight but they could be delievered by the time the winter months would set