The Real Wild West: A History of The American Frontier | Documentary

[Music] every country has a past that seems to be embraced within their contemporary character projected on both themselves and to the wider world for the nordic nations of sweden and norway it's their viking ancestry for japan it's their feudal period with tales of the samurai for england it's their history of kings and queens with knights clad and armor but for the united states it is their tales of the wild west we all have an idea of what the wild west was like with visions of gunfights in the streets between heroes and villains cattle trains thundering across open plains bandits leaping on trains to rob its passengers and enduring animosity between the white settlers and the indigenous peoples [Music] all of it has been ingrained in the public consciousness after decades of movies books and legends of the old west portraying it as such but like all tall tales told throughout history we have to question how much truth there is in the popular perception of this fascinating and crucial period of american history in this documentary we are going to examine the true history of the old west and study how its influence has helped define the culture of the modern american nation this is the story of the real wild west [Music] in the early 1770s britain controlled swaths of territory along the eastern seaboard of north america organized into 13 distinct colonies these colonies enjoyed a high degree of self-determination and intercolonial cooperation and trade leading to the colonists losing their sense of identity as british and instead identifying as americans this naturally evolved into friction between the colonies in britain until 1775 when the american colonists were in an open revolt on july 4th 1776 the colonists formally declared themselves an independent nation and a new country was born the united states of america for the people of this new country the dream of freedom extended beyond being tied to the british empire it was a promise of cultural reform where any man could seek to better his prospects through hard work under the protection of law which granted justice for all the dream was infectious and immigration to the united states from europe by people looking for a better life saw the population skyrocket from just 5 million in 1800 to 23 million in 1850 however very quickly that dream began to sour the fact of the matter was that while the 13 states had political independence culturally they inherited many of the old class systems which made it all but impossible for the lower classes to get a foothold in business and politics disillusioned they began to look to the largely unexplored territory to the west with the idea of establishing new settlements which could one day grow into new cities and eventually new states with their fresh start the settlers believed they could finally find their fortunes however the old world was still proving a hindrance to achieving this destiny britain was not the only imperial power to seize land in north america as both france and spain had legal claims to thousands of miles of land under laws recognized by the christian nations in 1801 thomas jefferson was elected the third president of the united states and recognized that france's once ambitious plan for a french empire in north america was slowly falling apart sensing an opportunity he entered into a series of negotiations to purchase french territory to the west of the still infant united states this would allow france to withdraw from north america whilst maintaining a degree of honor rather than lose it in a future military confrontation with spain britain or even the united states concluded in a ceremony on december 20th 1803 the impact of what history remembers as the louisiana purchase on the north american map was enormous and literally the stroke of a quill the united states doubled in size and made westward expansion possible without incurring the wrath of the french included in the deal was the mississippi river which would become a major artery for american commerce and provided a considerable boost to the economic development of the united states at a time when the first american railroads were still almost 30 years away the door was opening to the west [Music] the acquisition of this huge area of land would help give rise to the concept of manifest destiny amongst many americans coined in 1845 this was the philosophical notion that the people of the united states specifically those of a white christian denomination were destined by god to expand their dominion across the untamed land to the west spreading democracy capitalism and of course christianity all the way to the pacific ocean it was this belief that granted the american peoples the moral authority to disregard the historical territorial claims of the native american population who were regarded as inferior savages standing in the way of american destiny first of course the american government had to chart the new lands shortly after the louisiana purchase president jefferson commissioned an expedition westward to explore and map the new territory and find a practical route to the pacific ocean for future expeditions and settlements led by captain mayor weather lewis and william clark the expedition took over three years to complete and gave the american people an idea of what awaited them to the west meanwhile to the south and west the spanish empire which occupied territories in florida texas and california saw the lewis and clark expedition as a real threat and even sent a military force to apprehend them but ultimately failing in response fifth u.s president james monroe warned european nations not to interfere with american expansion to the west making a formal declaration that they intended to settle as far as the pacific ocean and that further encroachment on the american continent by europeans would be seen as an act of war as well as the old empires the threat was also aimed against mexico which had gained its independence from spain and taken texas and california with it texas would eventually gain its independence from mexico in 1836 and petitioned to join the united states in 1845 meanwhile america and great britain sought to draw border between the expanded u.s lands and british canada concluding in a treaty in 1846 which allowed president james k polk to instead focus on acquiring california from mexico after florida was granted statehood in 1845 mexico and the united states erupted into war on april 25th 1846 and was a major military victory for the americans the treaty of guadalupe hidalgo which ended the fighting in 1848 added an additional 525 000 square miles of territory to the u.s including the modern day states of california arizona colorado new mexico nevada utah and wyoming the map of the united states we know today was just now taking shape but of course these weren't just empty areas of land meant for seizing when europeans ventured to new lands such as africa asia and america they employed the doctrine of discovery which disregarded territorial claims by the local populations and instead granted immediate sovereignty of the new land to the european explorers in 1823 the u.s supreme court ruled in johnson v macintosh that this recognized international legal principle used by european settlers was also applicable to the united states as it pushed west and encountered native peoples it also meant that the local tribes people were subjects of the u.s government albeit in a purely administrative capacity rather than becoming equal citizens this also prevented the native peoples from exercising any rights as an independent nation and cannot have any more dealings with foreign nations without first sparking war with the us while american settlers moved west believing it was their god-given right to claim the new lands the indigenous populations didn't see it that way they saw it for what it was an invasion and the destruction of their way of life and armed conflict was inevitable frequent and bloody recognizing the threat some tribes even banded together to face the us army and armed settlers who appeared hell-bent on destroying them both militarily and culturally however the technologically superior u.s forces were victorious again and again tribes that didn't resist found their hunting and farming lands being restricted or in some cases were forced to relocate entirely often because they lived on a patch of land ideal for white settlers in short the conflict and forced relocation was akin to ethnic cleansing the expansion of the american settlers many of whom had themselves emigrated from europe also greatly increased the exposure of diseases to native american populations for which they did not have any natural immunity measles and smallpox especially devastated local tribes as not only were they fatal but highly infectious for some of the more cynical american settlers they saw these diseases running rampant and killing thousands as a sign from god clearing the land for them to claim [Music] it is difficult to imagine what must have gone through the minds of those who chose to risk it all for the dream of finding a better life in the untamed lands out west it would not be too much of an exaggeration to say that in the 19th century those undertaking the wagon trains were carrying out a journey akin to colonizing the moon today they would be almost totally alone with little or no governmental medical or logistical support after the first pioneers pushed through the lands largely on their own widths or as a part of exploratory expeditions such as that undertaken by lewis and clark routes were established that would lead them into the heart of the new territories before they would branch off into new areas to establish their settlements some of the most well-known routes included the santa fe trail which ran from the missouri river along the divide between the tribituaries of the arkansas and kansas rivers to the site of the great bend in kansas where it then turned along the arkansas river before branching southwest to santa fe new mexico another trail of great importance was the oregon california trail no trail was ever considered easy but the oregon california trail was particularly difficult involving optical ridden terrain that included large territories still occupied by native americans it began in independence missouri before traversing northeastern kansas southern nebraska and southern wyoming it then crossed the first of three towering mountain ranges before heading across the arid and desolate great divide basin and stretching through idaho before finally reaching the territory of oregon given the danger involved folks needed experienced frontiersmen who could teach and lead sometimes thousands of settlers at a time many of whom had grown up in american or european cities and had little experience living off the land in addition it became necessary for the settlers to form large wagon trains for cooperative protection and support the types of people who joined the wagon trains vary greatly from wagon to wagon some were sold on the tales of adventure conceiving images of battling bears or the native people and earning glory for themselves in the process others were businessmen hoping to take their skills and acumen to the new settlements where the competition was less fierce and they could establish a monopoly before the settlements grew and of course some were criminals escaping the law or those who had accumulated debts that they couldn't pay and they were fleeing west to escape the sometimes violent debt collectors a wagon train would begin to form in early spring at an agreed upon rendezvous point such as near the missouri river before setting out the members of the train would start to form groups amongst their numbers to serve vital functions during the course of the journey they would also establish a governing body they would elect leaders and then decide on rules of conduct during the journey those tasked with scouting ahead of the main train or who were charged with protecting it from attack would travel on their own horses allowing them to move about quickly the majority of the train's population would ride in the now iconic conestoga wagons the wagons took their name from the conestoga creek region of lancaster county pennsylvania where they originated and were ideally suited for hauling freight over rough terrain pulled by up to six horses the wagon had a carrying capacity of up to six tons and the floor curved up at each end to prevent the contents from shifting inside on uneven ground while a distinctive white canvas cover protected against rain and provided shade from the heat once organized and on their way wagon trains tended to follow a fairly strict daily routine typically those embarking with the train would wake up at 4am for breakfast and packing before setting off at 7am not stopping until around 4pm where they would set up camp for the evening it was always rough going too some days as little as just three miles would be traversed by the wagon trains an often depressing result as everyone in the wagon train knew with each passing day winter drew closer it was not just the terrain that hindered their progress however some wagon trains would have in excess of a hundred wagons amongst them and getting such a huge convoy moving was an extraordinary challenge for their leaders of course there was also the threat from the native american tribes who often track the long lines of wagons snaking through the territory that their ancestors had lived on for millennia sometimes the tribes would stop the wagon trains and demand they pay tribute to them in the form of food mules rifles or other goods the wagon trains could pay or decide to fight them off but neither guaranteed their safety some of the more aggressive tribes wouldn't even demand tribute they would just simply attack defending the wagon trains was a difficult undertaking it was often so long that those charged with protecting it were spread thinly across its length and when an attack did come every able-bodied person was involved in the defense even if it was just by reloading the next rifle and allowing the shooter to keep firing at the attacking tribesmen some wagon trains adopted specialized tactics for dealing with attacks when traveling through an area known for attacks the wagon trains would often travel in two columns rather than a single file this way when an attack came they would quickly form a circular defensive line finally as if the terrain the incoming winter weather and the threat of attack weren't enough the populations of the wagon trains also had to contend with disease and hunger as time went on on the oregon california trail cholera ravaged through many wagon trains and was all the more frightening by the suddenness of the disease taking hold it was said that a man or woman could feel perfectly fine at breakfast and be dead by supper the lack of fresh fruits on the trail also saw a marked degradation in overall health due to the lack of essential vitamins leading to some people even getting scurvy a disease more commonly associated with sailors on long sea voyages for some wagon trains hunger became such an issue that there was only one option left open in 1846 a wagon train known as the donner party was trapped in the harsh winters of the sierra nevada mountain range they would survive by eating the flesh of those who had already perished after all of these factors are considered it comes as no surprise that those who completed these trails were considered the toughest of men and women they embodied the american spirit that had led to the pilgrims colonizing north america in the first place and now they were expanding the reach of their country and their way of life the legend of the old west and the heroic frontier folk who forged it were already beginning to form stories of the experiences on the trails filtering back east and leading to greater interest in moving out west amongst the remaining population but not everybody was cut out for the wagon trains in 1930 the first u.s railroad opened and over the coming decades the number of miles of railroad increased exponentially out west the earlier wagon trains established settlements and the railroads were soon opening them up to more travelers looking to find new more prosperous lives the hundreds of people who went by wagon soon became thousands of people going by steam train especially after a gold was found in california in 1848 over the coming decades the settlement swelled into towns and cities to serve the goldmines or act as rest stops for trains or cattle drives the stage was set for the period history would remember as the wild west [Music] the choice of where to establish settlements varied from place to place and the names of some of these settlements would become ingrained in the wider legend of the old west the real town of deadwood for example was established in 1876 in an area of south dakota previously promised to the lakota tribe however when gold was found in the nearby black hills american settlers disregarded this treaty and founded the town taking the name from a formation of dead trees found nearby meanwhile the town of tombstone was founded almost concurrently to deadwood in cochise county arizona the town was centered around a series of silver mines around the area and over the course of 10 years it produced somewhere in the region of 50 million of revenue an extraordinary figure for the day some settlements would grow beyond small townships and evolve over time to become some of america's most prominent cities a small settlement established in 1858 on the banks of the south platte river during the pike's peak gold rush was the beginning of the city of denver colorado gold would also turn the small west coast town of san francisco into a thriving city after fortune hunters flocked there to capitalize on the california gold rush beginning in 1849 the new citizens of san francisco became known as 49ers a name which would later be adopted by the city's national football league team in honor of this period of the city's history given america's state and federal legal systems there was little in the way of regulation to control many of these wild west towns and anyone with the money to build a business was usually free to do so during its heyday the comparatively affluent town of tombstone had no less than 110 saloons 14 gambling halls numerous dance halls brothels four churches three newspapers two banks an ice house a school and an ice cream parlor all of this despite the fact that the town's population peaked at just around 10 000 people given the backbreaking nature of mineworking or railroad construction it comes as little surprise then that the entertainment in the west was so highly sought after alcohol and card games were by far the most prevalent forms of entertainment but both could bring out the worst in people especially when the law was almost non-existent in some places in deadwood especially itself a town founded illegally winning in a game of poker often meant you were watching your back leaving the saloon or gambling hall many towns were simply too small for there to be some form of permanent entertainment hall such as a theater and this gave rise to the traveling theater companies traveling from town to town actors singers and dancers would always produce an air of excitement when they would roll in off the trails popular myths of the wild west often depict these shows as being less than cultured affairs and while there were less reputable companies touring the west many of them worked hard to bring the culture of the big cities on the east coast to the western frontier the lang riche allen st joseph theatre company for example played to audiences in missouri and kansas enacting such productions as 10 nights in a bar room toodles lady of lions hamlet englemar the barbarian uncle tom's cabin and othello often they would construct temporary or in some cases even permanent buildings to carry out their performances in the evenings to bring in extra money during the day they would rent out the theater space to the town for everything from dances to town meetings and even criminal trials however one form of entertainment became especially sought after by the men and they were willing to pay top dollar for it sex life was tough for the men in mining towns but it was arguably even tougher for single women there was no chance for a woman to go down to the mines where the money was being made and instead they had to rely on domestic types of jobs such as laundry this barely provided them enough money to get by and there were only two choices really left open to them either finding a husband quickly or working in the brothels as a prostitute a woman can make the same money in a single night as they would in a week of laundry because they wanted financial independence they took to becoming prostitutes sex quickly became a big business in the west and the railroad towns especially became hubs for the prostitutes since there was a constant flow of men passing through folklore tells of railroad workers hanging their red lamps outside the brothels while they had their time inside and this gave rise to the term red light district which has since come to refer to an area of a town or city embroiled in prostitution while this may have introduced many americans to the term red lights have actually been used by prostitutes in holland since the 17th century to advertise their services and it's equally possible dutch immigrants continued this practice in the united states many women who faced in the brothels became shrewd business women having recognized that they faced tough competition from their rivals business cards poster advertisements and even vouchers were all used to promote their business but perhaps the most useful policy adopted by the brothels was discretion despite their often being little in the way of legislation the church had made its way out west along with the minors and sex work was still seen as a sin some of the more well-to-do members of society were expected to maintain a certain degree of morality and a visit to a brothel could destroy that image if discovered but of course in nature the act of sexual intercourse is not purely for recreation and many prostitutes fell pregnant as one popular rhyme from san francisco put it the miners came in 49 the women came in 51 and when they got together they made the nation's son even if a woman chose to carry the child to term their safety was not in any way guaranteed childbirth in the west was a particularly dangerous affair with their only being the most rudimentary medical support one can argue on a case-by-case basis over whether women decided to become prostitutes or were forced to by their circumstances certainly there are examples of both cases however one group who certainly didn't have a choice were the thousands of chinese sex slaves purchased cheaply from their parents in china where they were seen of little value and shipped to the west life for these poor women was exceptionally cruel many of their white clientele were miners and railroad workers who were increasingly finding themselves being undercut by cheap chinese laborers and this meant they became the focus of the men's frustrations with violence being a common occurrence but only the most foolish man would visit a brothel believing the risks were solely confined to the ladies of the night sexually transmitted diseases were common and with so many men visiting brothels it could spread like wildfire amongst the community even if the disease wasn't fatal in itself it could often reduce or completely inhibit a man's ability to work and with no social care services in place that could potentially mean starving to death chlamydia was one of the leading causes of urinary tract infections causing problems with passing urine and the onset of blindness when it came to any disease illness or injury in the old west often it was said that the cure could be far worse than the disease medical technology and understanding was advancing all the time in the second half of the 19th century in both europe and the eastern states of america but it was a little slower making it out to the west treatments were often either traditions carried over from the old worlds or were newly invented based on experience in the untamed lands that were now considered home but neither were 100 effective gotta cough treatment in the 1860s west could be with onion soup or a mixture of opium and camphor you could also find yourself ingesting a mixture of equal parts of linseed oil honey and jamaica rum got a fever doctors would use coal tar extracts to induce sleep while in 1866 a doctor recommended a liniment mixture of sulfuric ether aqua ammonia and a myriad of ammonia been scalped accidentally by a wagon or intentionally by a disgruntled local despite being considered fatal in the 1860s there were some extraordinary stories of people surviving this ordeal a four-year-old boy from nebraska had his scalp reattached by a doctor using 35 searchers and a wet skull cap on his head which was kept wet with a solution of boric acid the child miraculously recovered but whether it was for the services of a doctor or a lady of the night patients or patrons had to pay somehow the economics of the west changed over time as the presence of white settlers grew before the mass migrations of the wagon trains money in the west was of little value being of no use when dealing with the native american tribes instead the early travelers traded with the locals and with each other often including furs food alcohol and guns when the wagon train set off each wagon or wagon company would trade with one another in fact most who joined the wagon trains would spend the last of their money on essential items before setting off meaning they had nothing to come back to and thus offering them an extra incentive to keep pushing west prospectors and miners would trade in whatever they mined from the countryside but the economics of the west would change dramatically once their transcontinental railroads began to open in the late 1860s these railroads crisscrossed the western landscape making the wagon trains obsolete journeys that once took months now took days and was significantly less risk leading to an explosion of the western population and more importantly linking the west with the economy of the eastern states goods produced in the west were soon transported east which sent the us dollar back westward and money was soon displacing goods as the primary source of currency an oft-forgotten aspect of life in the west was that there were at times numerous currencies being used silver and gold coins often had different values from town to town while some companies paid their employees with private bank notes or vouchers specific to a local bank or even an individual the problem with this was not just that these wages couldn't be spent outside of the company or town but if the individual or the local bank went bankrupt then in one quick swoop all of those wages were rendered useless eventually workers and minors in the west began to realize that they had to take action to protect themselves against the exploitation thus the old west has an important place in the history of trade unionism in the united states again the expansion of the railroads especially saw increased trade union activities through the 1870s but many of these trade unions were limited to specific jobs in the industry such as the train drivers conductors and maintenance personnel even then it was not uncommon for them to be limited to a specific region all of which conspired to inhibit their overall effectiveness by the 1880s that began to change with larger organizations like the knights of labor growing in prominence the knights of labor aim to protect the interests of anyone who is considered a producer be they from the mining or agricultural sectors and including those in the logistical chain such as the railroad workers the knights of labor were headed by terrence v powderly who believed that the traditional strike by workers to get what they wanted should be a last resort as it was damaging to all concerned instead under his leadership the knights of labor adopted political and even business methods to achieve their aims the knights of labor's support grew quickly as did their list of successes until 1886 when during a strike in chicago at haymarket square aimed at giving workers an 8 hour working day police shot and killed a peaceful protester and injured several others the next day an extremist amongst the group threw a stick of dynamite at the line of police seven police officers were killed and a stain was put upon the knights of labor which began to break up and join other national unions such as the american federation of labor [Music] the 10 gallon hat the horse spurs the sick shooter dangling from the hip these are the images popular culture has produced of the cowboy the term itself becoming a blanket for anyone who has lived in the west however the story of the real cowboys isn't all what it was cracked up to be the vast unspoiled land of the west was seen as ideal ground for expanding america's agricultural base with the railroads allowing food produce to now be transported to markets back east as well as the shipping hubs on both coasts for exporting before any of it spoiled as would have been the case with horse-drawn wagons even before the american population moved west though much of the land had been used for farming and rearing cattle by the spanish and many of the practices traditions and even words we now associate with the culture of the cowboy have its origins from spain the word ranch for example which often describes a small farmhouse comes from the spanish word rancho before the 1850s there was little in the way of a market for cattle as most farms and settlements raised their own small herds for their own consumption excess meat and hides were sometimes sold or traded to neighbors but after the american civil war concluded it truly became a major industry during the civil war the union army used the city of chicago for supplying meat to its soldiers thanks to its railings after the war these same facilities were used to process meat from the west and chicago became a major meat packing hub before shipping off to the cities out east the meat became highly sought after and drove up demand for meat from the west leading to more and more farmers raising cattle for the meat industry by 1870 chicago was already processing 3 million cattle and hogs and this number would only grow and grow over the coming years with the transcontinental railroads now joining both coasts of america the west was now open for business and the era of cowboys of popular legend had arrived many of the breeds farmed by the cowboys had been brought to america by europeans and were allowed to live semi-wild on the open ranges where they grazed for much of the year the main cattle breeds that dominated the industry on the open range was the longhorn which was descended from the original spanish longhorns imported from the 16th century onwards other breeds included the meteor hereford which as the name implies originated from herrerfordshire in england but as the animals were left unsupervised it was not uncommon for the two types to cross breed with their often being few ways to separate the herds between owners many ranchers formed associations to keep track of the number and location of their animals in order to determine the ownership of individual animals they were marked with a distinctive brand applied with a hot iron usually while the cattle were still young calves this required cowboys to rope the calf and restrain it while the brand was applied it was a tough and physically demanding job to do and a certain degree of admiration was placed upon those who had mastered the practice this of course led to competition amongst cowboys who wanted to prove their skills and this in turn led to the sport of the rodeo again the term has its origins in the earlier spanish and mexican farmers with rodeo being spanish for roundup [Music] but the meat industry was dependent on getting the animals to their markets and for that the cattle had to be driven from their grazing lands to the railroad towns that would then transport them to the cities for slaughter and processing this too originated with the spanish who undertook cattle drives as their empire grew in the americas it was in 1836 that americans began undertaking their own initially small-scale cattle drives ranchers in texas began driving their cattle to new orleans and establishing the so-called beef trail other trails would follow as their demand grew as did the numbers of cattle involved it was not without controversy however in the confounding period when new settlers were staking claims to land all the time the herds would often be driven across newly owned lands this gave rise to america's open range laws where unless the landowner made efforts to inform the cattle drives that they were not permitted on the land with either signs or fencing then the cattle drives could enter the lands claimed or otherwise another problem was the spreading of disease by the cattle the longhorns reared in texas often had ticks growing in their fur that carry texas fever a malaria-like disease that is transferable to both humans and local cattle the texas cattle were immune to the disease but it would ravage other herds they came into contact with as they pass through this was such a concern that many areas formed vigilante groups to warn off the cattle drives to protect their own livestock until the federal government enacted laws preventing the transport of infected animals the american civil war between 1861 and 1865 severely restricted the movement of cattle not intended to feed the soldiers and without the matured animals being sold off herd numbers drew dramatically leading to a fall in their price cattle were being sold for just two dollars per head but with the opening of chicago's meatpacking facilities and the meat explosion post-war the price would grow to over 40 ahead in the following years driving unsecured cattle over open ranges inevitably invited criminals looking to steal cattle either to sell or in some cases to simply feed their families the latter was especially true for native american tribes who found their own food stocks such as the buffalo increasingly diminished by american expansion west cattle wrestling was taken very seriously by farmers and just the accusation of such activities was enough to find an execution mob knocking at your door this frontier justice gave rise to a bloody conflict in wyoming now remembered as the johnson county war in 1889 cattle companies have been ruthlessly persecuting alleged wrestlers often on flimsy evidence gathered by so-called range detectives many of those accused were merely new settlers who competed with the companies for land livestock and water rights at a time when the open range was in severe decline seeing the cattle companies become increasingly desperate frustration had been brewing for quite some time with the way the big companies were behaving towards the small ranchers that made up the local community but it was the hanging of ella watson and her husband that would prove the spark for the coming frontier war ella watson's farm was growing legally and this threatened her neighbor the wealthy albert john bothwell who was known to engage in such illegal activities as fencing off public land for his use and sending his cowboys to threaten and intimidate anyone who complained when bothwell decided to accuse her of wrestling an armed gang turned up at ella's farm and the two of them were hung from a tree despite a friend attempting to rescue them by opening fire on the mob six men were arrested for their murder but witnesses were intimidated and one even disappeared before they came to trial and bothwell acquired ella's land without legal repercussions but there were other consequences the ranged detective who acted on bothwell's claims was murdered soon after and triggered a series of tit-for-tat killings until the wealthier ranchers hired gunmen to invade johnson county the gunman's initial incursion in the territory aroused the small farmers and ranchers as well as the state lawmen and together they formed a posse of around 200 armed men that resulted in a bitter armed standoff only the intervention of the united states calvary on the orders of president benjamin harrison did the standoff subside but even then the violence continued sporadically for months afterwards cattle rustling was by no means the only crime in the old west the wild rustic nature of life out west particularly in the early period where many people were surviving on their own or in small communities attracted many of the less scrupulous characters in american society it is perhaps during this time that the popular myth of gunslingers and gunfighters was closest to being true the us army initially took an active role in maintaining law and order but was spread too thin to be an effective law enforcement agency and they were more concerned with suppressing native american uprisings or maintaining the integrity of the border with mexico which at the time was still a major threat to the united states as a result many communities resorted to the age-old tribal mentality and that they looked out for each other resulting in vigilantes and armed possess pursuing known or suspected criminals this was less than ideal and without any form of investigation or due process if a crime occurred when a stranger was in town then that stranger may find himself running for his life guilty or not often funded by rich backers from the east the railroads and mines employed gun hands to protect their property from opportunistic thieves these were not simply private security guards however many of these men were experienced soldiers or were themselves former outlaws and with almost no regulation governing them as was the case with johnson county their tactics were often heavy-handed and violent with the companies at times being the most influential factor in the lives of many people these armed protection squads were as close to law enforcement as was available but they only served the interests of their employer and not the public at large as towns grew and the lawmakers from washington spread their influence further west law enforcement became an increasingly higher priority once legally recognized local governments began to take hold in the communities they began hiring town sheriffs to keep the peace many of these crimes the sheriffs faced were misdemeanors such as arresting people who were drunk and disorderly and for this they could be locked up in the local jail for the night however for more serious crimes they would have to go to trial and that was itself a problem since many towns didn't have a dedicated courthouse therefore the sheriff either had to take them to a larger town which was a risky task because if the criminal was part of a gang they could ambush him in route or he would just have to keep the offender locked up until one of the number of traveling judges arrived in town to hear the case being a lawman on the frontier was always a dangerous profession there often being little in the way of assistance from other members of law enforcement and even if there was there was almost no way to call upon them quickly in an emergency given this a mythos grew around the many sheriffs who found themselves the subject of stories of their exploits often with wild exaggerations thrown in and usually fueled by a bottle of whiskey consumed during the retelling probably the name most famously associated with law enforcement in the old west is wyatt erp whose exploits have been immortalized in books tv shows and movies like many legends of the old west though his story has been skewered somewhat in many retellings all around the western united states it was easy for even the most minor disagreements to turn into full-blown feuds such as that between the earps and ike clanton or david tutton wild bill hickok and this was to say nothing of the effect the civil war had on american society many confederate soldiers couldn't stomach life under the union having fought them between 1861 and 1865 during which a great number of atrocities were carried out by both sides with restrictions placed on many confederate soldiers in the immediate aftermath it is little wonder that many of them turn to a life of crime arguably the most famous of these outlaws was himself a former confederate soldier as was his brother jesse woodson james was born on september 5th 1847 in clay county missouri the second of two sons born to a baptist minister jesse's family had a number of slaves during his youth and so when the civil war erupted they naturally had sympathies for the confederate side jesse and his older brother frank fought a guerrilla-style campaign with the confederate soldiers known as bushwackers which taught them how to conceal themselves how to be completely ruthless and how to fund themselves through armed robbery both the confederates and union soldiers performed shocking acts of brutality on one another and civilians and the hatred over such acts were not tempered by the end of the war the james gang became the most wanted outlaws in america in the immediate post-war period yet the two brothers managed to stay ahead of the authorities and bounty hunters for over 15 years they garnered such loyalty or fear from other members of their gang that even when some of them were captured they refused to give them up no matter what they were offered it is estimated they stole around two hundred thousand dollars which amounts to over 6.2 million dollars today some told stories that the james brothers were modern day robin hoods sharing the money out to their community while others say they stole purely out of greed both the fictional and factual tales of jesse james were symbolic of the law and order legends as a whole in the wild west and are the defining aspects to our collective understanding of the time period at large the story of the old west is often dominated by tales of the american spirit taming the wild lands but a factor often overlooked in this narrative are the native american peoples who already occupied the land and had done so for centuries from their perspective the arrival of spaniards and then the americans was an invasion not just against their land but against their very identity and culture and many of them chose to resist for this reason the native american population has often been perceived as the enemy in tales of the west who stand in the way of progress a trait inherited from the opinions of the first american settlers who viewed them as inferior savages however as the american government increased their program of restriction on native american tribes forcing many of them to resist violently american military leaders would quickly learn to respect their native foes the 19th century would produce a series of skilled war leaders against the north american tribes who fought back against the white settlers who were pillaging their lands themselves many of these leaders names would become ingrained in american culture and language such as geronimo geronimo birth name goyakla was part of the apache tribe residing in modern day arizona when his wife and three children were butchered by mexican troops swearing revenge he waged a military campaign against white settlers where his courage and tenacity became legend across the continent against mexican and american troops he was known to charge into battle wielding only a knife against a hail of bullets and he was soon labeled the worst native american to ever live despite many battles geronimo survived but was ultimately forced to surrender to u.s troops on september 4 1886 something he later regretted confiding in family that he should have kept fighting until he was killed another great native war leader was red cloud of the oglala lakota sioux in nebraska in 1866 red cloud found himself leading his tribe in a bloody and brutal war against the us army that is now remembered as red cloud's war by the war's conclusion red cloud had defeated the us army and established control over swaths of territories in wyoming and montana red cloud negotiated with the u.s government for his tribe to retain ownership of the black hills and the peace talks which the u.s granted however red cloud's victory was short-lived and when gold was discovered in the region white settlers ignored the agreement and moved in establishing deadwood among other locales such disregard for agreements made in good faith led to renewed hostilities and in 1876 the great sioux war erupted several native american tribes joined forces under two of the most revered native american leaders namely crazy horse and sitting bull the two leaders amassed nearly 10 000 of their people along the grassy grass river known to the white settlers as the little bighorn on june 25th after a previous u.s army force had been defeated general george custer 7th cavalry was scouting ahead of their main force when they stumbled upon the encampment sensing an impending attack crazy horse and sitting bull organized their warriors and attacked custer's force custer had 600 men at his command but he faced a force of 3 000 warriors and was simply overcome by his enemies superior numbers 268 u.s soldiers were killed but while it was a powerful symbolic victory for crazy horse and sitting bull the massacre outraged the u.s government who used the incident to further justify their clampdowns on the native american tribes the hunting of buffalo for example a major source of food and clothing for the tribes were hunted to near extinction in north america making the plains almost unlivable for them not all native american leaders chose to wage war against the us expansion the nez perce are an indigenous people who have lived in the columbia river plateau in the pacific northwest region for at least 11 500 years before the white settlers came in the mid to late 19th century they were led by chief joseph who went to great efforts to resolve his tribe's issues with the us government peacefully one major issue concerned the u.s government dismissing an agreement his father made over land ownership and demanding joseph lead his people to the idaho reservation joseph resisted and tried to negotiate but when he saw a u.s army force amassing on his people he relented and led them to the reservation however some of the younger members of his tribe retaliated against white settlers that had moved into their lands and chief joseph was therefore forced to lead his people in a military campaign by 1877 joseph could fight no more and he surrendered yet that wasn't the end of his resistance for he frequently spoke at rallies where he tried to tell the truth of the so-called indian wars [Music] there's no doubt that as the century entered its final quarter a myth of life in the west was already brewing not just on the u.s eastern seaboard but across the world told by travelers who had crossed the west by railroad became highly sought after in taverns where a particularly exciting tale might earn the teller a free drink these stories would then be spread further and further afield inspiring the imagination of thousands capitalizing on this were the introduction of dime novels cheaply produced short books many of which used the western setting to tell dramatic shocking and exciting stories regardless of how close to reality they were but it would be one man more than any other who would be responsible for bringing the myth of the wild west to the masses his name was william frederick cody but history remembers him as buffalo bill cody grew up in kansas at a time when violence between pro and anti-slavery factions was at an all-time high his father being killed after giving a speech calling for slavery to be abolished this forced him to start work early to help his family survive using his natural skill as a horseman delivering freight in transporting cattle at just 11 he found himself in a gunfight with a native american who attacked the cattle train he was a part of this story quickly earned him a legendary status as the youngest indigenous fighter on the prairie that same year he found himself on the wrong end of the fists of an older man but was spared a more serious beating by the intervention of none other than wild bill hickok the same man who would go on to shoot david tut in their famous duel during the civil war cody undertook dangerous scouting missions for the union army while afterwards he was hired to hunt buffalo to feed construction crews working on the union pacific railroad he was so proficient at killing the animals that he earned the name buffalo bill his skills became so well known that he was hired by general custer to help guide russian grand duke alexis on a hunting trip he served with the us army during frequent wars with the native american tribes in 1870s and was awarded the medal of honor america's highest award for bravery cody's exploits provided exciting material for newspapers and the dime novelists and he quickly found himself becoming a western folk hero sensing an opportunity to make his fortune based on his exploits he tried his hand at acting starring in ned bundtline's son of the prairie while hardly a gifted actor he was a superb showman and knew how to work the crowd over the next few years he split his time between scouting and entertaining somewhere along the line the two worlds began to blur as he led hunting parties wearing his flamboyant costumes he would wear in his shows in 1883 cody with the help of producer nate salisbury organized his own wild west show a spectacular outdoor entertainment extravaganza with a cast of hundreds including wild bill hickok for a brief moment the show featured trick shooting hard-riding cowboys and native americans along with recreations of a buffalo hunt the capture of the deadwood stagecoach and a pony express ride during the course of the show's lifetime its stars at times included the famous female shooter annie oakley and an 1885 chief sitting bull himself the reputation of the show was such that eventually it traveled to europe displaying their skills at queen victoria's golden jubilee in 1887 before traversing the continent by 1893 annual attendees numbered around 3 million people and buffalo bill was one of the modern world's first true international celebrities recognizing his importance within the show he continued to perform into his 70s by which time he needed help getting on his horse backstage sadly he invested his money in several unsuccessful business ventures and when he died on january 10th 1917 he was close to bankruptcy tributes came from far and wide after his passing including from britain's king george v germany's kaiser wilhelm ii and u.s president woodrow wilson such was the impact that he had on the world while he left little in the way of fortune his legacy was immeasurable he and others like him had created the legend of the wild west and it continued to inspire millions a whole new generation was growing up in the 20th century learning of the wild west or at least how it was portrayed in the books and shows of the day the truth was soon unearthed however that the west was not as wild as it once was the arrival of a new century heralded the end of this unique and fascinating period of history in the end it wasn't so much the american spirit that had won the west but more so the american civility transport links were now better than ever thanks to the new railroads and the slow adoption of motor vehicles and there no longer seemed to be a frontier divide between the east and the west communication was also vastly improved thanks to the widespread adoption of electrical telegraphs and eventually telephones and radio the united states was now feeling like one whole country and with that came a shared civilization and culture the nature of life out west also changed the last of the great gold rushes had ended by 1900 and many of the towns that had sprung up to support the mines were now being abandoned creating numerous ghost towns dotted across the landscape the cattle drives also declined as it was no longer necessary to move large herds as far as they once had to and even so many landowners now prohibited the animals from being transported across their land anyway many of the towns and cities that did not survive adopted the new industries that were cropping up thanks to the industrial revolution and soon they began to resemble the city's back east by 1912 america's territorial expansion was largely over and it was at this point that many consider the actual period remembered as the wild west to have ended yet it left an enduring impression on american culture clothes stories songs symbols much of what is considered to be american has its origins in the wild west more than anything though it gave the still relatively young country of america a history where its people ventured out of their cradle to forge their destiny their victory over the land was something they adored and the spirit of those pioneers was something many attained and embraced the arrival of motion pictures only further inflated the stories of the old west and the western movie genre was incredibly popular in the first half of the 20th century sadly though it came at a cost to the native american population in california alone the native american population dropped from 2 million in eighteen thirty to just five hundred thousand in nineteen ten even today the native population in the united states stands at just around one percent of the total population and there are continuing issues over political representation missing and murdered women and children and the protection of their culture and heritage in the second half of the 20th century many americans began to take a more negative view of the west particularly concerning the impact white expansion had on the native populations this led to a decline in the popularity of the western genre and pop culture with the exceptions of major blockbuster films such as 1993's tombstone which tells the fictionalized account of the gunfight at the o.k corral focusing on the battle between law and order rather than between white settlers and native americans many advocating for native american rights claim that this is glossing over an unappealing part of american history nevertheless the perceived spirit of the west remains alive and well in the united states and continues to reflect america's identity names and words associated with this period continue to be adopted in reverence to this unique part of american history such as the u.s army adopting tribal names for its helicopters like the ah-64 apache gunship in recent years the wild west has seen something of a resurgence in popular culture with the success of movies and tv shows like deadwood and justified and even video games like the red dead redemption series in the end like those real pioneers and indigenous tribes who faced adversity in their way forging the west it seems the legend of the wild west still endures and will continue to inspire americans in all respects of the word for many years to come

Channel: Footprints of The Frontier

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Id: LFEHy87hX10

Length: 55min 12sec (3312 seconds)

Published: Tue Aug 02 2022