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The Old West #21
The Ranchers
Describes in text and illustrations the development of large ranches in the western plains, the impact of these establishments on the economy of the area, their organization, and some famous ranches and their owners.
240 pages, Leather Bound
First published January 1, 1977
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
May 13, 2023
Another of the Time Life series of the 'Old West'. This one of course tells the history of the ranches and the men and women who lived and worked on them. As usual, Time Life does a nice job of making the book interesting and readable. They focus on some interesting characters and their wild stories. The most fascinating thing is the vastness of the raw land that was available at the time and the huge amounts of money made and lost on that land in ranching and farming. A good part of the book is based in California. The areas of Colorado, Utah, Wyoming, Texas, et al are not left out.
January 15, 2018
This volume touches more heavily upon the social divide underneath the success stories of the Old West, as land entitlement became less abundant and barbed wire marked the domains of the great barons. The riches of a table loaded with good ol' American fare such as cornbread & freshly roasted beef are framed by faces marked by the exhaustion of back-breaking labour more than by the contentment of its fruits.
November 21, 2009
Another in the Time-Life series on "The Old West". . . . This is a gritty examination of ranchers in the old West. You get a sense of the great successes--and the hardscrabble life that others experienced. All in all, a good volume.
The first chapter of the book places special emphasis on Richard King, who developed the King Ranch, one of the great successes among ranches, over decades. He was a pioneer in breeding cattle; he succeeded despite horrific winters, the difficulty (early on) of getting cattle to markets; he made a tidy profit on selling horses. He also endured cattle rustlers and others who tried to take advantage of the herds that he had created.
In juxtaposition, we see the greater challenged facing ranchers in the Plains. As one rancher said in 1887 (Page 52): "There seems to be no end to the cold and snow." Sheep ranchers were looked at with disgust by many cattle ranchers. Chapter 3 focuses on the travails of sheep herding--how to make a profit and what the challenges were. There is discussion of the conflicts over land and water; the role of barbed wire (see a depiction of the different types of wire on pages 128-129); the hardscrabble life of marginal ranches.
Overall, a nice addition to this series. . . .
The first chapter of the book places special emphasis on Richard King, who developed the King Ranch, one of the great successes among ranches, over decades. He was a pioneer in breeding cattle; he succeeded despite horrific winters, the difficulty (early on) of getting cattle to markets; he made a tidy profit on selling horses. He also endured cattle rustlers and others who tried to take advantage of the herds that he had created.
In juxtaposition, we see the greater challenged facing ranchers in the Plains. As one rancher said in 1887 (Page 52): "There seems to be no end to the cold and snow." Sheep ranchers were looked at with disgust by many cattle ranchers. Chapter 3 focuses on the travails of sheep herding--how to make a profit and what the challenges were. There is discussion of the conflicts over land and water; the role of barbed wire (see a depiction of the different types of wire on pages 128-129); the hardscrabble life of marginal ranches.
Overall, a nice addition to this series. . . .
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews