The History of~The United States (Part 7: How the West was?)

As we left off from our last page (click here) The USA was embroiled in a deadly Civil War that shook the entire nation to it's very core. Now that the Civil War was now over, Americans were beginning to move out west again. But how exactly the western US was all about, and what about all of the misconceptions of the "Wild West"?

This is Part 7 of the history of the United States, and what it'll cover is how the western regions were. Was the west truly wild, or was it just a fun fantasy, and what was the history behind the western regions.

## The term "Wild West"

As we may know from popular media about the western USA, the western environment can be depicted by a small wooden built town in the middle of the crimson soiled desert and men wearing silly hats and bandanas around their necks have toting Colt .45s and if anybody wanted to fight, was as dead as the desert rats. But was the west really like that, was it \*really\* "wild"? This may be a popular misconception.

The term "Wild West" is more than likely from just the general western territories, before they became states. Because they were territories, the US Government and thus Federal Law had very little (and in some areas, no) influence, and because of this there was no police (though there were sheriffs or deputies) and quite literally it was every man (or woman) for themselves and anything went.

In fact, some of the first white Americans to venture into Texas (when it was still a part of Mexico) were criminals fleeing whatever they were charged with.

But it wasn't all criminals in the western territories. Some people ventured out west to farm (mostly livestock since the dry desert wasn't suitable for irrigation)

Some ventured out west to also seek a fortune. Once gold was discovered in the Sierra Nevada (present day California) in 1848, people also wanted to seek a fortune. Around 10 years later, silver was discovered in what would be in the State of Nevada and silver boomtowns were built near the silver mines.

Another misconception is that people in the Old West wouldn't use terms like *"Cowboy"* or *"Gunslinger"*, but *"Cowman"* or *"Gunman"* (sometimes the term *"Shootists"* was also used to describe a Gunslinger).

## How the West was visited?

Ever since the early 19th century propaganda to make Americans move out west (thanks in large part to *Manifest Destiny*) and the expedition of Lewis and Clark, Americans never lost their desire to move out west.

By the mid 19th century (especially after the Californian Gold Rush in 1848) there were 2 ways to get to the west: either cross country in a covered wagon, or take a ship and round South America (well, maybe not so much the latter). This venture to the west was not easy, because the US Government had little influence over these regions, they had to be \*extremely\* self sufficient, and sometimes it didn't work, especially to get to a place like California, you had to go through the harsh desert environment (such as Nevada) and sometimes without sufficient provisions such as food, water or even firewood, and those fortunate enough to make it there were the ones to actually settle down.

The US Government's *Indian Removal Act* in 1830, has also had Native Americans move out west. Prominent Native American Tribes such as the *Sioux* also lived out west (more on the whole "Cowboys and Indians" thing later).

By 1860, American Mail made it's way to the West. Though it was slow and sometimes mail got lost in transit, but it also helped with the communication to the west from the east.

But as railroads were becoming the norm for mass transportation in the nation, the race was on in both the North and the South to build a transcontinental railroad. But as the Civil War was raging, this would hurt the South's chances of controling that rail system. In 1869, the USA's first transcontinental railroad was complete and inagurated, and thus travel to the west was now easier and popular.

### Old West notables

**James Butler Hickok (AKA "Wild Bill"):** A native to Illinois, Wild Bill began his Western life as an outlaw as he was always a fan of the wildness and the lawlessness, but as he got older, he changed sides and became the Sheriff in a town in Kansas in 1871. As a Sheriff, he gained his reputation of a gunslinger as he would be known to win many gunfights. In 1876 while playing a game of poker at a local Salloon, he was shot and killed right in the back. The cards he had at the time of his murder was a pair of black 8's and black aces, and to this day it's called "The Dead Man's hand".

**Henry McCarty/William H. Bonney (AKA "Billy The Kid"):** Orphaned at the age of 13, Billy The Kid began his life of crime when he stole food at the age of 16. Billy The Kid was also known to escape from prison on more than a few occaisions, his first known murder was in 1877 when he got into an argument with a local blacksmith and with this murder he became a wanted man with a hefty bounty on his head. He also became a mamber of a western gang known as the *Regulators*. In 1878, he and his gang then killed 3 men which included the local sheriff of Lincoln County in the New Mexico Terrirory, Billy was accused of these murders. Though, the Terrirorial Governor of New Mexico would prodive safety for Billy if he gave up, but as soon as he was put in jail, the DA would go back on the promise the Governor made. In 1881, Billy met with Sheriff *Pat Garret* who got into a gunfight and lost, he was only 21.

**Jesse James:** A well known and infamous robber in the west. Jesse along with his brother Frank were Civil War veterans who fought on the side of the Confederacy. After the war, they robbed their first bank in Northfield Minnesota in 1876, they fled west and became infamous, they also robbed trains as well as held up Stagecoaches. This would make the James Brothers' names well known through the nation with a huge bounty price on their heads. Eventually, Frank gave up his life of crime, while Jesse continued to do his dirty deeds. However, he was too trusting and a new member of his gang named *Robert Ford* killed him to collect the bounty on his head.

**Robert Leroy Parker (AKA "Butch Cassidy"):** Another infamous robber in the west. Like Jesse James, Butch Cassidy would also rob trains and banks. He would also meet a man named *Harry Alonzo Longabaugh* (AKA *"The Sundance Kid"*) along with The Sundance Kid's lover Etta Pierce, they would be known as *"The Wild Bunch".* To flee his life of crime, Butch would escape to South America where we would stay until his death in 1908.

**Phoebe Ann Mosley (AKA "Annie Oakley"):** Not all gunslingers were men. This Ohio native began her career of a gunslinger when she won a shooting contest at the age of 15, beating competitor *Frank Butler* who would become her husband. Though she was no outlaw, she became an actress who joined Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show.

## How the west was violent?

Eventhough Gunfights were rare in the Old West, but it wasn't devoid of violence. Apart from the "rare" gunfights. There was also wars, mostly between either western gangs or even white Americans and Native Americans.

### A Famous Gunfight

To begin we have to talk about the gunfight that would symbolize the west: *The Gunfight at the OK Corral* which took place on October 26 in the year 1881 when the Earp Brothers: *Virgil, Morgan and Wyatt* along with volunteer Sheriff *John Henry "Doc" Holliday* invaded the OK Corral outside the town of Tombstone (in what would be known as Arizona) where the McLaury and Canton brothers were (known for their smuggling of livestock such as cattle and horses). This gunfight would only last 30 seconds, but this would see the deaths of the McLaury brothers and one of the Canton brothers, though only Wyatt Earp and Doc Holliday escaped unwounded.

The USA did try some attempts at giving Federal influence in the US Territories, especially those mostly populated by Native Americans. The USA had been at war with the Native Americans since even before the USA was even formed (the French and Indian War comes into mind). But with the USA created, there was also open hostilities between the nation and the Native Americans. There was active conflicts in Ohio (in the Battle of Fallen Timbers) and even Florida (The Seimonole Conflict). But there was figfhting amongst the White and Native Americans in the west as well, such as the *Battle of Little Bighorn* in 1876 and the *Ghost Dance War* where the USA was fighting against the Sioux Native American Tribe whcih ended in the horrible massacre of the Sioux at *Wounded Knee* in 1890.

## How the west ended?

By the 1890s, a lot of the unorganized territories became organized, and eventually states and with it federal law came to the untamed west. Native Americans were confined to reservations. Rich metals such as gold and silver rant dry and the boomtowns became "busttowns" and eventually "Ghost towns". But Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show would help keep the spirit of the Old West alive, and eventually Hollywood would get into the western mvoei gig in the 1950s, 60s and 70s. The west may be no longer "wild", but it's legend lives on.

That is it for this page. Now the west is tamed, but the USA would engage in more wars, this time they are abroad, but these wars would help the United States propel into superpower status. This page series will continue here. Until next time, this is JohnnyOTGS signing out.