September 2018 36 By Cowboy Historian Lee Anderson Living Historian and author Lee Anderson and his horse, Concho, are well known around the state doing presentations in schools, corporate events, and civic events. Learn more about them and his book on his website. http://historicaloldwest.org/ WHAT WAS A REAL CATTLE DRIVE LIKE IN THE 1800’S? Thanks to Hollywood and western movies most people today are familiar with the long cattle drives of the 1800s. A dozen or so John Wayne, Jimmy Stewart, Clint Eastwood, Tom Selleck, and Kirk Douglas types put on their Stetsons, buckled on a pair of leather chaps, strapped on their Colt 45s, slipped a Winchester rifle in the saddle scabbard, and mounted their horses. Then they would move four or five thousand cattle north to the Dodge City, Wichita, Abilene, or the Kansas railhead where they proceeded to get into barroom fights and challenge each other to fast draw gunfights in the street. And, that pretty much sums it up, right? never moved in a huge bunch. They were strung out in a long narrow line about 10, 15, maybe 20 cattle wide. It usually took about a week or 10 days to get the herd “trail broke” and things could get pretty wild till that was accomplished. Then we come to the drovers who were mostly teenagers. (Note; they were called drovers, NOT Cowboys. It was city folks that called them Cowboys). The trail boss was usually a little older and a trusted employee of the ranch that put the drive together. A few working ranch hands might sign up for the drive but most didn’t. Most of the drovers were contracted just for the drive and they signed up for all sorts of reasons. Some just for the adventure, some were avoiding the law. Not many did it for the money because it didn’t pay more than about $100 to $150 for the entire 3 or 4-month long drive. Whatever the case these were not financially well-off people. Most were lucky if they had one complete change of clothes. Their wardrobe often amounted to little more than a second shirt. Quite a few did carry a sidearm but few carried the Colt Single Action Army (or peacemaker). At $18 to $20 it was the most expensive handgun on the market. More often than not they carried one of the Civil War cap and ball revolvers that could be picked up for about $5. The drover supplied all of his gear except the horse. The most expensive gear was his saddle ($30 -$40) and his bedroll ($20). If they were really lucky they might have a slicker for rainy days. Their level of experience determined where they rode when the herd moved. The trail boss always rode at the front and led the way. The youngest and least experienced rode “drag” at the unbelievably dusty tail end of the drive. The rest rode “flank” up and down the sides of the long line and kept the cattle slowly moving. I say slowly because the cattle had to graze along the way. They actually only moved about 1 mile per hour. Besides, the fastest way to drive cattle IS real slow. The biggest complaint of the drovers was that there was never enough sleep. The herd had to be under watch 24/7. They worked 4-hour shifts during the night and usually got about 4 to 6 hours of sleep a night … for 3 or 4 months. The food was definitely not gourmet’. Charlie Siringo made several of the drives and wrote about them in 1887. In his book, he states, “They often ran out of a lot of the food supplies and lived on beef and beans. Then, for variety, they’d have beans and beef.” Unlike the movies, the chuck wagon did not travel with the herd. It always left camp at first light (after breakfast in the dark) and before the herd started moving. It would go ahead to where the herd would be camping for the night. When the men arrived in the late afternoon or early evening the coffee and something for them to eat would be ready. There was no noon meal. The drives took place in the summer and when it rained, which was often, everything got soaked. I would imagine wearing wet clothes, riding in a wet saddle, and sleeping on the wet ground raised misery to a pretty high level, especially if it hailed. A cattle drive was 3 or 4 months of the crudest outdoor living you can imagine. There were 5 major rivers to cross and there were no bridges. This meant swimming and not many drovers knew how to swim. Drownings were not uncommon during river crossings. The horses they used were not highly trained animals. Nearly every one of them had to be “bucked out” when it was saddled in the morning. So, the long-horned cattle wanted to kill them, the horses wanted to hurt them, the boss worked them 24 hours a day, the food was lousy, and they got to sleep on the ground (or in mud when it rained). And, for all this pleasure they would get paid $100 to $150 dollars. Sure does sound like the kind of job I’d like. What about you? After putting up with all this misery for 3 or 4 months, this raggedy bunch of teenagers would finally get to the railhead. The sale of the cattle included getting all of them on the cattle cars. Once this was done and the trail boss would hand everyone their wages. Now, these kids are in town with a pocket full of money and nothing to do. What do suppose they did? They went to church, right? Uh huh! The smart ones would get a whole new outfit of clothes and buy a horse so they could get back home because the horses all belonged to the ranch and were also sold. Then they would head for the nearest saloon. Yeeee Haaaa! Let the fun begin. Misery beyond belief. I sure wouldn’t want to be on foot. Well, let’s just say most people today are familiar with the Hollywood version of a cattle drive. Hollywood had to “sanitize” and “enhance” quite a few things about driving cattle in order to make the movie more entertaining and exciting enough to get you to buy a ticket. Now, don’t get me wrong here. I’m not in any way getting on Hollywood’s case for not being accurate. After all, Hollywood western movies are not documentaries. They’re strictly entertainment, they cost a lot of money to make, and they have to make money. All that being said, you better believe I’ll buy a ticket or rent a darned good western movie just the same as anyone else. However, just for the fun of it, how about we take a bit of a look at what these cattle drives were actually like. First off, the cattle were not tame, white-faced, short- horned Herefords. No, they were mean, dangerous, feral longhorns. They were dangerous to the point that a man on foot anywhere near them was in mortal danger. Four or five thousand three of four-year- old cattle that had been running wild since they were born can present a good many life and death situations. They had horns 5 or 6 feet from tip to tip, and they knew how to use them. Not all the cattle belonged to the ranch that organized the drive either. Smaller ranches often contracted to have some of their cattle go along. There might be 3, 4, or more other ranches involved which meant the herd would have cattle with several different brands. To prevent being accused of moving cattle that might be stolen, all the cattle were rebranded, usually on a horn or a hoof with a temporary “trail brand.” The herd was A herd on the move (notice the cloud of dust at the rear). Most of the drovers (only city folks called them Cowboys) were contracted just for the drive and they signed up for all sorts of reasons. Some just for the adventure, some were avoiding the law. Not many did it for the money because it didn’t pay more than about $100 to $150 for the entire 3 or 4-month long drive.