Posted: Thursday, April 04, 2024
Author: Cody Richardson, History Enthusiast
The story of the Lewis and Clark expedition is a well-known telling of the discovery and exploration of the American Western frontier. Renowned historian and author Stephen Ambrose depicts the trials and tribulations in his award-winning account of the journey westward, "Undaunted Courage." The telling of westward expansion after Lewis and Clark is one of success and adventure. However, the 100 years following the Lewis and Clark expedition include stories of hardship, failure, and relentless extremes. Many of these accounts are told in the writings of the men who endured these hardships, such as trapper Osborne Russel, trophy hunter and conservationist Theodore Roosevelt, and famous grizzly bear hunter and Missoula Montana resident William H. Wright.
This account of Western history touches on what sparked the migration West, from the demand for beaver pelts that kicked off the fur trapping boom during the early 1800s to the gold rush and livestock/predator wars of the 1850s. This is a brief overview of how the West was won (or so they say).
Cowboys and Indians: The West, not as expected
Hollywood depicts the western frontier as an untouched oasis of rangeland, forests, streams, and wildlife. Cowboys seen on the silver screen are fighting the American Indians from the Rio Grande to the Montana plains. The hard truth is by the time the Lewis and Clark expedition navigated its way across the plains to the Rocky Mountains, most of the pre-1492 American Indian civilizations were decreased by an estimated 80%. Settlements of Europeans on the eastern seaboard and Spanish explorers throughout the early 1500s introduced old-world diseases such as smallpox and diphtheria that spread through the native populations like wildfire and decimated their once large populations to a fraction of their original size.
Far fewer American Indian settlements were present during the Lewis and Clark expedition. The idea of the untouched West was met with the remnants of the American Indian encampments, agriculture, trail systems, and even the use of fire for habitat management. Many of the highways and interstate systems used today were built on a system of American Indian trails dating back to the eras before Christopher Columbus. These trail systems were established by the American Indians and mitigating wildlife, stagecoaches, the pony express, the first automobiles, and eventually modern-day transportation.
Westward Exploration: Lewis and Clark – 1860s
The fur trade boom
Shortly after the reports of the Lewis and Clark expedition, word spread rampant of the abundance of resources available in the western frontier. Some reports even stated that the available resources were "inexhaustible." These inexhaustible natural resources included everything we still think about today: rangeland, timber, wildlife for hunting furs, and water. Amongst all these natural resources up for grabs lies one little critter that may have been the sole reason for the westward boom… the beaver. The discovery of beaver pelts sparked a frenzy of fashion and cultural status symbols in the Eastern states. So much so that beaver pelts became some of the most highly sought-after furs in the Americas and, later, the world. The wealthiest people wore Beaver pelts, creating a "who's who" in the new American society.
As the fashion frenzy swept across the nation, countless trappers and woodsmen headed west to secure their share of beaver pelts that would earn them top dollar on the eastern market. These trappers included famous Western pioneers such as Osborne Russel, Jim Baker, and Jim Bridger. However, as one would imagine, with such an influx of trappers and hunters getting their share of the pie, the supply surpassed the demand, and the price of beaver pelts fell. Numerous other animals were harvested in an attempt to provide a suitable replacement, but no fur or feather was able to replace the hype of the beaver. The fur trade boom era slowly started to dwindle around the end of the 1840s. Nonetheless, as the fur trading waned in the Rocky Mountain West, there was another surge of interest in the region, marking the onset of the mining boom.
The mining booms
Following the fur trappers and frontiersmen who had made their settlements throughout the western states were the miners looking for gold. The mining boom was in full swing as word of gold strikes in Nevada, California, and Montana traveled fast back to the eastern seaboard. Settlers came in droves to get their share and secure fortune off the assumed boundless resources. By the middle of the 19th century, most western states would be established with communities, governments, and a steadily increasing population of settlers.
One of the most famous mining boom towns still carries the mining reputation proudly to this day, Butte Montana, saw its heyday in the early 1900s. With people coming from the furthest reaches of the globe, Butte was home to over 120,000 residents from 30+ different nationalities, and the riches were compared to those of Paris and London of the same era. The year 1888 might have been Butte's most prosperous year and quite possibly the wealthiest year for any mining boom town in the history of the United States. Butte's mines produced an estimated $23 million worth of ore (the equivalent of $749 million today).
Homesteaders bring livestock
Along with the increasing numbers of settlers arriving daily to the Western Frontier came an increase in livestock. Livestock were brought to the western frontier as the primary mode of transportation, a source of fresh meat, companionship, and eventually commercial sales of meat and animal products. The arrival of the livestock began the initial realization that the relationship between the livestock and the native wildlife would be an issue. The native wildlife was directly competing with the livestock for forage, especially in locations where forage was desirable.
The expansion of livestock into the western frontier not only provided companionship and a source of food, but it also provided the basis of what makes the West "The West." The cowboy lifestyle pioneered many events that shaped "The West." The great cattle drives from Texas to the northern plains, the wild sport of rodeo, and the agricultural lifestyle all spawned from the vast expanse of wilds on the western frontier.
Westward Expansion: 1860s – 1900s
Railroads
The completion of America's first transcontinental railroad in 1869, the "Pacific Railroad," opened the floodgates for settlers moving westward. The railroad offered opportunities for settlers to reach farther inland than possible if only traveling by waterways and more accessible to those not able to travel on horseback or covered wagons. The railcar system also made for easier transportation of livestock, goods, and natural resources. Shipping herds of livestock by railcar meant expedited arrival into territory where settlers would meet the ever-growing opportunity for expansion into uncharted lands.
Railways provided a means for the arrival of culture, wealth, and luxury like never before seen in the Western frontier. Wealthy settlers who found the idea of trailing west on wagon trails barbaric finally had a comfortable way of traveling. Railways not only made traveling westward safer, quicker, and easier, but now the idea of westward expansion seemed not something that needed to be done but something that wanted to be done.
Settlements
With the new transcontinental railroad delivering people into the new frontier by the trainload, settlements started springing up even faster along the railroads. Settlements meant drastic increases in human presence in the immediate and surrounding landscapes. High numbers of people equated to high numbers of livestock for consumer resources. Cattle appeared to provide meat for food and leather for saddles and clothing. Goats and sheep provided a nutritious supply of milk, meat, and wool for clothing. Swine were brought along for bacon, pork, and waste disposal. Dogs and cats also appeared as companions. And horses and oxen pulling wagons and serving as transportation. These animals would help shape the western frontier.
The Lewis and Clark expedition serves as a powerful prologue to the dramatic transformation of the American West. It marked the beginning of a cascade of events that forever altered the region's landscape, culture, and history. The allure of the West, initially driven by the fur trade, would give way to the gold rushes that drew thousands in search of wealth. The exponential increase of settlers, marked by the completion of the transcontinental railroad, further reshaped the West, leading to the establishment of settlements, the expansion of livestock, and the rise of a distinctive cowboy culture. The progression of the Western Frontier seemed to be unstoppable. The process of civilizing such a wild and untamed land appeared seamless for some but not for others. The following years, throughout the 1900s, would prove to be harsher than most would expect. As the West continued to grow and expand, new challenges would arise, such as natural resource depletion, the fight for conservation, and the (not so easy) promise for a better future.
Keep an eye on landinvestorguide.com for Part 2, where we delve deeper into the dramatic events and remarkable individuals who shaped the Western frontier in the 20th century, a saga that continues to resonate with the modern West.
