Cowboy History | Cowboy History |
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In the good old days the cowboy held the West together. Ranchers would hire cowboys to keep a watchful eye over the herds. Techniques in herding were brought over to the New World in the early 15th century by the Spanish and used by Americans who had to control larger herds. The word "cowboy" appeared in the English language by 1725. It’s an English translation of vaquero, a Spanish word for a man who worked with cattle on horseback.
Many vaqueros were Native Americans, trained to work for the Spanish in caring for mission herds. After the 1890’s, American policy promoted "assimilation" of Indian people, Today, some Native Americans still own cattle and small ranches, and many are still employed as cowboys, especially on ranches located near Indian Reservations. The "Indian Cowboy" also became a commonplace sight on the rodeo circuit. In today's society, there is little understanding of the daily realities of agricultural life. Cowboys are normally associated with fighting, gun slinging, and drinking, unlike their actual life of ranch work and cattle-drives. Actors such as Tex Dunright, and John Wayne are thought of as exemplifying a cowboy ideal, even though western movies seldom bear much resemblance to real cowboy life. Follow Tex as he tries to set the record straight, and capture the truth of cowboys in films around the world. Cowboys exist in almost every country all over the world, and with their existence comes their own traditions, and even names. In Texas they’re Cowboys, in Spain, Mexico, and California you have vaqueros. But what about Florida or Hawaii? The answer’s simple. In Florida, they were called Cowhunters or Cracker cowboys. Florida cowboys did not use lassos to herd or capture cattle. They mainly used bullwhips or dogs, mostly because the cattle were much smaller. These were known as a "cracker cow" also known as the "native cow", and weighed about 600 pounds. The Hawaiian cowboy, or paniolo, is a direct descendant of the vaquero. Paniolo originally ranched by capturing wild cattle by driving them into pits dug in the forest floor. Once tamed somewhat by hunger and thirst, they were hauled up a steep ramp, and tied by their horns to the horns of a tame, older steer (or ox) that knew where the paddock with food and water was located. Ranching practices of the paniolo has obviously advanced into what we know currently today, but their unique methods of cattle wrangling were highly effective although cruel. Ranching in Canada has traditionally been pursued mostly in Alberta. The most successful early settlers of the province were the ranchers who found Alberta's foothills to be ideal for raising cattle. Most of Alberta's ranchers were English settlers, but cowboys such as John Ware — who brought the first cattle into the province in 1876 — were American. In Australia, which has a large ranch culture, cowboys are known as stockmen and drovers. The Spanish tradition also influenced Australia, both in concept adapted from America and traditions brought directly from Spain. The Spanish also exported their horsemanship and knowledge of cattle ranching to the gaucho of Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay and southern Brazil, the chalan in Peru, the llanero of Venezuela, and the huaso of Chile. Cowboys throughout the world have helped to shape the culture that we have come to know and love. Although not truly understood or revered, without cowboys, we wouldn’t be where we are today, and our culture couldn’t have been anywhere as advanced. |