These wars were fought by European colonists, as well as American and Canadian settlers against various American Indian and First Nation tribes. Known as “The Indian Wars,” the West was a very dangerous place to be. However, the breakdown in law and order and struggle for survival led to increasing tensions between the settlers and the Natives. There is a perpetrated story that many wars were fought between cowboys and Indians. Davy Crockett had a reputation for hunting and storytelling, and was commonly referred to as the “King of the Wild Frontier.” He served in the Texas Revolution. Two of the most famous pioneers were Daniel Boone who was an explorer and woodsman known for his settlement of Kentucky. They stayed when efforts proved to be profitable. While some pioneers had dreams of claiming lands and putting up roots, others were trappers or businessmen who went west for commercial opportunities. They traveled in wagon trains containing settlers and their families, often banding together for protection. Settling in the West was a challenge to the pioneers who were met with harsh conditions and violence as they forced Native Americans off their land. The creation of the West is a fascinating time and we have all the untamed fun facts about the people that carved their way towards a better life like scientists, artists, explorers, and of course outlaws who took what wasn’t rightfully theirs. People lived off the land building farms and ranches for sustenance.
Frontier lawlessness was an everyday occurrence with highway robbery and counterfeiting by bandits and criminals. Gambling was an essential part of life in western towns. In the mining towns prostituion was big business despite the harsh and dangerous working conditions and low prestige. Treaties were made between foreign nations and native tribes, with the markings of trails and digging of mines. The Wild West was all about conquest and survival and the fight to establish law and order. What really happened during the American frontier was the creation of communities, the development and use of the land – and the beginning of prosperity. Many western films dramatized this period with cowboys swigging shots of bourbon in saloons and gunfights randomly occurring for no good reason. The Wild West is an appropriate name for the era circa the early 1860s to the late 1890s – as there were virtually no rules and often anarchy reigned in the dusty streets.
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