What were the causes of the Johnson County war?
Task 1:
Look at this photo. What do you think these men did?
The cattle ranchers wanted the same land on the plains as the homesteaders, which resulted in
a problem for both! The homesteaders wanted to settle down on the plains to make them home,
where as the cattle ranchers wanted to drive cattle through the farms and towards the cattle
towns and the railway. This led to lots of tension between the ranchers and the homesteaders!
Wyoming is in the American West
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What were the causes of the Johnson County war?
Task 2: mind map
Use the information to create a mind-map to summarise the underlying reasons for the tensions
between homesteaders and ranchers. You should summarise each reason as a single word and
simple drawing. You can then add a short sentence to explain.
The spread of Texas Fever
Texas Fever was spread amongst cattle by
ticks. The Texas Longhorn, was a sturdy,
strong and rough cow popular with ranchers.
It was immune to Texas Fever, however, the
ticks living on them could still carry the
disease. When the Texas Longhorns came into
contact with other types of cows, including
the common cows most of the homesteaders
owned, the common cows would become ill
with the disease.
Damage to the homesteader’s crops
Early conflicts, around the 1850s, involved
homesteaders trying to stop the ranchers and
their cattle drives. Homesteaders were not
happy with so many cows being driven across
their land! The homesteaders just wanted to
settle on the plains and make their home, but
the ranchers wanted to drive cattle through
the farms and towards the cattle towns and
the railway. The homesteaders were afraid
the animals would cause damage to their
crops through these drives.
Access to water
From the 1870s onwards, when cattle
ranchers were settled on the plains, conflicts
continued. Most of these disputes were about
land and access to water. The cattle ranchers
were anxious for their range to be ‘open
range’ with free and clear access to water for
their cattle. The homesteaders though,
wanted to fence off their crops to prevent
them from straying cattle and wild beasts.
This could bring the two slides into direct
conflict if homesteaders cut off the ranchers’
access to water.
Claims to Land
Cattle ranchers became annoyed when
homesteaders ‘moved in’ onto the land they
were ranching on in the 1870s. Homesteaders
could do this through the 1862 Homesteaders
Act passed by the Government to try and
force Manifest Destiny. Ranchers believed
homesteaders were taking the best bits of the
land and leaving the least effective ones for
the ranchers. This only added to tensions, and
would often result in boundaries being put up
between neighbours.
Barbed wire
The invention of barbed wire in 1874 led to
trouble in some places. Homesteaders used
the wire to fence off their land and this
initially aroused hostility of the ranchers.
Later on, cattle ranchers realised the value of
barbed wire themselves and ended up fencing
off large parts of land for their cattle
ranches. This made smaller ranchers angry as
it meant some of them were being squeezed
out, or their access to water was limited.
Sheep farming
By the 1880s, sheep flocks were a serious
threat to cattle, as they were competing for
grazing land. Sheep farming was most
common in the south-western states (there
were five million sheep in New Mexico, and
also large numbers in Arizona, California and
Utah). Sheep rearing was an attractive option
for men just starting out because start-up
costs were low and you could make money
more quickly than with cattle. This led to
violence by ranchers; they killed shepherds,
slaughtered sheep and burned the hay of men
who sold the hay to the sheep farmers. Racial
and religious prejudice fed this violence:
sheep owners were often European, Mexican,
Indians and sometimes Mormons.
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What were the causes of the Johnson County war?
Task 3: sequencing exercise
Below is the ‘Story of the Johnston County war’. It has been muddled up and your task is to sort
the sections into chronological order in order to explain the events which took place. Start with
background information and long term causes and then work out the sequence of events of the
‘war’ itself.
Before the attack the invaders cut the telegraph wires to cut off Johnson County from the outside world
and prevent them raising the alarm.
In 1892, cattle barons planned a full-scale invasion of Johnson County. The acting Governor of Wyoming
knew about the invasion and even supplied guns.
The barons drew up a ‘death list’ of 70 names. They recruited 24 gun fighters. They planned to capture
the town of Buffalo, kill the sheriff and then kill the rest of the men on the list.
Invaders attacked the KC Ranch on 8 April 1892, but they were held up by the resistance of Nate
Champion who held them off all day until they finally burned him out of his cabin. By the time Nate
Champion was dead, the alarm had been raised in Buffalo.
There were problems in cattle ranching itself. Beef prices were falling and the droughts of 1883 and the
harsh winters of 1886-1887 also damaged the income from ranching.
The first killings took place in 1889. Jim Averill ran a small store and saloon and his partner, Ella Watson
was a prostitute. The couple were living on land claimed by a cattle baron. In April, Jim wrote to a
local paper that the barons were land grabbers. In July 1889, Jim and Ella were lynched outside their
home.
Johnson County in Wyoming was settled by ranchers in the 1870s. These men ran large scale ranches
and were known as the ‘cattle barons’. They became very powerful in the state and joined together to
form the ‘Wyoming Stock Growers Association’. This association met in Cheyanne, and among its
members was the Governor of Wyoming and other state senators and its purpose was to protect the
interest of its powerful members.
The next day, the invaders approached Buffalo when they heard that the local people were armed and
ready to defend. They then retreated to the TA Ranch.
Cattle rustling (theft) was a problem on the open range. In Texas in particular, it was a tradition that
had developed that a ‘maverick’ (a motherless calf) could be branded and claimed by anyone. The
cattle barons in Wyoming, lost cattle to rustlers and blamed the homesteaders. The cattle barons took
the law into their own hands and they hired Frank Canton, a gunfighter, as their chief detective to hunt
down rustlers.
The defeated barons were brought to trial but never convicted for their actions. However their
reputation was ruined. They never had the same power again and the homesteaders and ranchers were
able to continue their lives in peace.
The growing number of homesteaders and sheep ranchers settling in Wyoming led to lots of disputes
over land ownership. These people were settling on land, which the cattle barons claimed was their
land. This made the cattle barons resent these newcomers.
No one was prosecuted the lynching of Jim Averill and Ella Watson, although it was well known in the
community that the cattle barons were responsible. The barons said that Jim and Ella were rustlers and
that Ella would collect cows as payment for her services.
At the TA Ranch, the invaders were met and were surrounded by nearly 300 men led by the Sheriff. The
resulting siege was only broken when US cavalry arrived to save them.
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What were the causes of the Johnson County war?
Task 4: Tensions and turning points
Plot a graph to show the level of tensions increasing (and later declining again) from the 1860s through to the end of the century. Explain three or
four key events which you think were the most significant or turning points.
Tension
10
9
8
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
1862
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1866
1870
1874
1880
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1884
1890
1894
1898
1902
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What were the causes of the Johnson County war?
Teaching notes: Correct sequence for task 3:
Johnson County in Wyoming was settled by ranchers in the 1870s. These men ran large scale ranches
and were known as the ‘cattle barons’. They became very powerful in the state and joined together to
form the ‘Wyoming Stock Growers Association’. This association met in Cheyanne, and among its
members was the Governor of Wyoming and other state senators and its purpose was to protect the
interest of its powerful members.
The growing number of homesteaders and sheep ranchers settling in Wyoming led to lots of disputes
over land ownership. These people were settling on land, which the cattle barons claimed was their
land. This made the cattle barons resent these newcomers.
There were problems in cattle ranching itself. Beef prices were falling and the droughts of 1883 and the
harsh winters of 1886-1887 also damaged the income from ranching.
Cattle rustling (theft) was a problem on the open range. In Texas in particular, it was a tradition that
had developed that a ‘maverick’ (a motherless calf) could be branded and claimed by anyone. The
cattle barons in Wyoming, lost cattle to rustlers and blamed the homesteaders. The cattle barons took
the law into their own hands and they hired Frank Canton, a gunfighter, as their chief detective to hunt
down rustlers.
The first killings took place in 1889. Jim Averill ran a small store and saloon and his partner, Ella Watson
was a prostitute. The couple were living on land claimed by a cattle baron. In April, Jim wrote to a
local paper that the barons were land grabbers. In July 1889, Jim and Ella were lynched outside their
home.
No one was prosecuted the lynching of Jim Averill and Ella Watson, although it was well known in the
community that the cattle barons were responsible. The barons said that Jim and Ella were rustlers and
that Ella would collect cows as payment for her services.
In 1892, cattle barons planned a full-scale invasion of Johnson County. The acting Governor of Wyoming
knew about the invasion and even supplied guns.
The barons drew up a ‘death list’ of 70 names. They recruited 24 gun fighters. They planned to capture
the town of Buffalo, kill the sheriff and then kill the rest of the men on the list.
Before the attack the invaders cut the telegraph wires to cut off Johnson County from the outside world
and prevent them raising the alarm.
Invaders attacked the KC Ranch on 8 April 1892, but they were held up by the resistance of Nate
Champion who held them off all day until they finally burned him out of his cabin. By the time Nate
Champion was dead, the alarm had been raised in Buffalo.
The next day, the invaders approached Buffalo when they heard that the local people were armed and
ready to defend. They then retreated to the TA Ranch.
At the TA Ranch, the invaders were met and were surrounded by nearly 300 men led by the Sheriff. The
resulting siege was only broken when US cavalry arrived to save them.
The defeated barons were brought to trial but never convicted for their actions. However their
reputation was ruined. They never had the same power again and the homesteaders and ranchers were
able to continue their lives in peace.
© www.teachithistory.co.uk 2017
27683
Page 5 of 5