The American Old West: Myth Versus Reality

How does Turner explain the recurring need for communication and transportation along the American frontier?

Masculine’s definition is stereotypically twisted. The myth and reality of the cowboy shaped today’s definition of masculinity because they have this high and strong structure they need to uphold. Masculinity is having the traditional acts as a man, such as being strong and secure. In today’s world man and women have two different mindsets. Even though we are all humans, our gender defines the way we should act due to how society makes it. The myth has affected males physically, emotionally and mentally. The idea is that they are supposed to act accordingly. In reality, everyone wants to grow up differently, so why would they be forced to act/be a certain way?

African Americans were able to finally escape from slavery when coming to California. Gold became the solution for many slaves to free themselves or their families by selling gold dusts to their owners. A fine example and quote to explain how well African Americans were doing in the west coast is from Stephen Magag, who published, Fortune Smiled on Many Black Miners, says “African Americans hit plenty of California pay dirt -- by 1863, they were collectively worth about $5 million (the equivalent of $100 million today).” The Gold Rush was able to give freedom for African Americans; and with that independence, they were able to create their own businesses in California. Not only was wealth being brought to people who were working or receiving gold, California was taking in a lot of money which made a large impact for a wealthy state. William Swain, a man traveling to the west to find gold, sent his brother, George, a letter about his journey. I found that it was interesting the amount he had spent on things in California, and how he was totally okay with spending a lot of money on somethings. He spent between 50 cents to ten dollars on food and 10 to 40 dollars on clothing pieces. The west part of the states knew all the people the gold was bringing in so they only made a beneficiary choice on behalf of their wealth and popularity. California was already known as a wealthy and expensive state, so the probability to become a wealthy person, with a wealthy lifestyle in California, was very hard. Many of the people who did travel to the gold rush, had to sleep in homemade boroughs, or sleep in their wagons. According to the documentary film, “Speck of The Future,” the biggest part of the Gold Rush was getting there. Historian, J.S Holliday, mentioned how many immigrants dreaded the travel through the desert and Sierra Nevada because of

The American West is one of the most famous and important part of the American history. The American West or another name the American Frontier started off in the late-1700 and ended in mid-1940. Although that part of history ended, but the influence and the old west culture is still around today. So let get into the history of the American West, of what made the West what it is and how all the forces molded the West.

In the late 19th century, the American people began to go west. Americans began to pour into the West because of rapid population growth and affordable land (Importance of the West). They were also promised wide open land and to be free of Indians (Importance of the West). The West was in fact not free of Indians, and there were several wars that ensued in Arkansas, Montana, Washington, and California (Youngs).

During the years 1790-1860 many changes in the nation were occurring in the values of Americans and in their different societies. The vacant, immeasurable land in the western frontier enabled a shift of change from social, political and economic conformity to more individual techniques and beliefs away from governmental traditions imposed more in the east coast of the nation. As different factors forced people to migrate west in the country it changed not only society and values of people in the west but also the east, transforming into a whole new affluent society. As people started to realize the nations grandness and what the property consisted of the rise in nationalism became very dependent on these enlightened ideas and visions.

The state of California was nearly barren of human life in the 1830s and early 1840s, and even scarcer was the population of white Americans. During this time the land was populated by wild horses and wild cattle whom were controlled by the Native Americans of the region. In the year of 1841, John Bidwell and his party of thirty were one of the first white people to travel as far west as California, except for Bonneville’s party of 1833. The first settlement Bidwell’s party reached was the ranch of Dr. Marsh in the eastern foothills of the Coast Range Mountains. That year had been one of the driest California had ever experienced. “The country was brown and parched” (Bidwell 1), crops all over the state had failed and the cattle grazed in the

In the late 1800s and early 1900s, the idea of the far west captivated many. The chance to begin life anew attracted thousands of individuals and families alike to move out west and escape their current life, which was usually full of poverty and for some, full of discrimination. As the west expanded and grew into an important part of the United States, westerners found it somewhat difficult to survive with important resources going scarce. Although the

Between 1803 and 1850, Manifest Destiny has termed the era of American westward expansion. During this westward expansion of American territory, slavery played a key role in the development of states and to an extent added fuel to the imperialistic fire. As claims to land were made, slavery became a prime concern and this helped force the issue of slavery into national politics.

The expansion to the West in the 19th century was an interesting and incredible time. As the Eastern population of the United States grew, people expanded to the West in search of opportunity. Over population created a lack of jobs and land, so emigration westward was appealing for many. People from many walks of life traveled west and each one experienced their time on the trail a different way. These personal journals and diaries gave historians a glance at what the western frontier was really like during that time frame. These personal accounts showcase the attitudes, concerns and the everyday lives of different travelers.

Through the works of Anne Hyde, Andrew Isenberg, and Richard White, an accurate depiction of the transformation that occurred in the West is given with details from various perspectives. These three sources illustrate a journey tracking back to the fur trade in the early 1800s all the way to the end of the gold rush in the late nineteenth century, introducing the readers into what shaped the West. In order to understand the West, the history must be evaluated and the events must be studied that led to the development of the other half of the United States. Creating a stable settlement West of the Mississippi was crucial for the U.S. in regards to the expansion of its territory along with a greater perceived authority. Each of the authors, mentioned

In the nineteenth century, Many Americans saw western expansionism as the nation 's manifest destiny. It is a belief expansionism that was proved to be right. Americans represented the American landscape and how amazing it was. The West is a land known of promise and opportunity. Adventures arise when expanding markets come into play. In 1833 William F. Cody created a great entertainment that the Wild West was a popular culture (Textbook pg.400)

Over the years, the idea of the western frontier of American history has been unjustly and falsely romanticized by the movie, novel, and television industries. People now believe the west to have been populated by gun-slinging cowboys wearing ten gallon hats who rode off on capricious, idealistic adventures. Not only is this perception of the west far from the truth, but no mention of the atrocities of Indian massacre, avarice, and ill-advised, often deceptive, government programs is even present in the average citizen’s understanding of the frontier. This misunderstanding of the west is epitomized by the statement, “Frederick Jackson Turner’s frontier thesis was as real as the myth of the west. The development of the west was, in

The American Frontier, or as it was also known, the Wild West was a time between the 1770s and the late 1900s. The Wild West consisted of the and west of the Mississippi river. This time period lasted for about thirty years, and during this time there were a variety of people that roamed around the towns such as outlaws, lawmen, Native Americans, townspeople, and cowboys. Out in the Wild West the towns were small but, for the size of them, they were called 'home' for many people.

As the twentieth century approached, America was experiencing a time of considerable expansion. All eyes were looking for ways to make the United States a larger, more powerful, and more efficient country. Because of this wave in American society, there was no movement given more devotion than the settling of the West. The range-cattle industry in its various aspects, and in its importance to the United States and particularly to the Great Plains, has been a subject of focus to Americans since its origin in the mid 1800's. This industry was rendered possible by such factors as vast sections of fertile land, the rise of heavy industry involving the great demand for beef, and