How Wild Was the Wild West?

Podcast Transcript

The media portrayal of the wild west is full of gunfights in the course of the road, financial institution robberies, and vigilantes. The truth is, it is vitally tough to discover a media portrayal that doesn’t use the wild west as a backdrop for some battle of excellent vs. evil and of criminals vs. lawmen.

However how correct is that this portrayal? Have Western films been mendacity to us?

Be taught extra about simply how wild the wild west was and the accuracy of its portrayal in films on this episode of All the things All over the place Day by day.

When movement photos began within the early twentieth century, one of many first genres to search out recognition with the general public was the Western. There have been widespread themes in most Westerns of outlaws and lawmen. There have been depictions of cowboys and Indians.

Scores had been settled in the course of a avenue by two males staring one another all the way down to see who was the quicker draw.

These are only a few of the tropes which exist in lots of Westerns and are a few of the concepts which have been propagated about life within the Outdated West.

So, let’s begin by defining precisely what we’re speaking about after we say the Outdated West or the Wild West.

There isn’t any set definition of the time period, however roughly we’re speaking in regards to the interval from 1850 to 1900 within the area west of the Mississippi River. Some individuals may put the beginning date round 1860, and a few might put the top date round 1890 and even 1910.

Many of the space we’re speaking about for many of this era had been federal territories or had lately simply achieved statehood. These areas had low populations and low inhabitants densities.

So with that, we will begin with the establishment which has a central position in most tales of the Wild West, the saloon.

The phrase saloon is an Americanized model of the phrase salon. The American use of the phrase got here into being across the 1840s.

To make sure, there have been loads of saloons in most cities that sprang up within the West. If something, this is among the few info in regards to the West which is downplayed in films.

Most films will solely give attention to one saloon in a city the place the motion takes place as a result of it makes the story simpler to inform. In actuality, there might need been many dozens of saloons in even comparatively small communities.

The primary saloon within the west was believed to have been opened in Brown’s Gap, Wyoming, in 1822. It was constructed to serve fur trappers.

In 1880, Leavenworth, Kansas, had 150 saloons.

Saloon would usually have been related to a specific brewery, lots of which owned the saloons their beer was served in. This was significantly true within the later a part of the Nineteenth century.

Saloons would usually have clientele that was served by particular ethnic teams. These would have been extra akin to social golf equipment. Irish, Germans, Jews, Greeks, Italians, and different teams might have had their very own saloons which catered to their tastes.

Saloons would supply leisure to usher in prospects, and this often concerned playing, however it might additionally imply dancing exhibits and even brothels or opium dens. One standard method of getting prospects in was offering free lunches, which is the place the time period “there’s no such factor as a free lunch” originated.

One factor which is nearly completely not true is the batwing type of swinging saloon doorways. Streets weren’t paved again then, which might have meant mud and filth from the road coming inside if there have been doorways like that. To not point out what it might be like within the winter in case you had no door in your institution.

These sorts of doorways had been used internally to separate the kitchen from the primary flooring of a saloon, not externally.

Saloons additionally often didn’t have giant home windows with loads of frontage on the road. They tended to be lengthy and slim as a result of minimizing your avenue frontage was cheaper.

Let’s subsequent speak about cowboys. I’ll most likely do a complete episode on cowboys sooner or later, however suffice it to say that cowboys performed an essential position within the West.

A cowboy was nothing greater than a ranch hand whose job was to guard a herd of cattle. The largest factor they needed to shield the herd from was wild animals. Solely not often did they’ve to fret about thieves and cattle rustlers.

Cowboys spent the overwhelming majority of their day out within the subject. They might keep out with the cattle for weeks at a time after which get to enter city for just a few days after they received paid.

To that extent, a cowboy within the Outdated West was extra like a contemporary employee on an oil rig or somebody working at a distant mine in Western Australia or Northern Canada.

One factor that may be a fantasy has to do with cowboy hats. Cowboys most definitely wore hats.

What we name cowboy hats at this time are also referred to as a Stetson or a ten-gallon hat, was launched within the Twenties. These hats have a large brim that’s curved upwards on either side and indentations within the crown of the hat on prime.

The hat which most cowboys wore was often known as the “boss of the plains.” The ‘boss of the plains’ was launched in 1865 by the Stetson firm. It was totally different from a contemporary cowboy hat in that the brim was straight and spherical, and the crown was often clean.

The fashionable cowboy hat developed from the boss of the plains hat as individuals started placing indentations within the crown of the hat and bending the brim upward for trendy selections.

Bowler hats had been additionally standard throughout the interval.

Many individuals may discover it surprising that cowboys didn’t put on cowboy hats, however in case you go do a seek for photographs of cowboys, or anybody, from the Nineteenth century, you’ll not discover cowboy hats.

What about gunfights? Each Western film has some type of gunfight. Probably the most stereotypical kind of struggle includes two cowboys staring one another down in the course of the road to see who was the quickest draw.

There definitely was violence within the outdated west, however most of it was much like at this time in that it was fueled by alcohol. It was additionally a lot much less widespread than Western films would have you ever imagine. In case you received drunk and shot somebody, you’d most probably be arrested and hung.

The complete trope of a gunfight on foremost avenue is totally fictional. No matter foundation in actuality, it might need come from a single incident.

Invoice Hickok and Davis Tutt had been pals who grew to become bitter rivals. It’s believed to have began with Hickok having fathered an illegitimate youngster with Tutt’s sister and Tutt making strikes on Hickok’s then girlfriend.

Hickok was taking part in playing cards on the Lyon Home Resort and making a good sum of money. Tutt stood close by, loaning gamers cash to beat Hickok and giving them recommendation on tips on how to win.

A disagreement between them started about cash Hickok supposedly owed Tutt. Tutt stated it was $35, and Hickok stated it was solely $25. Tutt took Hickok’s prized gold pocket watch as collateral till he might receives a commission in full.

Tutt started carrying the watch publicly to humiliate Hickok.

Issues got here to a head in Springfield, Missouri, on July 21, 1865, when the 2 met on the street. They stood about 75 yards aside from one another, which is a quite lengthy distance.

What occurred was extra like an impromptu duel, besides it wasn’t with dueling pistols, and it wasn’t a quickdraw. Hickok reportedly rested the gun on his different arm to regular it, and each males fired one shot nearly concurrently. Tutt missed. Hickok hit Tutt within the rib cage, and he died shortly after.

Hickok was arrested and later acquitted on self-defense grounds.

The entire quickdraw gunslinger actually doesn’t make any sense. Holsters weren’t designed to take a gun out as rapidly as potential. They had been designed to carry a gun so it wouldn’t come out simply. In case you had been driving a horse, a gun might simply get jostled and are available out. If something, there can be straps to carry a gun in place.

In case you wished to attract a gun rapidly, you’d most likely simply put it in your pocket.

The violence that did happen was often fueled by alcohol and was completed in an ambush, not in an open show in the course of city, the place there can be witnesses. When Invoice Hickok was killed, he was shot whereas sitting at a poker desk and by no means noticed it coming. One cause why occasions such because the Gunfight on the OK Corral grew to become so well-known was exactly as a result of such occasions had been so uncommon.

Locations like Dodge Metropolis, Kansas, had a really excessive homicide fee and would rank amongst the best on this planet at this time. Nonetheless, this was the exception and never the rule.

What about financial institution robberies? Robbing banks at all times appear to be a giant a part of Westerns.

This may be the factor that films get probably the most unsuitable. There have been nearly no financial institution robberies within the Wild West. From 1859 to 1900, there have been solely eight recorded financial institution robberies in all the area often known as the West.

Eight.

To place this into perspective, in 2021, the State of Colorado alone had 195 financial institution robberies.

The explanation why financial institution robberies are thought-about so prevalent has to do with a really small variety of high-profile robberies, particularly by Butch Cassidy.

Banks had been very tough to rob. It was way more enticing to attempt to rob a stagecoach or a prepare. Within the case of trains, even that was short-lived, as after the primary few prepare robberies, trains carrying cash grew to become closely fortified.

One other widespread scene in Westerns is settlers being attacked by Indians. This, too, is very exaggerated.

To make sure, there have been conflicts between European settlers and Native individuals within the American West. Between 1840 and 1860, there have been 362 settlers and 426 Native People killed in conflicts with one another.

90% of those incidents came about in elements of the Applegate Path, in what’s at this time the state of Idaho.

Whereas the native individuals of the area weren’t thrilled on the prospect of settlers occupying their land, for probably the most half, civilians and native individuals received alongside. For a lot of native individuals, it was a chance to commerce. They would supply meals and furs in alternate for instruments like knives and firearms.

Settlers would have been a whole bunch of instances extra prone to have died from hunger and illness than getting attacked. They had been much more prone to have been killed by their very own cattle than to be killed by native individuals.

There have been instances of massacres of settlers, however these tended to be sensationalized within the media again within the East and had been often reprisals for massacres performed on the native individuals, often by troopers.

Occasions such because the Bloodbath at Wounded Knee and the late Nineteenth-century Indian wars will all be topics of future episodes.

So, how did our views of the wild west change into so skewed?

It began within the Nineteenth century. The West, particularly after the passage of the Homestead Act, drew the eye of tens of millions of people that lived within the East.

Writers would journey to the West to share tales to captivate individuals about what was taking place and to encourage migrations.

Small, remoted incidents can be exaggerated to sensationalize the story and to promote books and newspapers.

When films began, they used most of the legends in regards to the West as the premise for his or her movies as a result of they made for good tales.

Over time, the depiction of the West in films grew to become what most individuals thought the West was like in actuality.

Many of the well-known occasions of the period grew to become well-known as a result of they had been outliers, not as a result of they had been the norm.

The best threats to individuals had been illness and nature, not bandits.

So, the Wild West did have a wild ingredient, however it wasn’t actually as wild as it’s usually made out to be.

The Government Producer of All the things All over the place Day by day is Charles Daniel.

The affiliate producers are Thor Thomsen and Peter Bennett.

Immediately’s overview comes from listener Canine Mountain Joe over on PodcastAddict. They write:

Gary has completed an incredible job with this podcast. It’s each informative and entertaining. He’s each well-traveled and well-read. Being a founding member of the completionist membership of Japan I want to specific my gratitude to Gary for at all times educating me one thing new in regards to the world, and galvanizing me to be taught and discover.

Thanks, Joe! I ought to be aware that since I discussed unlocking numerous nations, I’ve had individuals come ahead who left critiques prior to now, however I simply didn’t know what nation they lived in. I’ve had critiques from Japan, Switzerland, Austria, South Africa, and different nations I’ve talked about.

You may be one of many first members of the completionist membership in Japan.

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