Weekly 3

       Most people believe that cowboys originated in the "wild west" but really, that's just where they became popular. Cowboys originated during the hacienda system in medieval Spain and were herders and rangers. They became popular in America during the westward expanision when the need to drive herds of cattle grew. The cowboy soon became an idol of the western world. Their fame grew even more when Hollywood started producing western movies staring John Wayne and Clint Eastwood.
         John Wayne protrayed the cowboy to have a fairly easy and exciting life, going on adventures and being heroic. What people don't know, however, is how a real cowboy was and looked. In reality the cowboy didn't dress like the cowboys in the movies. They wore whatever they could get their hands on. Cowboy hats were wide-brimed to keep the sun out of their eyes.The cowboy hat was made famous with the black and white movies. Black hats were known to be for the bad guys and white for the good. Crowns on the cowboy hats become symbols of who you were.Their boots were for riding and were started by the Mongol tribesmen. The early 1900's brought along the "Duster", which was used to keep all the dust off of their clothes.The original cowboy boot was pointed due to the fact that the they spent a long portion of the day in a saddle, boots in the stirrups. In the mid 1900s, the cowboy belt buckle was introduced. Over time, the cowboy's appearance changed with the new fashion or what materials were avaliable. Everything they wore served a purpose, not to change their "western cowboy look." Another stereotype associated with the cowboy is a hand gun. Back in the 1900's, guns were relatively expensive and most people couldn't even afford to own one. Cowboys had a hard life in the west; they had to be "the Jack of all trades." They needed to know how to ride, rope, saddle, tend to and care for animals and build shelters. Cattle drives were a huge part of a cowboys job. During cattle drives, the cattle is moved from one place to another by cowboys or on horseback. They were a major economic activity in the west when 20 million cattle were transported from Texas to Kansas. Covering long distances, rest stops and towns were established across the west. Cattle drives actually still occur in western America and Australia.
        Cowboys also learned to live in and bond with nature. Being outside in the hot, dry weather all the time helped them learn the land and to know which places to avoid out of danger. Overcoming the tough journey west, a foreign land and new way of life, the cowboy is an American symbol. Cowboys remind us of how much we have progressed since earlier times but also bring us back, to when times were simpler. They represent a lifestyle and time period that is cherished as a part of our American history. Not even originating in America, cowboys were so important in our life that they're represent who we were then and are recognized for that now.


http://blogs.pitch.com/fatcity/2009/02/saddleback_ranch_ups_and_close.php