Making a Living

Making a Living

Making a living in the old west involved various occupations and industries that shaped the economy and daily life. From mining to ranching, settlers found diverse ways to sustain themselves and contribute to the growth of the region.
← Back to Topics

Articles

American bison hunting

American bison hunting

Hunting of the American bison, also commonly known as the American buffalo, was an activity fundamental to the economy and society of the Plains Indians peoples who inhabited the vast grasslands on the Interior Plains of North America, before the animal's near-extinction in the late 19th century following United States expansion into the West.

Blacksmith

Blacksmith

A blacksmith is a metalsmith who creates objects primarily from wrought iron or steel, but sometimes from other metals, by forging the metal, using tools to hammer, bend, and cut (cf. tinsmith).

Bounty hunter

Bounty hunter

A bounty hunter in the United States is a private agent working for a bail bondsman who captures fugitives or criminals for a commission or bounty.

Buffalo Soldier

Buffalo Soldier

Buffalo Soldiers were United States Army regiments composed exclusively of Black American soldiers, formed during the 19th century to serve on the American frontier. On September 21, 1866, the 10th Cavalry Regiment was formed at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas.

Chuckwagon

Chuckwagon

A chuckwagon, or chuck wagon, is a horse-drawn wagon operating as a mobile field kitchen and frequently covered with a white tarpaulin, also called a camp wagon or round-up wagon. It was historically used for the storage and transportation of food and cooking equipment on the prairies of the United States and Canada.

Circuit rider (religious)

Circuit rider (religious)

Circuit riders, also known as horse preachers, were clergy assigned to travel around specific geographic territories to minister to settlers and organize congregations.

Cowboy

Cowboy

A cowboy is an animal herder who tends cattle on ranches in North America, traditionally on horseback, and often performs a multitude of other ranch-related tasks.

Droving

Droving

Droving is the practice of walking livestock over long distances. It is a type of herding, often associated with cattle, in which case it is a cattle drive (particularly in the US). Droving stock to market—usually on foot and often with the aid of dogs—has a very long history.

Farrier

Farrier

A farrier is a specialist in farriery: equine hoof care, including the trimming and balancing of horses' hooves and the placing of shoes on their hooves when necessary.

GU

Gunfighter

Gunfighters, also called gunslingers (), were individuals in the American Old West who gained a reputation of being dangerous with a firearm and participated in deadly shootouts. The gunfighter can be a lawman, outlaw, cowboy, shooting exhibitionist, or a hired gun, who is quick on the draw with a handgun or highly-skilled with rifles and shotguns.

Homesteading

Homesteading

Homesteading is a lifestyle of self-sufficiency. It is characterized by subsistence agriculture, home preservation of food, and may also involve the small scale production of textiles, clothing, and craft work for household use or sale. Homesteading has been pursued in various ways around the world and throughout different historical eras.

LO

List of Old West gunfighters

This is a list of Old West gunfighters, referring to outlaws or lawmen, of the American frontier who gained fame or notoriety during the American Wild West or Old West. Some listed were never gunfighters.