I put this slide show together as part of my work with the Teaching American History Grant in 2012. Students learn that there were many African American cowboys working in the West after the Civil War.

1. The Real American Cowboy:
Breaking the Stereotype
By Glennette Barclay
Spoon River Valley Junior High
London Mills, Illinois

2. Who was the
American cowboy?
Most were male
between the ages of 15
and 25
60% were White
30% were AfricanAmerican, Hispanic,
or Native American

3. What did cowboys do?
Cowboys were a vital part of the cattle
drive economy in the years 1865-1885.
Their most important job was to move
between 1,000 and 10,000 head of cattle
at a time. The average cattle drive
moved 2,500 head about 1,000 miles.
Cowboys drove these cattle from
south Texas to railroad centers in
Missouri and Kansas. Two vital
railheads were at Abilene and Wichita.

5. Other Cowboy Jobs:
Cowboys kept the cattle safe from
predators such as coyotes.
Cowboys kept the herds calm at
night to prevent stampedes.
Cowboys led the cattle across safe
river crossings.
Cowboys roped stray cattle that
wandered off and brought them back
to the herd.

6. Driving the Herd
Trail Boss: Rode ahead to find the best pasture for the herd this was the most
important position
Chuck Wagon: Cooked all meals and served as doctor
Point: Guide cattle in desired direction
Swing: Assisted point riders in guiding cattle
Flank: Kept the herd intact
Drag: Kept the lagging cattle moving along. This was the worst position on the
drive because of the dust.
Wrangler: Cowboys in charge of the Remuda.
Drover: A person who herds animals, in this case, cattle.

7. Cowboys were superior horsehandlers.
Cowboys took excellent care of the
Remuda, or the herd of horses used
to drive the cattle.
Cowboys would break wild horses
for use on the ranch or to drive
cattle.
Cowboys were responsible for the
purchase of their own saddles. The
rancher provided the horses.

8. The Texas Longhorn
Photo by Glennette Barclay courtesy the Chisholm Trail Heritage Center

9. Famous AfricanAmerican Cowboys
Nat Love
Nat Love was born a
slave in Nashville, TN in
1854.
At age 15 he won $100
in a horse raffle. He gave
half of the money to his
mother and took the
other half and headed

10. Nat managed to ride a horse named
“Good Eye”, the worst horse he ever rode.
A trail boss offered him $30 a month to
be a cowpuncher. In TN he was making
$1.50 a month.
He became an expert marksman and
eventually drove cattle from Texas to
Kansas, Nebraska and the Dakota
Territory.
Nat became an expert brand reader, a
very important job in any outfit.

11. He also had to fight Indians who tried
to stampede and steal cattle.
In Deadwood, SD, Nat entered a
roping contest and won. From then on,
he was known as “Deadwood Dick”.
One time, Nat roped a cannon and
tried to take it back to Texas. He got
caught and had to pay a fine.
Another time he tried to rope a
moving train, but lost!

12. Nat worked as a
cowboy until 1890.
By that time, the
cattle drives were
over because
railroads had been
built deep into
Texas. There was
no longer a need
for cattle drives.

13. Nat became a Pullman
Porter in 1890. He was
active in the railroad
labor unions and
worked in the industry
for 15 years. He took
great pride in his job
as a Pullman Porter
and enjoyed the
prestige of the job.

14. Nat wrote an
autobiography about
his life. He
eventually settled in
Los Angeles. He
died there in 1921 at
the age of 67.

15. Daniel Webster Wallace “80 John”
He was born a slave in 1860 in Texas.
At age 15 he snuck away from home
to become a cowboy.
Daniel joined a cattle drive and they
covered 15 miles a day.
He later worked for Clay Mann, a
famous cattle baron.
Daniel became known as “80 John”
because of Clay Mann’s unique “80”
brand used on his cattle.

16. 80 John was so trusted by Mann that he
even carried $30,000 worth of gold back
from the cattle drives.
According to the Chisholm Trail
Heritage Center, some trail bosses were
responsible for up to $90,000 in gold.
That’s equal to about $2 million in today’s
money!
Many people distrusted the
government’s paper money and
government banks after the Civil War.
Ranchers demanded their pay in gold.

17. Chuck wagon (above) where all
cooking was done on the trail.
Longhorn steer (left)

18. 80 John took his pay in the form of 600
steers and later began buying land. He was
a wise business man who continued buying
and selling different types of cattle.
Daniel Webster Wallace was remarkably
successful. Many African Americans
headed West because there was less
discrimination. However these men were
still discriminated against and there are no
accounts of African American cowboys
holding the highest rank of trail boss.

19. By the time of his death in 1939,
Wallace owned a 10,270 acre ranch.
Daniel Webster Wallace was a man
who always did his best. He was
respected and revered. He was born a
slave, but died a cattle rancher. Very few
former slaves were as successful as 80
John. Many African American cowboys
encountered racial discrimination.
Photograph of Daniel Webster Wallace

20. Charley Willis
He was born a slave in Texas in 1847.
By the time the Civil War ended,
Charley was already an experienced
cowhand.
For six years, he worked as an expert
horse-breaker.
He went on his first cattle drive on the
Chisholm Trail. It was a 2,000 mile
round trip on horse back in all kinds of
weather conditions.

21. In 1871, Charley was one of many
cowboys who drove 600,000 cattle over
the Chisholm Trail.
Charley happened to be an excellent
singer. At night, he would sing to the
cattle to keep them calm and prevent
them from stampeding.
One of Charley’s songs survives to this
day. It’s called, “Good-bye, Old Paint”.
The song became very popular among
cowboys and the public. (Charley did
have a horse named Old Paint.)

22. Charley passed away in 1930 at age 80.
In 1947 Jess Morris, a friend of
Charley’s, recorded “Good-bye, Old
Paint”.
The Willis family is very proud of their
very own singing cowboy.
Photograph of Charley Willis and his
wife, Laura

23. For those who are interested:
Nat Love’s autobiography:
Nat Love, 1854-1921. Life and Adventures of Nat Love, Better Known in the
Cattle Country as "Deadwood Dick," by Himself; a True History of Slavery
Days, Life on the Great Cattle Ranges and on the Plains of the "Wild and
Woolly" West, Based on Facts, and Perso
One of many versions of Charley Willis’s “Good-bye,
Old Paint”:
Goodbye Old Paint - Norman Luboff Choir.avi - YouTube

24. Resource:
Wagner, Tricia Martineau 2011. Black
cowboys of the old west, True,
sensational, and little-known stories
from history. Guilford, CT: TwoDot.
Photographs:
All photographs displayed in this presentation with the
exclusion of those of Nat Love, were taken by Glennette
Barclay. Permission to use the material photographed is
generously granted courtesy of the Chisholm Trail
Heritage Center, Duncan, Oklahoma.