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Grade 5 Social Studies · World 2: Bigger, Better, Faster · Level 11
The Black Cowboys
Describe the Black Cowboys of Texas.
Warm-up, learn, try it together, practice, then a quick check. About 15 minutes.
What children learn in Level 11
- Movies often show cowboys as white. Real life was different. Historians estimate that as many as one in four trail cowboys were Black.
- Before the Civil War, many enslaved people in Texas worked with cattle and horses. After freedom, they used those skills to earn wages on the trails.
- Bose Ikard was so trusted that the rancher Charles Goodnight had Ikard carry the money on cattle drives. Bill Pickett became a rodeo star. Nat Love told the story of a cowboy's life in a book.
- On the trail, everyone had to work together. In town, it was often different. Many hotels and shops kept Black cowboys out.
- Mexican vaqueros rode the trails too, and they taught many of the skills cowboys used.
Georgia Standards of Excellence in Social Studies:
- SS5H1.a — Describe the role of the cattle trails in the late 19th century; include the Black Cowboys of Texas, the Great Western Cattle Trail, and the Chisholm Trail.