THE MISSING TRUTH 

by Pam North

The American West - it's a period of history that is filled with
cowhands, explorers, cavalrymen, fur trappers, lawmen, cooks, scouts
and homesteaders.  These are the characters who come to life in novels,
textbooks and films, and usually one characteristic is evident:  they 
are white.  Forgotten or obscured in this slice of Americana is the 
fact that a great many of those who contributed to shaping the
frontier, and subsequently our democracy, were black.

They were there from the beginning.  Black men sailed with Columbus,
and they accompanied many of the expeditions that charted the
unexplored regions of this nation.  Familiar in history is the
Shoshone woman Sacajawea in Lewis and Clark's 2 1/2-year exploration
of the Louisiana Territory, yet few have heard of Clark's slave, York,
who assisted her as interpreter, and who was skillful in establishing 
friendly ties with the Indians.  James Beckwourth was one of the best
black Indian fighters of his generation, but while his contemporaries -
Jim Bridger, Kit Carson, Daniel Boone and Davy Crockett - achieved
prominence, Beckwourth remained unmentioned in the history pages.

The cattle industry would have been severely handicapped without the
presence and services of the 8,000 to 9,000 black men (about one-quarter 
of the total number of 35,000 cattle drivers) who, after the Civil War, 
helped move and tend the herds. Black men were uniquely suited to cattle
ranching; they possessed innate skills, learned in their native
Africa, in managing and controlling large herds.  These abilities,
when later coupled with the riding and roping talents learned from
the Mexican vaqueros, made them some of the best cowhands in the 
West.  The black cowhand's life was one of loneliness, tedium and hard
work, yet one in which he could find a higher degree of safety,
dignity and equality than what would be experienced as a Southern
sharecropper subjected to the emergence of Jim Crow laws after the
Civil War.  Cowhands all ate the same food, slept on the same ground, 
worked at the same jobs and were faced with the same dangers.  Whites 
and blacks could live and work together more harmoniously in cattle 
country than anywhere else in that time.  Many black cowboys became 
well-known:  Bose Ikard rode on the Goodnight Trail, as did Jim
Fowler; Jim Perry and Newt Clendenen worked on the XIT Ranch; Addison 
Jones was a range boss; Bill Pickett invented bulldogging on his
horse, Spradley; Bronco Sam was reportedly not afraid of anything;  
Charley Willis was known as "The Singing Cowboy;" Jesse Stahl once
rode a bronco backwards with a suitcase held in his hand; John Ware
was a highly respected rancher; Nat Love supposedly won the title of 
"Deadwood Dick" in an 1876 roping contest; "One Horse Charlie" rode 
with the Shoshone Indians. A black woman, Mary Fields, ran a stage 
coach and mail route.

The 9th and 10th Cavalries, known as the Buffalo Soldiers, explored
and mapped vast areas of the southwest, and strung hundreds of miles of 
telegraph wire.  Cities and towns evolved from the forts built and
repaired by these black regiments, and their protection from outlaws
and hostile Indians ensured the success of the expanding railroad
system.  They faced up to some of the worst assignments handed out by 
the Army, overcame prejudice and became two of the most distinguished 
fighting units in the Army.
  
The West became a refuge where black people could have a better chance
to pursue their dreams.  While prejudice could never be totally escaped, 
equality was a little closer in the frontier.
 
The African-American experience in the West has been largely ignored.
These valuable black people have been overlooked in history accounts.
Their deliberate exclusion was a result of the unfortunate attitude 
on the part of many whites that certain ethnic groups were unworthy of 
any mention.  February is Black History Month, an excellent time to learn
about the major roles black people played in the settling of the West.
It's time to recognize them for their courage and versatility, and for
their importance.

Resource:  The Black West, by William Loren Katz

Photos for article made be found at:
http://www.buffalosoldier.net/
http:www.geocities.com/cott1388/black-cowboy.html