Heather Dougherty, age 11, of Grand Forks, N.D., for her question:
HOW DID WE GET THE COWBOY'S NAME?
The name "cowboy" goes back to the Revolutionary War in America, but it has little to do with the cowboys of today. The first cowboys were Tories, or Americans who were loyal to England. They were called cowboys because they often lured American patriots into traps in the bush by tinkling cowbells and sounding like lost cattle.
These early day cowboys operated mainly in Westchester County, near New York City.
A number of years later, the cowboy name came to be used only for cowhands who tended cattle in the West.
Cattle raising became an important industry in the United States in the late 1860s. Ranchers in Texas raised longhorn steers that they sold in the East at a profit. It was found that large numbers of men were needed to handle the cattle. And so emerged the cowboy.
Cowboys trailed herds to railroad towns where dealers shipped the cattle to Chicago and other meat packing centers. Ranchers found that trailing the herds was a cheap way of transporting them to the railroads. In addition, the cattle usually fattened along the trails.
Cowboys often used the Chisholm Trail, which ran from the Mexican border through Austin and Waco, Texas, to Abilene, Kan. Some favored the Western Trail, which led to Dodge City, Kan., which is still called the "Cowboy Capital of the World." Also popular was the Shawnee Trail that ran east to Kansas City and St. Louis, Mo.
During the 1870s and 1880s, more and more cattlemen began driving herds north to be sold for beef. They also drove cattle into such northern areas as the Dakotas, Wyoming and Montana.
Many ranges opened for cattle because the large herds of buffalo had been destroyed and Indian tribes were placed on reservations.
The cattle boom for the most part ended by the middle of the 1880s. While it lasted, it brought fame to the cowboy who tended the herds.
During the 30 years after the Civil War, when the cowboy gained fame, cattlemen could make large profits. A steer that cost $5 in Texas or Wyoming would be worth about S40 to 850 in Chicago. The cattle industry enjoyed a boom and some cattlemen made huge fortunes.
Cattle raising became more of a regular business in the early 1900s. With the growth of railroads and the closing of the trails, cowboy life lost most of its color and adventure.
Cowboys today differ mainly in two ways from earlier cowboys. First, they have more specialized jobs today. They can do some particular types of work better than cowboys of the 1800s. Second, cowboys on large ranches generally use machines for many jobs that earlier cowboys had to do themselves.
But in many ways, the cowboy's work has not changed much since early days. Cowboys must still know how to ride a horse. They must be able to work long hours, in all kinds of weather and on little food. And they must also know how to handle cattle.
The National Cowboy Hall of Fame was opened in Oklahoma City, Okla., in 1965. It honors outstanding Americans who had a part in developing the West.