A range war or range conflict is a type of usually violent conflict, most commonly in the 19th and early 20th centuries in the

American West The Western United States (also called the American West, the Far West, and the West) is the region comprising the westernmost states of the United States. As American settlement in the U.S. expanded westward, the meaning of the term ''the Wes ...

. The subject of these conflicts was control of " open range", or range land freely used for cattle grazing, which gave the conflict its name. Typically they were disputes over

water rights Water right in water law refers to the right of a user to use water from a water source, e.g., a river, stream, pond or source of groundwater. In areas with plentiful water and few users, such systems are generally not complicated or contentiou ...

grazing rights Grazing rights is the right of a user to allow their livestock to feed (graze) in a given area. United States Grazing rights have never been codified in United States law, because such common-law rights derive from the English concept of the ...

and cattle ownership. Range wars occurred prior to the Taylor Grazing Act of 1934, which regulated grazing allotments on public land. Range wars included the Pleasant Valley War,

Colfax County War The Colfax County War was a range war that occurred from 1873 to 1888 between settlers and the new owners of the Maxwell Land Grant in Colfax County, in the U.S. state of New Mexico. The war started when the new landowners tried to remove the lo ...

, Castaic Range War, San Elizario Salt War, Mason County War, Porum Range War, Johnson County War, Pecos War,

Fence Cutting Wars The Fence Cutting Wars occurred near the end of the 19th century in the American Old West, and were a series of disputes between farmers and cattlemen with larger land holdings. As newcomers came to the American West to farm, established cattlemen ...

, Sheep Wars,

Barber–Mizell feud The Barber–Mizell feud was a feud in Brevard and Orange Orange most often refers to: *Orange (fruit), the fruit of the tree species '' Citrus'' × ''sinensis'' ** Orange blossom, its fragrant flower *Orange (colour), from the color of an o ...

Stuart's Stranglers Stuart's Stranglers was a well-known vigilante group in Montana that was founded in 1884 and led by Granville Stuart in response to widespread livestock theft at that time. They were also less commonly known as the "Montana Stranglers." History ...

conflict, and others.

Range wars in literature and the arts

Range wars have been the subject of movies and novels. Some examples are: *'' Range War'' (1939) is a movie (featuring

Hopalong Cassidy Hopalong Cassidy is a fictional cowboy hero created in 1904 by the author Clarence E. Mulford, who wrote a series of short stories and novels based on the character. Mulford portrayed the character as rude, dangerous, and rough-talking. He wa ...

) about a group of ranchers in conflict with a railway company. * ''Range War'', a 2000 novel by

Lauran Paine Lauran Bosworth Paine (born Lawrence Kerfman Duby Jr.; February 25, 1916 – December 1, 2001) was an American writer of Western fiction.Whitehead, DavidLauran Paine Keith Chapman's Black Horse Extra Early life Paine was born in Duluth, Minne ...

about the Johnson County War. *'' The Virginian,'' a 1902 novel by

Owen Wister Owen Wister (July 14, 1860 – July 21, 1938) was an American writer and historian, considered the "father" of western fiction. He is best remembered for writing '' The Virginian'' and a biography of Ulysses S. Grant. Biography Early life ...

, was based on the Johnson County Range War, presenting the case of the large ranchers and depicting the

lynching Lynching is an extrajudicial killing by a group. It is most often used to characterize informal public executions by a mob in order to punish an alleged transgressor, punish a convicted transgressor, or intimidate people. It can also be an ex ...

s as

frontier justice Frontier justice is extrajudicial punishment that is motivated by the nonexistence of law and order or dissatisfaction with justice. The phrase can also be used to describe a prejudiced judge. Lynching, vigilantism and gunfighting are considered ...

for

cattle rustling Cattle raiding is the act of stealing cattle. In Australia, such stealing is often referred to as duffing, and the perpetrator as a duffer.Baker, Sidney John (1945) ''The Australian language : an examination of the English language and English ...

. It was adapted four times as films. *''

Shane Shane may refer to: People * Shane (actress) (born 1969), American pornographic actress * Shane (New Zealand singer) (born 1946) * iamnotshane (born 1995), formerly known as Shane, American singer * Shane (name), a masculine given name and a su ...

'' is a 1953 movie (featuring

Alan Ladd Alan Walbridge Ladd (September 3, 1913 – January 29, 1964) was an American actor and film producer. Ladd found success in film in the 1940s and early 1950s, particularly in films noir and Westerns. He was often paired with Veronica Lake ...

) that tells the story of a gunfighter taking the side of the farmers against cattlemen during a fictional range war loosely based on the Johnson County Range War. *''

The Redhead from Wyoming ''The Redhead from Wyoming'' is a 1953 American Western film produced by Leonard Goldstein and directed by Lee Sholem. It stars Maureen O'Hara as a saloon proprietress who becomes embroiled in a range war and Alex Nicol as the sheriff who trie ...

'' a 1953 film with

Maureen O'Hara Maureen O'Hara (; 17 August 1920 – 24 October 2015) was a native Irish and naturalized American actress and singer, who became successful in Hollywood from the 1940s through to the 1960s. She was a natural redhead who was known for pl ...

featuring a fictionalised Johnson County War. *'' Man Without a Star'', 1955, with Kirk Douglas. *''To The Last Man: A Story of the Pleasant Valley War,'' is a novel by Western author Zane Grey exploring the Pleasant Valley War in 1880s Arizona. *''

Oklahoma! ''Oklahoma!'' is the first musical written by the duo of Rodgers and Hammerstein. The musical is based on Lynn Riggs' 1931 play, ''Green Grow the Lilacs''. Set in farm country outside the town of Claremore, Indian Territory, in 1906, it tell ...

'' (1943 Broadway musical, 1955 film) Rodgers and Hammerstein musical about a cowboy in love with a farm girl, complicated by a rivalry between local farmers and ranchers over fences and water rights. *''

El Dorado El Dorado (, ; Spanish for "the golden"), originally ''El Hombre Dorado'' ("The Golden Man") or ''El Rey Dorado'' ("The Golden King"), was the term used by the Spanish in the 16th century to describe a mythical tribal chief (''zipa'') or king ...

'' is a 1966 movie about an aging gunfighter who goes "straight" to help a lawman friend after being hired to intervene in a range war. *'' Chisum'' is a 1970 western movie loosely based on the 1878

Lincoln County War The Lincoln County War was an Old West conflict between rival factions which began in 1878 in Lincoln County, New Mexico Territory, the predecessor of the state of New Mexico, and continued until 1881. The feud became famous because of the ...

in New Mexico Territory, which erupted over mercantile economic competition rather than issues of range. *''

Centennial {{other uses, Centennial (disambiguation), Centenary (disambiguation) A centennial, or centenary in British English, is a 100th anniversary or otherwise relates to a century, a period of 100 years. Notable events Notable centennial events at a ...

'' (1978) features an episode titled 'The Shepherds' , which depicted a range war between cattlemen on one hand, against farmers and sheepherders on the other. *A range war is referred to as the reason that cattle are being sold at low prices to a railroad in the twenty-third episode of ''

Hell on Wheels Hell on Wheels was the itinerant collection of flimsily assembled gambling houses, dance halls, saloons, and brothels that followed the army of Union Pacific railroad workers westward as they constructed the First transcontinental railroad in 186 ...

''. *'' Heaven's Gate'' (1980), is loosely based on the Johnson County War. *''

Tom Horn Thomas Horn Jr., (November 21, 1860 – November 20, 1903) was an American scout, cowboy, soldier, range detective, and Pinkerton agent in the 19th-century and early 20th-century American Old West. Believed to have committed 17 killings as a ...

'' (1980), scripted from the journals of Horn,

Steve McQueen Terrence Stephen McQueen (March 24, 1930November 7, 1980) was an American actor. His antihero persona, emphasized during the height of the counterculture of the 1960s, made him a top box-office draw for his films of the late 1950s, 1960s, and ...

. *" Johnson County War" is a 1989 song by Country Western singer/songwriter Chris LeDoux for the Powder River album. *"The Range War," a ballad by

Todd Rundgren Todd Harry Rundgren (born June 22, 1948) is an American multi-instrumentalist, singer, songwriter, multimedia artist, sound engineer and record producer who has performed a diverse range of styles as a solo artist and as a member of the band Ut ...

, focuses on a relationship between a boy whose "uncle runs cattle" and a girl whose "daddy runs sheep," and hints their relationship was opposed by both families, fueling this particular range war. *'' Open Range'' (2003), a film in which free-grazers take on a cattle baron who tries to use hired assassins to steal their herd. *A range war was the subject of at least one episode of long-running old time radio show, ''

Gunsmoke ''Gunsmoke'' is an American radio and television Western drama series created by director Norman Macdonnell and writer John Meston. It centers on Dodge City, Kansas, in the 1870s, during the settlement of the American West. The central chara ...

'', called "Jaliscoe". *A range war was used as a plot in the 12th season of the TV show ''

Dallas Dallas () is the third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 million people. It is the largest city in and seat of Dallas County ...

''. *'' King of Texas'' is a 2002 American television movie transposing the plot of

William Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

's ''

King Lear ''King Lear'' is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare. It is based on the mythological Leir of Britain. King Lear, in preparation for his old age, divides his power and land between two of his daughters. He becomes destitute and insane a ...

'' into the 19th-century American West.

Usage

While in previous centuries violence may have been involved, the term is now applied to nonviolent competition for scarce resources, such as between ranchers and environmentalists, or between ranchers and fans of wild horses. A range war is also a slang term for a

turf war A turf war is a fight over territory or resources, or may refer to: Music * ''Turf Wars'', a 2007 album by the Canadian band Daggermouth * "Turf War", a song on the 2001 album '' Filmtracks 2000'' by American composer Bill Television * '' Turf ...

or disagreement about proper hierarchy or relationship and is often used in a joking manner. In this sense, the term is found in politics and business.For example, th
Mac Observer
site characterises the conflict between IBM and the

SCO Group The SCO Group (often referred to SCO and later called The TSG Group) was an American software company in existence from 2002 to 2012 that became known for owning Unix operating system assets that had belonged to the Santa Cruz Operation (the o ...

as a "range war". In this case, the "unfenced territory" is the

Unix Unix (; trademarked as UNIX) is a family of multitasking, multiuser computer operating systems that derive from the original AT&T Unix, whose development started in 1969 at the Bell Labs research center by Ken Thompson, Dennis Ritchie, ...

Linux Linux ( or ) is a family of open-source Unix-like operating systems based on the Linux kernel, an operating system kernel first released on September 17, 1991, by Linus Torvalds. Linux is typically packaged as a Linux distribution, whi ...

marketplace, and the hearts and minds of technical, purchase influencing, IT people.

Notes and references

{{DEFAULTSORT:Range War American frontier Cowboy culture 01 Internal wars of the United States Western (genre) staples and terminology

Range wars in literature and the arts

Usage

See also

Notes and references