• Cattle Kingdom

  • The Hidden History of the Cowboy West
  • By: Christopher Knowlton
  • Narrated by: John McLain
  • Length: 14 hrs and 9 mins
  • 4.6 out of 5 stars (112 ratings)

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Cattle Kingdom  By  cover art

Cattle Kingdom

By: Christopher Knowlton
Narrated by: John McLain
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Publisher's summary

A revolutionary new appraisal of the Old West and the America it made

The Open Range cattle era lasted barely a quarter-century, but it left America irrevocably changed. These few decades following the Civil War brought America its greatest boom-and-bust cycle until the Depression, the invention of the assembly line, and the dawn of the conservation movement. It inspired legends, such as that icon of rugged individualism, the cowboy. Yet this extraordinary time and its import have remained unexamined for decades.

Cattle Kingdom reveals the truth of how the West rose and fell, and how its legacy defines us today. The tale takes us from dust-choked cattle drives to the unlikely splendors of boomtowns like Abilene, Kansas, and Cheyenne, Wyoming. We venture from the Texas Panhandle, to the Dakota Badlands, to the Chicago stockyards. We meet a diverse array of players - from the expert cowboy Teddy Blue to the failed rancher and future president Teddy Roosevelt. Knowlton tells us how they and others like them could achieve so many outsized feats: killing millions of bison in a decade, building the first opera house on the open range, driving cattle by the thousand, and much more. Cattle Kingdom is a revelatory new view of the Old West.

©2017 Christopher Knowlton (P)2021 Tantor
  • Unabridged Audiobook
  • Categories: History

What listeners say about Cattle Kingdom

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Thorough coverage

These is a very sell thought out book about the Cattle drives, cattle Kingdoms, the Beef Trust, the influx of European moneyed interests and the phenomenal business innovations that accompanied the birth of an industry. The roles played by Swift and Delmonico's were especially enlightening.

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Truly The Store of The COWBOY

Amazing read. I have listened to it multiple times. The history, the luster, the strive to bring a dream to life and romance of the west is all in this book. Wish I could of been there.

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very well

a lot of research went into this book. i have learned a lot of history.

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Great treatment of history of the American west

I very much enjoyed learning more about a key period in the development of the American west, as well as the country, in an unvarnished chronology covering the varied contributions by individuals, countries, government, and business. Particularly interesting, was the lasting image of the noble cowboy on present day America and the world. Well narrated

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Don’t listen for these weak people reviews! This books is for the strong!

This books is the history of the real America! if you like you are a strong person! woke wussies will not like it cause they are weak!

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I Had No Idea

Fascinating, in depth history of the West and its impact on our nations evolution. It uncovers the truth behind the myth.

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Excellent!

Maybe the best book Zi have ever read on the American West and the cattle industry.

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Important history, well told, with insights into the financial basis

The author’s knowledge of financial theory is impressive, and he demonstrates a thorough understanding of the forces and effects. The section on the Johnson County War is well told and disturbing, as is right.

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Interesting account of the open range era

Very interesting. Lots of research. Great accounts of what life was like back then. Would recommend!

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I did not know

All I knew was from the fictionalized, glorified tales of The West on black & white TV. This was eye-opening. This book helps me understand the origins of some of the awful behaviors of today's U.S.A. culture.

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1 person found this helpful