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In the American West, a horseman skilled at handling cattle is called a cowboy. From ca.1820, cowboys were employed in small numbers on Texas ranches. After the Civil War, their numbers rapidly multiplied as cattle-raising evolved into a lucrative industry throughout the western territories. Cowboys rounded up and branded the cattle, kept watch over the herd, and drove those ready for market to railroad towns. As the agricultural frontier moved west, the open range was transformed into farms, and by 1890 cowboys had been forced to settle on ranches. The romance of their image lives on in American folklore and through movies and television.
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Examples of cowboy in a Sentence
Ella Gonzales, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 14 May 2024
In the end, the two handle their dispute cowboy style in an all-out brawl that seems to settle the score once and for all.
—Kayla Keegan, Peoplemag, 11 May 2024
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“Cowboy.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cowboy. Accessed 18 May. 2024.
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