Johnson County War

Johnson County War
Part of the Range Wars
"The Invaders" of The Johnson County Cattle War. Photo taken at Fort D.A. Russell near Cheyenne, Wyoming, May 1892
DateJuly 20, 1889 - May 24, 1893[1][2][3]
Location
Powder River Country, Johnson County, Wyoming, United States
Caused byStock, grazing and water rights disputes
Resulted inHomesteader victory[4][5]
Parties
  • Homesteaders
    • Northern Wyoming Farmers and Stock Growers' Association
Lead figures
Number
Approx. 200[6]
Casualties and losses
20-40 killed (including those who were lynched)[1]
Location of the conflict in Wyoming

The Johnson County War, also known as the War on Powder River and the Wyoming Range War, was a range conflict that took place in Johnson County, Wyoming from 1889 to 1893.[3] The conflict began when cattle companies started ruthlessly persecuting alleged rustlers in the area, many of whom were settlers who competed with them for livestock, land and water rights. As violence swelled between the large established ranchers and the smaller settlers in the state, it culminated in the Powder River Country, when the ranchers hired gunmen, who invaded the county. The gunmen's initial incursion in the territory alerted the small farmers and ranchers, as well as the state lawmen, and they formed a posse of 200 men that led to a grueling standoff which ended when the United States Cavalry on the orders of President Benjamin Harrison relieved the two forces, although further fighting persisted.

The events have since become a highly mythologized and symbolic story of the Wild West and over the years variations of the story have come to include some of its most famous historical figures. In addition to being one of the best-known range wars of the American frontier, its themes, especially class warfare, served as a basis for numerous popular novels, films and television shows in the Western genre.

  1. ^ a b Nelson, Mathias (27 May 2022). "Johnson County War: An American Insurrection". Forgotten Wars. March 27, 2022
  2. ^ Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 90 (Tuesday, May 24, 2022)
  3. ^ a b Trimble, Marshall. "I cowboyed with a man named John Tisdale in Wyoming in my youth. Didn't a man by that name get killed in the Johnson County War?". True West. October 2015
  4. ^ "Spell of the West: Johnson County War". JCS Group. Archived from the original on 2017-08-24. Retrieved 2017-05-23.
  5. ^ Chapel, Charles Edward. Guns of the Old West: An Illustrated Guide. Dover Publications; First edition (September 19, 2013). p. 242. ISBN 978-0486421612
  6. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference Belgrad was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  7. ^ Cite error: The named reference Wyobro was invoked but never defined (see the help page).