Author Kristine McGuire has conducted exhaustive research into the issues and forces behind the development of the frontier states. She scoured libraries, court houses, newspaper offices and government archives. Imaginatively, McGuire has structured her book,  MEANWHILE, BACK AT THE RANCH, around a sandstone rock on The Old Oxford Horse Ranch in Wyoming and the initials carved on it by passing travelers over the last two centuries. Each chapter delves into the identity of the carvers and the times in which they lived. She and her husband bought the ranch in the 1990s, determined to rescue it from its derelict state.

Central to the tale is the analysis of the disgraceful treatment of Native Americans. Forget Hollywood and John Wayne. To read the accounts of how tribes were tricked, and massacred, is to bring a sense of shame including treaties broken, blankets loaded with smallpox and outright genocide by the army.  Politicians were equally responsible. McGuire highlights a ruling by Congress that lumped all tribes together, so that a treaty with one was deemed to apply to all. All this was happening while Europeans were venturing farther west, starting with the Mountain Men. They made their living by beaver trapping and other types of hunting. Among the greatest was Canadian trapper Jacques LaRamie, for whom the city of Laramie is named. Some of them never learned to read or write, but they knew every blade of grass in the countryside.

As the West opened up, commercial business stepped in. The railroad was the ultimate driving force, with Union Pacific (UP) and Central Pacific (CP)building from opposite ends of the country. McGuire’s story brings men like Leland Stanford and Charles Crocker come to life again. The author goes into detail of the engineering ingenuity, physical hardships and inevitable crooked deals. And it seems that the overbearing attitude of the railroad companies continues today. McGuire has had to deal with UP because its tracks go through the ranch, and she notes “Communicating with UPRR officials on any subject is a lengthy exercise in futility. The UPRR was America’s first monopoly, and they continue to have that same entitled attitude.”

Another dangerous breed of frontier types emerged as the West grew more prosperous. Butch Cassidy, Jesse James and other outlaws rampaged through Wyoming and other areas. Adding to the growth pains was the hostility between big ranchers and homesteaders. McGuire brings out little known facts about the fence cutting, rustling and ambushes that were so common. Wyoming is a harsh environment for farming of any sort. McGuire quotes scientists as saying the growing season is 90 days at the most, while conditions in the Gangplank region are about the same as in the Arctic Circle. As McGuire and her husband found out, ranching in the state is a tough business. Strict attention has to be paid to livestock density, suitable types of grasses and water resources. McGuire mentions a livestock management system called the Savory Method, named for wildlife biologist Allan Savory.

Kristine McGuire’s MEANWHILE, BACK AT THE RANCH is absorbing account of the history of Wyoming, an exploration of the West, a political analysis, social commentary, advice on good and bad ranching methods and overall an excellent read.

~Martin Rushmere for IndieReader