Basque Sheepherders and the Range Wars. Basque Immigration, Livestock Industry, and the Conflicts over the Use of Federal Lands in the State of Nevada, 1890-1934

Abstract

This article analyzes the conflicts between cattle ranchers and sheepherders over the use of the public-domain lands during the first third of the twentieth century, as well as the federal government’s attempts to alleviate these conflicts and bring order to the western rangelands. The article examines how cattle ranchers tried to secure their economic status over smaller operations, confronting sheepherders who belonged to a lower social-economic status and most of them were Basque immigrants.

Keywords

• Inmigración vasca a Estados Unidos
• Western History
• Great Basin
• Nevada
• Range Wars
• U.S. Forest Service
• tierras públicas
• ganadería extensiva
• pastores de ovejas.