Western Magic & Prairie Folklore Part One: Geography, Weather, & Farming
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attribution to the Wyoming Bureau of Land Management's website
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Western Magic & Prairie Folklore Masterpost
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For those of you who don't know me, slàinte mhath! My name is Reggie and I'm a folk magic practitioner. This is the first post of many I'm going to do on the very specific kind of folk magic that traveled West with the pioneers in the 1800s and developed with the settlers and cowboys in the "Equality State."
Fun fact: Wyoming is called the "Equality State" because on December 10, 1869, Wyoming passed the first unconditional law in the U.S. permanently guaranteeing women their inherent right to vote and hold office.
Out of everyone on Tumblr, why am I qualified to speak on this topic? Well, I was born and raised for 23 years in Wyoming. I am from a family of people who were all born, raised, and lived their entire lives in Wyoming. (Specifically the Bear Lake Valley of Wyoming and Idaho, and that little corner of Utah where all 3 touch.)
If you're a prairie folk magic practitioner and would like to participate in this post series, then feel free to send me an ask!
Otherwise, let's get to it.
This first post is a little taste of history and kind of setting the scene to discuss the culture and life of different "folk practitioners" in Wyoming. Be sure to check out the other posts in this series! I linked the masterpost at the top of this post!
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Geography
Wyoming has 5 different classifications on the Köppen Climate Classification Scale: BSk, Dfb, BWk, Dfc, and Dfa. A majority of the state is dominated by BSk or a "cold, semi-arid climate." (source) The type of climate that dominates the state is important to remember, because the geography of the area had a huge influence on jobs, people's routines throughout the year, how and when they grew and stored food, and the different plants that were available as medicine.
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Weather/Climate and Farming
Because of the eclectic climate in Wyoming, the typical growing season is only between 20 and 130 days long. (source) At its best it's dry and too hot, and at its worst it's unpredictably cold. I have distinct memories of winter some years lasting from Labor Day weekend (the weekend of the first big snowstorm every year) to the last day of school in June. Doesn't sound like the best climate to be sustainably growing food year round, does it?
To combat that issue, people in the Wyoming Territory learned to "dryland farm" without extensive irrigation systems. It's said the first successful cases of dryland farming came from Swedish settlers near Pine Bluffs in Laramie County. But by the late 1800s, it had grown in popularity across the state. Now that there are irrigation systems in place, people take advantage of the fertile river bottoms and grow sugarbeets, dry edible beans, barley, corn, and dryland winter wheat. Some farmers even grow oats and sunflowers. The people of Wyoming have gotten so good at farming that "Our pasture and hay are regarded as the highest quality anywhere. Wyoming hay is known for high protein, leafiness, and excellent feed value and is shipped throughout the United States and the world for horse and dairy feed." (source)
With such famous hay, of course people cattle-farmed in the area! There are multiple stories told about how the cattle industry really took hold in the state, and they all try to frame it as an accident. Different cattle farmers left their cattle for the winter near Chugwater, WY (just North of Cheyenne; famous for its chili) and were surprised to find thriving beef cattle instead of carcasses in the spring.
But it wasn't an accident. As is always the case, there are actually multiple historical and documented points that preceded the boom of the cattle industry in Wyoming. To summarize quickly: (1) In 1849 Fort Laramie was established and there were soldiers there who needed to eat; (2) In 1851 the Missouri Pacific Railroad began laying track headed West and these railroads revolutionized beef cattle transport as well as had surveyors plotting lines through Cheyenne and not Denver (because of Cheyenne's milder winters); (3) The Civil War both centralized the beef processing industry and plants moved to Nebraska from eastern cities like Chicago AND caused a huge surplus of Longhorn in Texas that were unattended as men left from the ranches to go fight in the war; (4) The unattended cattle bred unchecked and their numbers exploded; (5) When people came through looking for places to put their cattle Wyoming basically had a huge neon sign that said "Free Range and Free HIGH QUALITY Grass." (source)
Although when most animal-industry people think of Wyoming they think of beef cattle, "The high plains and mountain meadows of Wyoming are well-known for producing some of the finest sheep and wool in the world. Wyoming ranks second in the U.S. in wool production and lamb crop." (source)
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The plants and animals in a specific area have a profound impact on the people that live there. Most of the people I knew during the first part of my life in Wyoming came from farmers or ranchers of some kind. The biggest industries are cattle and sheep, and peoples' livelihoods reflect that. People in Wyoming take better care of their stock than themselves.
As a direct result of the kinds of jobs everyone's families came from, people in Wyoming have huge amounts of respect for ranchers and farmers. When I was in high school one of the biggest programs (besides football) were the FFA programs that were sponsored by the local college, trying to get more people into farming and ranching. And unlike suburban or city places, I wasn't raised around people who were trying to "catch their big break." People generally had regular jobs that they were passionate about, and are more interested in working hard and providing for themselves. In my experience it was common for people to hold multiple jobs that weren't just jobs to them, but "passion projects."
I think this way of life directly translates to the culture surrounding folk magic. I will get more into that in future posts in this series.
Another huge point in the culture in Wyoming life is outdoor recreation and protecting federal lands. People are very interested in reducing carbon footprints, recycling, and leaving campgrounds/recreation areas better than they found them. If you're a litter bug you're basically the worst person to ever exist, and people get (understandably) angry over people who litter or otherwise disrespect the environment (taking things from the state/national parks, etc.). The same energy exists for people who poach in any context, and the state's laws reflect that. If someone is caught poaching, they lose their ability to legally hunt in the state forever without any chance of appeal.
That's how I try to live now, even though I live in a different state. I've always had a deep-seeded hatred for litterbugs and people who disrespect the environment around them. I didn't meet people who didn't care about that kind of thing until I moved out of the western part of the United States. That was probably the biggest culture shock I experienced.
