Photographs reveal the last generation of homesteaders

Photographs reveal the last generation of homesteaders

A new set of color photographs reveals the tough life for the last generation of homesteaders to settle in the Old West in the 1940s.

Many families traveled hundreds of miles west in search of a new life on the frontier following the passing of the Homestead Act. 

It is a land steeped in history, home to the descendants of pioneering homesteaders who built their lives from scratch as they tried to realize their own American Dream, settling across the Great Plains in the early 20th century.

The photographs were taken by American photographer Russell Lee in the late 1930s and early 1940s.

While the Wild West period is thought to have come to an end in 1895, the photos show that much of the West remained untamed well into the early 20th century. 

Photos show homesteaders using horses to harvest their fields, picking cabbage by hand and shooting hawks to prevent them from carrying away chickens.

Of course, it wasn't all hardship and some pictures show a community in Pie Town, New Mexico Fair, enjoying a barbecue and taking part in a rodeo. 

New color photographs reveals the tough life for the last generation of homesteaders to settle in the Old West: Pictured a shepherd with his horse and dog on Gravelly Range, Madison County, Montana

Homesteaders use horses to harvest new corn from the field of Jim Norris, Pie Town, New Mexico 

A group of men, in classic Stetson-style hats, fan the flames of an open, outdoor fire, Pie Town Fair, New Mexico

Jack Whinery, a homesteader, repairs a fence which he built with slabs of wood in Pie Town 

Mrs Norris with homegrown cabbage, one of the many vegetables which the homesteaders grow in abundance, Pie Town, New Mexico

Homesteaders in the Old West had to rely on centuries old farming practices, such as harvesting the fields with horses

Tying a ribbon on a calf's tail was one of the feature attractions at the Pie Town, New Mexico Fair

The Old West is a land steeped in history, home to the descendants of pioneering homesteaders who built their lives from scratch as they tried to realize their own American Dream, settling across the Great Plains in the early 20th century

Of course, it wasn't all hardship and some pictures show a community in Pie Town, New Mexico Fair, enjoying a barbecue (people say 'grace' before the meal)

The men remove their hats to say grace before the barbeque dinner at the Pie Town, New Mexico Fair

Cowboys eschew table and chairs to eat their barbecue lunch on the floor in Pie Town, New Mexico

Mr. Leatherman, homesteader, shooting hawks which have been carrying away his chickens, Pie Town, New Mexico 

Photos show homesteaders using horses to harvest their fields, picking cabbage by hand and shooting hawks to prevent them from carrying away chickens. In this picture, a horse and cart helps pull a car that has become stuck in the mud 

Mr. Leatherman, homesteader, with his work burros in front of his barn, Pie Town, New Mexico 

The rodeo comes to town in New Mexico. A cowboy rides a bull while the other men of the town look on

The photographs were taken by American photographer Russell Lee in the late 1930s and early 1940s. Pictured is a herder with his flock of sheep on the Gravelly Range, Madison County, Montana 

A street corner, in Dillon, Montana - a trading center for a prosperous cattle and sheep country in the 1940s

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