Sixth Grade
Worksheets
Texas Lawmen, Part 2
From 1846 until the Civil War, the rangers were pressed into service as U.S. government scouts as they were needed because of their knowledge of the territory. Even so, it was back to being a mostly volunteer service with sporadic pay.
The eight-year era of Reconstruction after the Civil War was a bad time for the rangers. The Carpetbaggers' laws were unpopular, and so were the rangers who tried to enforce them.
In 1874, the rangers were infused with new funding and their ranks grew. They were now peace officers instead of militia men. Rangers were on duty to uphold the law. Lawless Texans became their main opponents, and law and order had to be reestablished. It was then that the legend and mystique of the rangers became firmly entrenched. They dealt with cattle and horse theft, murders, blood feuds, and all kinds of civil disturbances. By the 1890s they added train robbery to the list.
