E26. US History – Understanding This Country | Trains, Bonanzas and Cowboys

From steam engines to cattle drives, and from homesteads to populist rallies — this episode explores how the American West was won, worked, and mythologized. Discover how the Transcontinental Railroad changed everything, how farmers organized against big business, and why the frontier’s closing marked more than just the end of expansion — it signaled a new beginning for the United States.