How wild was the Wild West, really?~2~

How wild was the Wild West, really?

Story by Stars Insider • Yesterday 2:30 am

 

How wild was the Wild West, really?

 

 

 

You wouldn’t be better off if you were from Chinese descent

Despite helping build the country, just like Native Americans and those of African descent, Chinese people were victims of abuse, racism, and xenophobia.

 

 

Your drink could kill you

Having a cocktail in the Wild West was a risky move. You’d be better off ordering a beer or whiskey at the town's saloon. Why? Well, the cocktail could kill you!

 

 

Got poison?

One drink in particular contained strychnine. This toxic substance, mixed with hard liquor, not only could make you hallucinate, but it could actually kill you.

 

 

 

Chemically-enhanced booze

Some saloons got really creative and cut their booze with really gnarly ingredients, including gunpowder, turpentine, and ammonia.

 

 

Alcoholism could kill you

You wouldn't need deadly cocktails to become addicted to alcohol. In fact, for many, it started with just sipping on their parents’ drinks. Years later they’d become heavy drinkers.

 

 

 

 

 

Alcoholism could kill you

Whiskey in particular was abundant, and as such it became the drink of choice for many a alcoholic. It is estimated that in the 1830s, a heavy drinker would drink the equivalent of 3.5 bottles of whiskey a week.

 

 

 

Mining operations were extremely unsafe

Mining in the Old West was extremely dangerous. The California Gold Rush of 1849 led thousands to try their luck, and, of course, there was no such thing as health and safety regulations back then!

 

You'd probably die while at work

Mine explosions and collapses were common, as well as accidents such as falling down ladders and those resulting from exhaustion. And if that wasn’t enough, sanitation was also a major issue.

 

You'd probably die while at work

Mine explosions and collapses were common, as well as accidents such as falling down ladders and those resulting from exhaustion. And if that wasn’t enough, sanitation was also a major issue.

 

 

Sanitation

Miners would live in closely-packed communities, mostly in precarious living conditions where disease would easily spread.

 

 

STDs where abundant

Sex workers did use antiseptic solutions to try and prevent these, but they were made of strong chemicals such as mercury, carbolic acid, and boric acid. It goes without saying that constant douching with these would be really harmful.

 

STDs where abundant

Sex workers did use antiseptic solutions to try and prevent these, but they were made of strong chemicals such as mercury, carbolic acid, and boric acid. It goes without saying that constant douching with these would be really harmful.

 

 

Cemetery records

In 1998, excavations in the cemetery of the Old West town of Seven Rivers, outside of modern-day Carlsbad, New Mexico, revealed how some of the people there died.

 

 

 

Violent deaths

In total, 52 bodies were excavated. Ten of them suffered violent deaths. One in particular was killed by a shotgun blast to the face by his father-in-law!

 

 

Disease killed a lot of people, all the time

The remaining people, including 14 children, died of things such as dysentery, measles, and scarlet fever. Even though most of these diseases would be treatable nowadays, they were fatal back then.

Sources: (Grunge)