Why were towns in the west often violent and lawless places?
Geography: Most of the folks in the west were a long, long way from home and any semblance of anything they were conditioned to think of as "order." The ones who were at home were watching their homes change at an alarming rate by folks who did not even care to learn the local languages, much less local customs. Rapid population growth: The most diverse populations in the history of the world were gathering and clashing on a regular basis. Again, language and culture were a frequent barriers. Types of law officers: Typically there were none. The best most towns could hope for was to hire a criminal to keep his friends away. Didn't work too well. New crimes: Back to the geography and rapid population growth. In unprecedented situations with legal sources to get help from, one must find unprecedented solutions. Railroads and stage coaches were often the most vulnerable sources of wealth available. In addition, there was considerable opposition to the invasion both represented. Cow towns like Abilene and Fort Worth were a direct legacy of them. In this phase of history, there were more refugees fleeing into Mexico than from Mexico. Immigrants from Mexico had a negligible influence. Spain (European) was the bigger problem in some cases, but the Spanish Empire was already losing its toehold in North America. The European immigrants were still highly divided by the same racial divisions that are still erupting in Europe to this day. Their chaotic whole, historically and erroneously known by their shared skin color, constituted the vast majority of the changing face of the Americas. Within those logistics, the Asians and newly freed black slaves were simply too different to be assimilated.
Why was the Old West NOT VIOLENT?
Compared to the rest of the world at the time, I would say the Old West was not violent. A lot of the world was relatively lawless, but the Old West had law enforcing mechanisms in place. Most of the violence was law enforcers against lawbreakers, not outlaws against innocent citizens. So, for the average person, the violence was no so important. I wish I could give you exact statistics comparing the American West to places like South America or Africa at the time, but I don't have them. You'll need to look those up yourself. (Not being snippy, just tired ;-})
What is the oldest city west of the Mississippi?
Santa Fe, New Mexico is defnitely the oldest permanent European settlement/city west of the Mississippi, beating Dubuque by nearly 200 years. Prior to Spanish settlement around 1600, the city area already contained pueblo villages. Though the founding date of Santa Fe is questioned, it is about 400 years old, where as Dubuque is only about 225 years old. "Santa Fe, New Mexico: Santa Fe is the oldest capital city in the U.S. and also the oldest European city west of the Mississippi. Santa Fe also features the oldest public building in America, the Palace of the Governors. The first Spanish Governor-General of New Mexico established his capital in 1598 at San Juan Pueblo, 25 miles north of modern day Santa Fe. The second Governor-General moved his capital south to Santa Fe in 1607 and the city has remained a capital ever since. The city was the capital for the Spanish "Kingdom of New Mexico," and then the Mexican province of Nuevo Mexico, the American territory of New Mexico (which contained modern Arizona and New Mexico) and since 1912 the US state of New Mexico. Santa Fe was originally occupied by Pueblo Indians from 1050 to 1607. The conquistador Don Francisco Vasques de Coronado described the Indian settlement in 1540, 67 years before the founding of the city of Santa Fe." (http://www.glo-con.com/article/article_n...