Though Hollywood paints a romantic picture of the independent cowboy camping out as he steered his cattle across the plains, reality was much grimmer. One third of the cowboys were African and Hispanic Americans who worked long hours at dangerous work for cruel bosses and paltry pay. Songs around the campfire were more likely variations of African blues than country western melodies. A common meal was cornmeal pancakes. Cooked low in the flames of the campfire, they often collected ash and became known as “ashcake” or “ashpone.”