The Guardian has compiled a list of the 10 best Westerns of all time. It is well worth a look. Even if you can only watch one or two of these, it will help you access the idea of the myth of the West which is so central to the USA's understanding of itself. 

Can I highly recommend Stagecoach (no. 10) as a brilliant Western, I am not too sure about the Man from Laramie however...

Highly disappointingly, George Steven's Shane (1953) has not made the list. This is by far and away the best Western I have seen. If you have not seen Shane, what are you waiting for - go get a slice of American history!

The full list is HERE. 

Comment if you have any other good recommendations.

Richard White explains how the transcontinental railroads and the Homestead Act shaped the settlement of the West. Only short and well worth a listen HERE.

"In 1931, Herbert Hoover called the idea of owning one’s own home “a sentiment deep in the heart of our race and of American life.” But the idea and the reality haven’t always been in accord.  For many Americans, putting a roof over their heads has involved struggle and sacrifice – and often to make rent rather than mortgage payments.

So in this episode of BackStory, the Guys explore the little house at the heart of the American Dream. If home ownership is such a central part of American identity, why have so many generations of Americans struggled to achieve it? Was there ever a “Golden Age” of home ownership, anyway?"