On the frontier, law enforcement was provided by which mechanism?

• A. The national guard
• B. What little law enforcement was available on the frontier
• C. Private security companies
• D. The international police

Answer: (B)

The frontier relied on a sparse, local approach to law enforcement. When crime occurred, the primary actors were local sheriffs and their deputies, who served towns and surrounding counties. If a wider pursuit was needed, communities would form a posse to track down criminals. In very remote areas, informal control and vigilante groups sometimes stepped in. There wasn’t a strong, centralized police presence, and federal or international policing didn’t shape frontier enforcement. So the mechanism in practice was the limited, local law enforcement that actually existed there.