1. Lonesome Dove
   Bonanza
2. Justified
   Action in the Afternoon

Bonanza is the second-longest-running Western in American TV history, consisting of 431 episodes over 14 seasons. The show centered around the Cartwright family and their 1,000-square mile Ponderosa Ranch. It is regarded as one of the greatest U.S. TV shows of all time.

1. Wanted Dead or Alive
   Trackdown
2. Laramie
   Dallas

No matter how old you are, you've probably heard the phrase, "Who shot J.R.?" It stemmed from one of the most iconic episodes in television history about the feuding Ewing family and their oil company, Ewing Oil. It's one of the top five longest-running TV shows in American history.

1. The Cisco Kid
   Maverick
2. The Virginian
   Zorro

The laid-back gambler Bret Maverick (Garner) would rather use his smooth talk and charm to get out of sticky situations than have to partake in a gunfight. The show ran for five years and was known for spoofing other top Westerns of the time.

1. The Rifleman
   The Cherokee Kid
2. The Cisco Kid
   The Jack Bull

The protagonist of this show, "The Rifleman" (Connors), was a single dad who used his customized Winchester rifle to dole out justice while he patrolled his ranch. He was able to teach his son (Crawford) some valuable life lessons along the way.

1. Here Come the Brides
   Brave Eagle
2. Rawhide
   Laredo

Many viewers consider this show one of the most cinematic Westerns on television. This long cattle drive is full of strong subject matter, and although the cast was full of stars, it's most remembered for Clint Eastwood's role as right hand man to the boss.

1. The High Chaparral
   Kung Fu
2. The Wild Wild West
   Dusty's Trail

Fresh off the martial arts craze, East meets West in this mash-up of two genres as a Shaolin monk Caine (Carradine) roams the American frontier in search of his brother. Caine helps the oppressed and resolves issues peacefully until he has to show off his martial arts skills.

1. The Fugitive
   Lonesome Dove
2. Deadwood
   The Cisco Kid

This four-episode mini-series ran in 1989 and was based on a Pulitzer Prize-winning novel by Larry McMurtry. It went on to win seven Emmys and was considered by many to be the role of a lifetime for Robert Duvall, who later went on to solidify his fame alongside Al Pacino in "The Godfather."

1. Have Gun, Will Travel
   The Last Outlaw
2. Coyote Waits
   Deadwood

The name for the show, "Have Gun, Will Travel" was based on the inscription carved into Boone's character's (Paladin) business card that read in full: “Have Gun, Will Travel. Wire Paladin, San Francisco.” His going rate was $1,000.

1. The Life and Times of Grizzly Adams
   The Warrior
2. Nichols
   Wagon Train

This classic Western ran for eight seasons on two different networks and was inspired by a 1950 John Ford movie called "Wagon Master." Part of its popularity was due to its stellar cast and big-name guest appearances from stars like John Wayne and Bette Davis.

1. Queen of Swords
   Pony Express
2. The Lone Ranger
   The Rebel

"The Lone Ranger" was the highest rated TV program for ABC in the 1950s, and its characters are still popular today. In 2013, Disney revived the iconic duo of the Lone Ranger and Tonto for a big screen movie featuring Johnny Depp and Armie Hammer.

1. Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman
   The Lone Ranger
2. Wynonna Earp
   Maverick

Jayne Seymour played the title character for this show that ran for six seasons in more than 100 countries and spawned two television movies. She considered it one of her proudest projects, but she actually signed on to the role with just one night's notice because her business manager lost all her money and accrued $9 million in debt. She told her agent she would do anything that was offered.

1. Alias Smith and Jones
   The Young Riders
2. Little House on the Prarie
   Kung Fu

Fresh off the success of the movie, "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid," producers thought it'd be wise to create a similar story for TV audiences. They came up with this show starring two outlaws who made a shady deal with the governor and had to stay alive long enough to see it through.

1. The Wild Wild West
   Whiplash
2. The Young Pioneers
   Mackenzie's Raiders

This science fiction Western ran for four seasons in the late 1960s and spawned two TV movies a decade later. The show's creator likened it to James Bond on horseback, and in 1999, Will Smith starred in a big screen remake of a similar name.

1. The Chisholms
   The Yellow Rose
2. The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp
   Harts of the West

This black and white show aired for six seasons totaling 229 episodes and was loosely based on the life of real-life marshal, Wyatt Earp. Although the events were only loosely based on Earp's real life, the timeline of those events followed his life almost exactly.

1. Man Without a Gun
   Little House on the Prairie
2. Mackenzie's Raiders
   Northwest Passage

Based on the children's books of the same name, ratings for this show plummeted so low in its second season it almost got canceled. It was moved from Wednesday to Monday nights instead and ended up airing for nine seasons.

1. The Gray Ghost
   Outlaws
2. Davy Crockett
   Zorro

The masked man - Don Diego by day, Zorro by night - owned the Thursday night time slot from 1957 - 1961 but was eventually canceled over legal disputes. The legend of Zorro has lived on, however, mostly because of a couple remakes featuring Antonio Banderas and Catherine Zeta Jones.

1. The Jack Bull
   The Last Outlaw
2. Walker, Texas Ranger
   The Cherokee Kid

Star of this show, Chuck Norris, served in the United States Air Force and holds black belts in Brazilian jiu jitsu and Judo. The show aired in the 1990s, but the popularity of Norris was resurrected in the mid-2000s when "Chuck Norris Facts" took over the Internet.

1. The Life and Times of Grizzly Adams
   McCloud
2. Hell on Wheels
   Death Valley Days

This show ran for five seasons and the story picked up immediately after the assassination of Abraham Lincoln. It showed the life of workers, mercenaries, prostitutes and others during construction of the Union Pacific Railroad.

1. Custer
   The Big Valley
2. Pistols 'n' Petticoats
   The Rounders

This show ran for four seasons and centered around the widow (Stanwyck) of a wealthy rancher, his illegitimate son (Majors) and her family as they fought off bank robbers, horse thieves, revolutionaries and land grabbers. The show was loosely based on a real, 30,000-acre ranch called The Hill Ranch.

1. Death Valley Days
   How the West Was Won
2. Gun Shy
   Barbary Coast

This mini-series that ran from 1976 - 1979 recycled some themes and content from the classic Western, "Gunsmoke," which was a radio and eventually TV series. This series starred James Arness, who starred in "Gunsmoke," and the first shot of the title sequence was also used in a "Gunsmoke" episode.

1. Quick Draw
   The Pinkertons
2. Harts of the West
   The Virginian

This classic Western ran for nine seasons totaling 249 episodes on NBC, making it the third-longest-running Western in TV history. It was also the first 90-minute Western series to air on television.

1. Wanted: Dead or Alive
   The Dakotas
2. Wide Country
   Rango

For three seasons Steve McQueen starred as a bounty hunter who doled out justice with a sawed-off rifle as he roamed the Wild West. The actual gun he used was a 1892 Winchester rifle even though the series was set in the 1870s.

1. The Cisco Kid
   The Quest
2. The Young Pioneers
   Best of the West

A la The Lone Ranger, The Cisco Kid and his sidekick, Pancho, roamed the old west righting wrongs and fighting injustice wherever they could find it. The show aired for six seasons starting in 1950 and it was the first TV series to be shot in color even though broadcasts were still in black and white. Most didn't see it in color until 1960.

1. Wynonna Earp
   Barbary Coast
2. Broken Arrow
   The Californians

This supernatural Western is based on the comic book series of the same name. Its first season aired in 2016 and its fourth season is due to air sometime in 2019. Wynonna is the great great-granddaughter of Wyatt Earp and she battles unworldly creatures as she seeks justice.

1. Jefferson Drum
   Lawman
2. The Young Riders
   Empire

You may not be able to recognize a young Stephen Baldwin and Josh Brolin starring in this show about a group of young Pony Express riders. Recruitment ads for the Express read: "Wanted: Young, skinny, wiry fellows not over 18. Must be expert riders, willing to risk death daily. Orphans preferred"

1. Temple Houston
   The Rounders
2. The High Chaparral
   Hondo

For four seasons, viewers watched the Cannon family operate the High Chaparral Ranch in the Arizona Territory during the 1870s. The show centered around rancher Big John (Erickson), who aimed to establish his cattle empire amid Indian hostility.

1. Buffalo Bill, Jr.
   Cimarron City
2. Laredo
   Action in the Afternoon

For two seasons this show followed rustlers and bank robbers as they got in and out of trouble. One of the show's stars, Peter Brown, actually used his real horse, named Amigo, for the show.

1. Deadwood
   Bronco
2. Rawhide
   F Troop

Many people consider "Deadwood" to be the antithesis of the old western genre. It featured vulgar language, vicious brutality, and blurred the lines between the good and bad guys. It went on to win eight Emmys in its two-year reign.

1. Coyote Waits
   A Thief of Time
2. Breaking Bad
   Crossfire Trail

Television audiences showed a revived love for Westerns when this neo-western about a high school teacher turned meth dealer took the country by storm. "Breaking Bad" ran for five seasons and picked up 16 Emmy wins and 58 nominations.

1. Sugarfoot
   Black Saddle
2. Four Feather Falls
   Klondike

This series ran for four seasons on ABC, and although the studio had also created the movie, "Sugarfoot," the series had nothing to do with it. This show was actually based on a 1954 Western titled, "The Boy From Oklahoma."

1. Centennial
   Longmire
2. The Cowboys
   Dirty Sally

This show that aired for six seasons from 2012 - 2017 centers around Walt Longmire, a sheriff investigating major crimes in the fictional Absaroka County, Wyoming. The series is based on the mystery novels written by Craig Johnson. Walt Longmire appears in 20 of the books.

1. The Adventures of Brisco County, Jr.
   Four Feather Falls
2. Cheyenne
   Broken Arrow

Bruce Campbell played a Harvard Law graduate who decided to venture out and track down members of a notorious gang responsible for killing his father. Julius Carry played his one-time rival, Lord Bowler.

1. The Loner
   Westworld
2. The Monroes
   Northwest Passage

In 2016, HBO decided to remake the 1973 movie "Westworld" into a TV show. The story follows a technologically advanced, Western-themed amusement park run by robots that malfunction and begin killing human visitors.

1. Godless
   Ponderosa
2. Overland Trail
   The Magnificent Seven

Netflix got into the Western genre with this seven-episode limited series that earned a couple Emmys for stellar performances and outstanding music. It was also named one of the 10 best shows of 2017 by multiple publications.

1. Gunsmoke
   Walker, Texas Ranger
2. The Lone Ranger
   The Wild Wild West

"Gunsmoke" was the longest-running Western in TV history and until 2018, when surpassed by the "Simpsons," it was the longest-running scripted show in TV history. It ran for 635 episodes and raked in countless awards.