The West and the Closing of the American Frontier Chapter 17
The Homestead Act (1862) 160 acres of land Must be the head of a household, 18 yrs. old Live on and make improvements for 5 years Option to buy for $1.25 an acre 270 million acres given out (both legally and illegally) Sod house in Nebraska, 1878
Clash of Cultures 1860: 360,000 Native Americans in the West Most were hunter –gatherer cultures. Settlers overhunt, bring diseases, and encroach on Indian land for gold, silver, etc. Indian tribes forced to fight settlers and among themselves for survival.
Attempts at Compromise Treaties with large Native American tribes: Fort Laramie (1851) Fort Atkinson (1853) Reservation System: land designated for Indian use, supposedly forever Indian chiefs and elders at Fort Laramie, 1851
Misunderstandings Tribes were subdivided into smaller bands. Plains’ Indians were nomadic & did not recognize “boundaries”. They were hunter/gatherers, not farmers. Most whites expected Natives to be submissive/grateful, even if treaties were broken.
Violence Erupts Sand Creek Massacre (Nov. 29, 1864): Colorado militia under Col. John Chivington massacred a village of Cheyenne. Over 200 Indians killed, mostly women, children, & elderly.
Gold Discovered in Montana (1862)
Violence (continued) Fetterman Massacre (Dec. 21, 1866): 81 U.S. soldiers slaughtered by a Sioux led by Crazy Horse on the Bozeman Trail in Montana. U.S. government forced to admit defeat in Red Cloud’s War: 2nd Treaty of Fort Laramie (1868)
Great Sioux Reservation (1868) Red Cloud
High and Low Point: Custer’s Last Stand Battle of the Little Bighorn (June 25, 1876): 264 soldiers under Col. George Custer wiped out by almost 2,500 Sioux warriors Bad news for the Indians: government gets serious after the debacle. Sioux uprising put down with brutal force; Crazy Horse and Sitting Bull eventually killed.
The Sioux and the Little Bighorn
Flight of the Nez Perce Gold found on Idaho reservation in 1877. New treaty takes away 90% of their land. Rather than war, Chief Joseph and group flees to Canada. 1,100 miles later they are captured by the army. Chief Joseph
The Nez Perce Revolt
Apaches Fight in the Southwest Geronimo: Apache chief, warrior and medicine man. Remaining Apaches surrendered in 1888 (last to submit). Sent to Indian Territory in OK.
The End of the Indian Wars Dawes Act (1887): attempt to “Americanize” the Indians by forcing them to adopt white culture. Wounded Knee Massacre (Dec. 29, 1890): end of armed resistance by Native Americans. “The Ghost Dance”
The aftermath at Wounded Knee Creek.
Native Americans being “assimilated”.
Farming in the West New Inventions: Steel plow (1837) Mechanical reaper (1834) Barbed wire (1874) Bonanza farms (1870’s) Dry farming (1870’s)
Mining in the West CA, NV, ID, & MT all populated by mining booms.
“The Frontier Thesis” Theorized the creation of American democracy & exceptionalism: Abundant, free land Frontier movement Frontier emigration Frontier officially closed in 1890. Frederick Jackson Turner
“Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee” Traces the evolution of Native American policy from Little Bighorn to Dawes Act. Clips will focus on Ghost Dance, Wounded Knee, and Dawes Act. Dr. Charles Eastman Sen. Henry Dawes