The Great West and the Rise of the Debtor U.S. History Goal 4 Notes The Great West and the Rise of the Debtor

Morrill Land Grant Act Passed in 1862 Gave land in the West to the states to be sold in order to fund colleges that would teach the agricultural and mechanical arts NC State University is a land-grant college that was funded by land from the Morrill Act – that is why its focus is agriculture and engineering

Homestead Act Passed in 1862 Gave 160 acres of land in the West to settlers who promised to farm it for at least 5 years Why do you think the government would want to give away free land?

Populist Party Formed out of the Grange (a social organization for farmers) Ideas dominated the federal elections of 1892 and 1894 Proposed policies aimed to help the farmer and the “common man” Which of our founding fathers would have approved of their mission?

Omaha Platform PLATFORM IN THE 1892 ELECTION Gradudated income tax Government ownership of transportation services (like railroads) Direct Election of Senators 8 hour workday Initiative: voters can initiate new ideas for laws Referendum: voters can vote for or against new laws And bimetallism Which of these became new laws? When?

Populist plans for Monetary Policy Gold Standard: all currency is backed by gold  you could literally turn in a dollar bill for its equivalent value in gold Free silver/bimetallic standard: unlimited minting of silver coins; all currency backed by gold and silver  Why would the Populists want this? Because it would cause crop prices to increase…i.e. INFLATION!

Munn v. Illinois, 1877 In Wabash v. Illinois, 1886  Allowed states to regulate business (like railroads) within their borders In Wabash v. Illinois, 1886  Railroads argued that since they crossed state lines (i.e. interstate commerce) states could not regulate them… this overturned Munn v. Illinois

Interstate Commerce Act Passed in 1887 to fix the problem caused by the Wabash case Regulated railroad prices to keep them from charging high rates Outlawed rebates  refunds to favored customers Established the Interstate Commerce Commission to enforce the laws Supported the idea that the federal government could and would regulate interstate commerce

Chief Joseph and the Nez Perce Vowed to his father that he would never surrender his tribe’s land in Washington state Though he fought the federal government, the Nez Perce were forced to Oklahoma’s Indian Territory Chief Joseph is famous for saying, “Hear me chiefs! I am tired. My heart is sick and sad. From where the sun now stands I will fight no more forever.”

Government Indian Policy Dawes Act: divided up reservation land into individual family plots Century of Dishonor by Helen Hunt Jackson: called attention to the ill treatment of Native Americans by the American government

Buffalo Soldiers African Americans serving in the U.S. military in the West Term applied to all of the first peacetime all-black regiments in the Army

Transcontinental Railroad Authorized by the Pacific Railway Act in 1862 Built by the Central Pacific and Union Pacific Railroad Companies Completed at Promontory Point, Utah on May 10, 1869

Significance of the Transcontinental Railroad Connected the east coast to the west coast United the nation during and after the Civil War Served as a pull factor to the West for workers who built the railroad  Irish, Chinese, and Civil War veterans. Mormons also worked on the railroad to encourage its path through Utah Helped to populate the West more quickly

End of the Frontier 1890 Census declared the West populated When Joseph Glidden perfected barbed wire, the free range was closed Bonanza farming took the place of many small farms: operations controlled by large businesses, managed by professionals, and raising massive quantities of single cash crops

William Jennings Bryan Prominent Democrat and silverite who also received the Populist party’s presidential nomination in 1896 Gave the “Cross of Gold” speech at the 1896 Democratic convention  “You shall not press down upon the brow of labor this crown of thorns, you shall not crucify mankind upon a cross of gold.”

Monetary Policy Gold standard: all currency backed by gold; advocated for by the “gold bugs” Bimetallic standard: all currency backed by gold and silver  required the unlimited minting of silver coins (aka free silver); would cause inflation; advocated for by silverites Greenbacks Party: formed to advocate for paper money not backed by any metal  believed it would eliminate bank control of the American economy

Corrupt Business Practices Horizontal integration/consolidation: companies buy up competitors in the marketplace Vertical integration/consolidation: companies buy up other companies in their supply chain Interlocking directorates: the president of one company serves on the board of one or more other companies