Notes Ch 5: Changes on the Western Frontier

Chapter 5 Section 1: Cultures Clash on the Prairie (vocabulary card) Great Plains: grasslands in middle of US Treaty of Fort Laramie: 1868, Sioux agree to live on reservation Sitting Bull: Leader of Hunkpapa Sioux George Custer: Colonel of US Cavalry Assimilation: make Native Americans part of white culture Dawes Act: Law that broke up Native American reservations Battle of Wounded Knee: US massacre of Sioux at Wounded Knee Creek, South Dakota Longhorn: Cattle accustomed to grasslands Chisolm Trail: Major cattle route from San Antonio, TX to Kansas Long drive: 3 month overland transport of cattle

Notes Culture of Plains Indians, Settlers Push Westward Native Americans lived on Great Plains Life centered around buffalo Lived in small extended family groups After Civil War, white settlers move to Great Plains

Government Restricts Native Americans; Bloody Battles Continue Clashes between Native Americans and settlers Massacre at Sand Creek: Army attacked and killed 200 Cheyenne in retaliation to an attack on settlers Battle of Little Big Horn: George Custer and troops defeated by Sioux Indians and their leader Sitting Bull

The Government Supports Assimilation; The Battle of Wounded Knee Government expected Native Americans to give up their beliefs and become part of white culture Dawes Act 1887 broke up reservations and gave land to Native American families for farming White settlers killed nearly all buffalo Sioux practices Ghost Dance to replenish buffalo Nervous US army kill 300 unarmed Sioux at Battle of Wounded Knee

Cattle Becomes Big Business; A Day in the Life of a Cowboy; The End of the Open Range Cattle ranchers drove cattle from San Antonio, TX to Kansas to be shipped to Chicago meat packing factories Cowboys worked 10-14 hour days, worked in mostly in spring and summer Bad weather and new technology brought an end to the open range

Chapter 5 Section 2: Settling the Great Plains (vocabulary card) Homestead Act: offered free land to western settlers Exodusters: African-American settlers in West Soddy: frontier home dug into side of hill or made of sod Morrill Act: established agricultural colleges Bonanza farm: Large, single crop farms

Notes Chapter 5 Section 2: Settling on the Great Plains

Settlers Move Westward to Farm Transcontinental Railroad encouraged settlers to move west US gov’t gave huge tracts of land to railroad companies Central Pacific from Sacramento, California and Union Pacific from Omaha, Nebraska build railroad from east to west and meet at Promontory Point, Utah Irish, Chinese, Germans, African-Americans, and Mexican Americans work on railroads Railroad sold some of their land and recruited people from Europe to settle in west Homestead Act offered 160 acres to anyone that would farm it for 5 years 1872: Yellowstone National Park was created

Settlers Meet the Challenges of the Plains Endured hardships: harsh climates, Native American attacks, isolation Lack of building materials led settlers to build unique homes New technology like the steel plow, barbed wire, reaper, and windmills made farming easier Colleges formed to study new farming techniques Farmers risked losing their land by going into debt to get supplies

Chapter 5 Section 3: Farmers and the Populist Movement (vocabulary card) Oliver Hudson Kelley: founded the Grange Grange: Organization that fought for farmers’ rights Populism: Political movement to help farmers and laborers Bimetallism: backing money with gold and silver Gold standard: back dollars with gold William McKinley: 1896 Republican Pres. Nominee William Jennings Bryan: 1896 Democratic/Populist presidential nominee

Notes: Ch 5 Section3: Farmers and the Populist Movement

Farmers Unite to Address Common Problems Farmers facing financial problems after Civil War Withdrawal of “greenbacks” meant farmers would have to pay back loans with money worth more than what they borrowed Farmers wanted government to increase the money supply Farmers paid high prices to transport crops O. H. Kelley organized the Grange to discuss social and educational issues of farmers, but also fought railroads’ unfair pricing Farmers’ Alliances worked with farmers to help them get lower interest rates and protest railroads

Rise and Fall of Populism Populist Party/People’s Party formed to gain more political and economic power for common people Made government more democratic: direct election of senators and secret ballot Panic of 1893 led to the issue of backing paper money with gold, or gold and silver Silverites favored bimetallism to increase money supply and raise prices Gold bugs favored gold standard to keep prices low Election of 1896: William McKinley wins and Populism ends