Ch. 8 – Changes on the Western Frontier (1860 – 1900) Culture of the Plains Indians Native Americans saw land as belonging to no one. Viewed white customs of farming & mining as disturbing the harmony between the natural & spirit world. Buffalo was vital to survival of Plains Indians (food, clothing, shelter).

American Indians are Nomadic people, what do they follow? Gold & Silver Longhorns Setting of the Sun Buffalo

Reasons for American Settlement of the West 1) inexpensive / abundant land 2) hopes of finding gold or silver 3) escape persecution / fresh start (ex: former slaves, Mormons, etc.) Clash Between Settlers & Indians Settlers felt they had a right to land b/c Indians hadn’t “improved” it (farming / building). U.S. govnt changed its Indian policies & restricted Indian land to smaller reservations. Many Indians ignored govnt. treaties and hunted on old lands anyway, often clashing w/ settlers.

All were reasons to move westward except? Gold & Silver Free Land New Indian friends Lack of persecution

Sand Creek Massacre (1864) Cheyenne Indians were peacefully camped at Sand Creek reservation for winter. Govnt leaders wanted to see Indians suffer – ordered U.S. soldiers to attack, killing over 150 Cheyenne women & children.

The Indians at Sand Creek were of what tribal nation? Navajo Cherokee Alabama-Coushatta Cheyenne

SAND CREEK MASSACRE 1864 Colonel John Chivington

5. Battle of Little Bighorn (Custer’s Last Stand - 1876) Sioux, Arapaho, Cheyenne Indians protested whites in Black Hills Looking for gold June 1876- Little Bighorn Gen. George Custer & 265 troops met by 2,500 Sioux in Montana. Within an hour, Indians won battle. Custer & all of his men were dead. Bloody conflicts between whites & Native Americans led to greater disdain (hostility/disgust) toward Indian culture. *

Custer’s last stand was located where? Yellowstone National Park Great Smokey Mountains Bighorn Montana Wounded Knee South Dakota

(above) George Armstrong Custer's Camp prior to the Battle of Little Bighorn, photo courtesy Library of Congress. (above) Soldier and non-human remains. Soldier’s bodies were stripped and mutilated. (left) The Battle of the Little Bighorn, painting by Charles Russell, 1903

6. U.S. Government Adopts Indian Assimilation Policy (1880s – 1900) Govt. hoped teaching “white” culture would lead to peace. Assimilation –Native Americans would give up their beliefs & way of life to become part of American “white”culture. 7. Dawes Act (1887) Goal to “Americanize” Indians. Provided $ for Indian schools (teach English, Christianity, white culture, etc.) Divided Reservations into 160 acre farms for each family. Instead of helping N.A., it nearly destroyed Indian culture

What are some of the things that cultures don’t lose during assimilation? Language Ethnicity Appearance Religion

8. Destruction of Buffalo (1800 – 1900) Native American -buffalo End of N.A. lifestyle Tourists & fur traders shot buffalo for sport. Buffalo population of 65 million in 1800 dropped to only a few hundred by 1900. *

What did the Indians use buffalo for within their culture? Food Shelter/Clothing Teams to pull wagons Fuel Farm stock A,C,& E A,B,& D B,D,& E

Native American boys sent to Indian School (Before) (After) *

Battle of Wounded Knee (1890) Sioux Indians continued to suffer poverty & disease. Thousands of Native Americans turned to a prophet, who promised that if Indians performed a ritual called the Ghost Dance, their lands & way of life would be restored. Ghost Dance movement spread. Alarmed U.S. Calvary opened fire on over 300 unarmed Native Americans camped at Wounded Knee, South Dakota. Battle of Wounded Knee brought Indian Wars – and an entire era – to and end.

The Sioux Indians used the rain dance to wash away the white settlers. True False

Crushing the Native American Life Destruction of Buffalo Assimilation Dawes Act Broke up reservations and gave land to individual Native Americans Sitting Bull Custer Chief Joseph

10. Driving Cattle to Market · After the Civil War, growing cities in the East increased their demand for beef. · Texas ranchers began to drive herds of longhorns hundreds of miles north to the railroads, where they were shipped east. –

Vaqueros & Cowboys Between 1866-1885 approx. 55,000 cowboys worked the open range. Cowboy life stemmed from Spanish ranchers in Mexico. Early cowboys were Mexican. Vaqueros influenced cowboy clothes, food, vocabulary. 25% of cowboys were black. Working as a cowboy appealed to former slaves who were judged on ability, not skin color.

The most famous African American Cowboy was? Tony Dorsett Roy Rogers Bill Pickett Emmitt Smith

Abilene, Kansas (late 1800’s) · Cow towns developed near the railroads, offering cowhands hotels, saloons, and restaurants. Abilene, Kansas (late 1800’s)

Growing Demand for Beef (1860s) After Civil War, demand for beef grew as cities became larger. The West had abundance of Texas Longhorns – a herd of over 5 million wild cattle originally brought from Spain. Cattle Ranchers would buy cattle for $3 - $5 a head & drive cows to railheads in Ellsworth or Abiline, Kansas. Cattle then sold for $30 - $50 a head and shipped to Chicago for butchering.

The Long Cattle Drive Cattle drive consisted of about 3,000 cattle, 18 cowboys, one chuck wagon, and a wrangler. Drive began in spring and lasted 2-3 months until reaching Kansas. End of the Open Range Overgrazing the land, bad weather, and invention of barbed wire helped to end the cattle / cowboy era. Winters of 1885-1886 & 1886-1887 were brutal. Cold temperatures caused cattle to freeze to death. Summer droughts led to grass shortage. By 1887, 80%-90% of cattle dead. Barbed wire turned open plains into a series of fenced in ranches.

Barbed wire ended all of the following except. Cattle Ranches Long Drives Open Ranges

Railroads & Western Settlement U.S. Govnt wanted West settled (manifest destiny). Offered railroad companies free land as incentive to build a transcontinental line (connect east coast to west coast). Each mile of track = 20sq. miles of land.

Building the Transcontinental Line (1862 -1869) Two major railroad companies competed to lay the most track and receive more government land. Union Pacific R.R. Began laying tracks in Nebraska and moved West. Employed Irish-Americans & Civil War veterans. Flat country allowed work to go quickly. Central Pacific R.R. Began laying tracks in Sacramento, California and moved East. Employed mostly Chinese – paid less than white workers & endured dangerous conditions blasting through Sierra Nevada mountains.

Which groups of immigrants were primary responsible for building the Transcontinental Railroad? Canadians and Mexicans Spaniards and Italians Irish and Chinese Americans and British

Finishing the Transcontinental R.R. (1869) Crews raced past each other without meeting. May 10th, 1869 Congress forced Union Pacific & Central Pacific to join together at Promontory Point, Utah. Railroads resulted in growth and new settlement of the West, making travel & transportation easier.

Homestead Act (1862 – 1900) Passed by Congress to settle the West. Offered 160 acres of free land to any citizen or intended citizen who was head of household. Approx. 600,000 families took advantage of government’s offer.

Which was not a requirement to receive land via the Homestead Act? 5 dollar registration fee Working the land for 5 years 160 acre plot of land Married with 3 children

Farming Inventions that Tamed the Prairie Settlers used inventions to meet the challenges of farming the West’s harsh terrain. Barbed Wire (1874) – Prevented animals from wandering off or trampling crops. Reaper (1847) – Invented by Cyrus McCormick. Sped up harvesting crops & saved crops from bad weather. Steel Plow (1837) – Invented by John Deere. Could slice through heavy soil, made planting more efficient.