Chapter 17 THE WEST: EXPLOITING AN EMPIRE America Past and Present

Beyond the Frontier 1840: Settlement to Missouri timber country Eastern Plains have rich soil, good rainfall For first 2/3 of 19th century, Americans believed the land west of the Mississippi River to be uninhabitable ~ “Great American Desert” High Plains, Rockies semi-arid Most pre-Civil War settlers head directly for Pacific Coast p.482-483

Physiographic Map of the U.S.

Crushing the Native Americans 1865: Nearly 250k Indians in western US Displaced Eastern Indians Native Plains Indians By the 1880s Most Indians on reservations California Indians decimated by disease carried by whites during 1849 Gold Rush By the 1890s Indian cultures crumble p.483

Life of the Plains Indians: Political Organization Plains Indians nomadic, hunt buffalo Skilled horsemen (brought by Spanish during the 1500s) ~ Changed their lives ~ After the buffalo, the horse was most important Tribes develop warrior class Wars limited to skirmishes, "counting coups" Tribal bands governed by chief & council Different tribes communicated through the use of a highly developed sign language p.483-484

Life of the Plains Indians: Social Organization Sexual division of labor Men hunt, trade, supervise ceremonial activities, clear ground for planting Women responsible for child rearing, art, camp work, gardening, food preparation Equal gender status common Among Sioux, there was little difference in status. Each respected for his/her skills p.484-485

“As Long as Waters Run”: Searching for an Indian Policy Indian Intercourse Act of 1834 excludes any white from Indian country without a license Land regarded as Indian preserve 1851 ~ Assigned definite boundaries to each tribe Sioux ~ Dakota country north of Platte River Crow ~ Area near Powder River Many Native Americans refused to stay in their assigned lands & settlers poured into Indian lands p.485

Native Americans in the West: Major Battles & Reservations p.485

“As Long as Waters Run”: Searching for an Indian Policy Cheyenne & Arapaho battled w/ gold miners in Colorado. Tired of fighting, they asked for peace & were moved to Sand Creek COL John Chivington leading a group of CO militia massacred sleeping men, women, & children ~ The Sand Creek Massacre Gave orders to “kill & scalp all, big & little” Many protested & Congress appointed an investigating committee, but Indians were, nonetheless, moved elsewhere p.485-486

“As Long as Waters Run”: Searching for an Indian Policy Sioux War of 1865–1867 ~ Sioux revolted, again over gold miners. Govt announced it planned to connect the gold camps with the Bozeman Trail Chief Red Cloud, was determined to stop the trail Dec 1866 ~ When pursed by an army column under CPT Wm Fetterman, Red Cloud lured the group into an ambush & killed all 82 soldiers. Debate over Indian policy Humanitarians want to “civilize” Indians Others want firm control and swift reprisal Humanitarians win with "small reservation" policy Dakota & Oklahoma Territories p.485-486

Final Battles on the Plains Small reservation policy fails Young warriors refuse restraint White settlers encroach on Indian lands Final series of wars suppress Indians Nov 1869 ~ Battle of the Washita, Roger Mills County, OK ~ NW of Elk City near Cheyenne Indians had been raiding settlers in KS, CO, TX Chief Black Kettle killed 1876 ~ Little Big Horn, Montana: LTC Geo A. Custer & his 265 men killed by 2,500 Sioux warriors (largest Indian force ever assembled) ~ Crazy Horse & Sitting Bull Custer’s Last Stand ~ Greatest NA victory over the US Army p.486-487

The End of Tribal Life Sioux War ended major Indian warfare in the West 1887: Dawes Severalty Act Destroys communal ownership of Indian land Gives small farms to each head of a family Indians who leave tribes become U.S. citizens Extermination of buffalo deals devastating blow to Plains Indians 1900 = 250k Native Americans 1492 = 5M Once possessors of the entire continent, they had been pushed into smaller & smaller areas & their way of life destroyed p.490-491

Settlement of the West Unprecedented settlement 1870–1900 430M acres settled Most move west in an attempt to improve their lot Things were good in the West Rising population drives demand for Western goods Migration was heaviest during economic prosperity p.492

Men & Women on the Overland Trail First great movement west was aimed at California & Oregon Gold Rush of 1849 Overland Trail ~ Usually a family migration Started from various points along the Missouri River in the early spring & hoped to get through Rockies before the first snowfall ~ Donner Party Under the best of conditions, the trip took 6 months (16 hrs/day) Common sight was piles of trash, abandoned wagons, furniture, clothing, etc. p.492-493

Land for the Taking: Federal Incentives 1860–1900: Federal Land Grants 48 million acres granted under Homestead Act 100 million acres sold to private individuals, corporations 128 million acres granted to railroad companies Congress offered incentives to development Timber Culture Act of 1873 ~ Claim 160 acres if you will plant trees on ¼ of it in 4 yrs ~ Fairly successful Desert Land Act of 1877 ~ 640 acres at $1.25/acre if irrigated within 3 yrs ~ Hired hands bought for ranchers (fraud) Timber & Stone Act of 1878 ~ Land “unfit for cultivation” offered for $2.5/acre ~ Lumber company fraud p.493-494

Land for the Taking: Speculators & Railroads Most land acquired by wealthy investors Speculators send agents to stake out best land for high prices River bottoms, irrigable areas, control water As beneficiaries of govt’s policy of land grants, railroads were largest landowners Recruited buyers from the East & Europe Arranged transportation, credit, farming lessons p.494

Land for the Taking: Water & Development Water scarcity limits Western growth Much of the West receives less than 20 inches of rainfall annually People speculate in water as in gold 1902 ~ Newlands Act: Set aside proceeds from the sale of public lands in 16 western states to finance irrigation in arid (dry) states Canals, dams, irrigation systems developed p.494-495

Territorial Government New areas were organized into territories under Congress & President Pres appointed governors & judges, Cong detailed their duties & set budgets ~ These were very powerful positions Good source of jobs for deserving politicians Territorial experience produces unique Western political culture p.495

The Spanish-Speaking Southwest Pushing north from Mexico, the Spanish gradually established the present day economic structure of the Southwest Cattle raising, mining, irrigated farming 1880s ~ ¼ of LA County was Spanish speaking & Spanish remained the majority ethnic group in NM until 1940 Strong Roman Catholic influence p.495-496

Chapter 17 THE WEST: EXPLOITING AN EMPIRE America Past and Present 2/3 Point

The Bonanza West Quest to “get rich quick” produces Uneven growth Boom-and-bust economic cycles Wasted resources ”Instant cities" like San Francisco, Salt Lake City, & Denver most spectacular examples Took Boston 200 yrs to get 1M people, SF did it in 20. p.496

The Mining Bonanza Mining first attraction to the west Mining frontier moves from west to east Individual prospectors remove surface gold Big corporations move in with the heavy, expensive mining equipment VA City, Nevada ~ Comstock Lode Produced $306M 1874–1876: Black Hills rush overruns Sioux hunting grounds p.496-497

Mining Regions of the West p.498

Mining Bonanza: Camp Life Camps sprout up with each strike Camps governed by simple democracy Men outnumber women two to one Most men, some women work claims Most women earn wages as cooks, housekeepers, & seamstresses p.498

Mining Bonanza: Ethnic Hostility 25–50% of camp citizens were foreign-born French, Latin Americans, Chinese hated 1850: California Foreign Miner's Tax drives foreigners out $20/month license fee 1882: Federal Chinese Exclusion Act suspends Chinese immigration for 10 years p.498

Mining Bonanza: Effects of the Mining Boom Contributed millions to economy Helped finance Civil War, industrialization Relative value of silver & gold change Early statehood for Nevada, Idaho, Montana Left scars Invaded Indian reservations Pitted hills Ghost towns p.498-499

Gold from the Roots Up: The Cattle Bonanza The far was West ideal for cattle grazing Cattle drives take herds from Texas to rail heads in Kansas ~ “Trail Drive” Conceived by Joseph G. McCoy “The Real” Trains take herds to Chicago for processing ~ Longhorns hardy breed Profits enormous for large ranchers Cowboys work long hours for little pay Approx 50% were Af Ams & Mexican p.499-500

Cattle Trails p.501

Gold from the Roots Up: The Cattle Bonanza By 1880 wheat farmers begin fencing range Mechanical improvements in slaughtering, refrigerated transportation,& cold storage modernize the industry 1886 ~ Thousands of cattle die in harsh winter trapped by barbed wire Some ranchers switched to sheep p.500-501

Sodbusters on the Plains: The Farming Bonanza 1870–1890 farm population triples on plains African American “Exoduster” farmers migrate from the South to escape racism Experienced prejudice, but not as bad Water, building materials scarce & expensive Sod houses common first dwelling p.502-503

New Farming Methods Barbed wire allows fencing without wood Invented by Joseph F. Glidden, an Illinois farmer ~ 1883: produced 600 mi/day Dry farming: Deeper tilling, use of mulch New strains of wheat resistant to frost 1885–1890: Droughts ruin farms Farm technology improved production Smooth surface plow (1877), spring tooth harrow (1869), grain drill (1874) Small-scale farming adopted p.503-504

Farm Discontent Sources of discontent Weather problems (droughts) Declining crop prices Rising rail rates Heavy mortgages The National Grange of the Patrons of Husbandry was founded as a social, cultural & educational organization Although banned, evolved into a quasi-political organization ~ Other organizations followed Trans-Mississippi farmers become more commercial, scientific, productive p.504-505

Agricultural Land Use ~ 1880s p.505

The Final Fling 22 April 1889: Oklahoma opened for final settlement on the frontier Nearly 100k people lined up One day ~ 12k homesteads, 1.92M acres OKC ~ 10k Guthrie ~ 15k p.506

The Meaning of the West Historians differ in their interpretation of the American frontier experience Frederick Jackson Turner ~ U of Wisconsin historian (1893) wrote that westward movement shaped customs & character; gave rise to independence, self confidence & individualism. Later historians have added that family & community loomed as large as individualism on the frontier A multicultural event p.506-507

Chapter 17 THE WEST: EXPLOITING AN EMPIRE America Past and Present End