1. Unit 1 Day 5: Ranching and Mining

2. Questions of the Day 1. How did the birth of the cattle industry lead to the era of the American cowboy and new patterns of migration and settlement in the West? 2. Why did aridity, the availability of land, and new land laws influence westward migration? 3. How did conflicting claims over land and water rights lead to violent “range wars” between farmers and ranchers?

3. “Heartland” Fill out the viewing guide as we watch the video.

4. I. New Lands Are Settled Large amounts of land gained during the 1840’s and 50’s were not interesting to settlers until the 1860’s and 70’s. After the Civil War and Reconstruction land became a precious and sought after commodity.

5. New Lands Are Settled A. Gold: Discovered in California in 1849, Colorado in 1858, and Nevada in 1859. B. The Comstock Lode (NV) one single silver deposit worth $340 million. C. The promise of riches brought thousands westward.

6. New Lands Are Settled B. Farmland 1. Homestead Act, 1862-promised 160 acres of land for cultivation. 2. Morrill Land Act, 1862-gave federal land to states to fund and build agricultural colleges. Life was not easy for these Homesteaders. Many went west with the hope of a new life and failed in the harsh life on the prairie.

7. Innovations C. Innovations-New inventions made successful business possible in new lands 1. Barbed wire-mass produced by Joseph Glidden, it kept cattle in and protected crops. 2. Windmill-Used prairie winds for irrigation

8. Innovations continued 3. Sod drill-Allowed for easier planting in prairie soil. 4. Refrigerator car-Allowed for transport of meat or perishable goods. 5. Steel Plow-cut through prairie soil. 6. Reaper-Allowed for easier harvesting of grain

9. New Lands Are Settled D. Railroads 1862 and 1864 Railroad Acts gave land and money to companies to build rails. 2 Companies emerged: 1. Union Pacific-used Irish immigrants and veterans working west from Omaha, Nebraska 2. Central Pacific-used Chinese immigrants working east from Sacramento. May 10, 1869-Transcontinental RR completed at Promontory Point, Utah

10. Impact of the Railroad: Social Easier transport, created jobs, movement west, immigration Political Land and money grants, parties moved westward, regulation Economic By 1900, over 1 million employed, money spent, crop transport

11. Cowboys American cowboys learned about the cattle industry from Mexican vaqueros. Cowboys would make the long drive from Texas on the Chisholm Trail to the RR at Abilene, Kansas. The cattle were then sent to packing plants in Chicago.  Cowboys faced many dangers: stampedes, thunder & lightning, rivers, and droughts, **not to mention Indians.

12. Cowboy Examples Heroes of the West: Wild Bill Hickock Calamity Jane “Buffalo Bill” Cody Deadwood Dick

13. Ins and Outs of the Wild West Boomtowns-The Gold Rush and Railroads created many new towns in the west. These towns that would pop up around gold mines and rail stations were known as boomtowns Ghost towns- When the gold was all mined out or the luck ran out, many boomtowns were deserted, becoming ghost towns.