1. Ch 18 The Western Frontier

2. Why did many Americans move to the western frontier in the mid 1800s?

3. The Mining Booms
Sec 1

4. Mining is Big Business
After the California Gold Rush ended in the mid-1850s, miners began prospecting in other parts of the West
Most gold was located in underground lodes- rich streaks of ore sandwiched between layers of rock
Large mining companies began to replace the lone miner

6. Comstock Lode
Comstock Lode- rich lode of silver found on the banks of the Carson River in Nevada

8. Mining Frontier
Gold strikes created boomtowns- towns that grew up almost overnight around mining sites

9. What was life like in a boomtown?

10. Life in Boomtowns Lively, often lawless
Violence was a part of everyday life
Many people carried large amounts of cash and guns
Vigilantes dealt out their own kind of justice without judge or jury

11. Boom and Bust Many mining booms were followed by busts.
Many boomtowns turned into ghost towns as people left when the ore was gone

12. Railroads
The nation’s railways expanded rapidly to meet demands of the miners in the west
Miners needed to get their ore to the East and they need to get supplies
Railroad track increased from 35,000 to 150,000 miles

13. Government and Railroads
To promote growth the government gave the railroad companies 130 million acres of land
Much of the land was purchased or obtained in treaties from Native Americans

15. Transcontinental Railroad
Transcontinental Railroad- railway that would span the continent and connect the Atlantic and Pacific coasts
TCRR Map

17. What kind of challenges did the railways face in building the transcontinental railroad?

19. Challenges 1700 miles Weather Geography Labor Hot plains
Cold mountains
Geography
Rugged mountains
Labor

27. Transcontinental Railway
Completed May 10, 1869
Union Pacific working from the east completed 1038 miles of track
Central Pacific working from the west completed 742 miles of track
Met in Promontory Point, Utah

28. Promontory Point

30. How did the Railroads affect the economy of the United States?

31. Effects of Trains Steel Industry Coal Industry Timber Industry
Railroad car manufacturing
Creation of time zones

32. Ranchers and Farmers
Sec 2

33. If you were a settler in the West how would you build a house?

34. Cattle on the Plains
When the Spanish settled Mexico they brought longhorns, a tough breed of cattle with them
These cattle eventually spread throughout Texas

35. Open Range
At this time, much of Texas was open range, not fenced or divided into lots
Ranchers added to their herd by rounding up wild cattle and branding them
Branding

37. The Long Drive
To sell their cattle ranchers had to drive them to the nearest rail point
The Long Drive- led cattle more than 1000 miles to meet the railroads
Between the late 1860s and the mid 1880s more than 5 million cattle traveled on long drives

39. What was life like for cowboys on the trail?

40. Life on the Trail Hard work Long hours- up to 15 hour days
Bad weather- hot sun, bad rainstorms, dust storms
Lonely
Rustlers
Geography- raging rivers

47. Cattle Kingdom Ends Just like mining the boom eventually bust
Overgrazing depleted farmlands
Too many cattle on the market

48. Farmers
Early pioneers did not believe the land of the plains could be farmed
Dry
Tough soil

50. Homestead Act
Homestead Act- law passed by Congress that gave people 160 free acres of land if they paid a fee and lived on the land for 5 years
This brought farmers to the plains to homestead- earn ownership of land by settling on it

51. Who were the people that settled on the plains?

52. Settlers
Immigrants
Women
African Americans

53. What kinds of problems did farmers on the frontier face?

54. Problems on the Frontier
Climate
Droughts
Floods
Fire
Bugs
Harsh winters
Resources

56. Sod House
Build a Sod House

63. New Farming Methods
To deal with difficult plains conditions the sodbusters, plains farmers, needed new methods and tools
Dry farming- plant seeds deeper in the ground where there is moisture
New steel plows
New fencing called barbed wire

64. Barbed Wire

65. Oklahoma Land Rush
Oklahoma was the last part of the plains to be settled
April 22, ,000 people lined up on the Oklahoma border to stake their claims
However, sooners, people who slipped into Oklahoma early, took most of the claims

67. Who was the most affected by the settlement of the plains?

68. Native American Struggles
Sec 3

69. How were Native Americans affected by the settlement of the Plains?

70. Native Americans
Each new group that settled in the West dealt another blow to Native Americans
Miners
Farmers
Railroads
Cattle Drives

71. Buffalo (not the city)
Most Plains Indians including the Sioux, Comanche, and Blackfeet lived nomadic lifestyles.
They traveled great distances following their main source of food, the buffalo

72. Buffalo Plains Indians used every part of the Buffalo
The buffalo provided food, shelter, tools, and clothing.
KIDS Only? - Fun Stuff To Do - How Many Ways Can You Use a Buffalo?

76. Decline of the Buffalo
After the Civil War hunters were hired by the railroads to shoot buffalo to feed the crews
Many buffalo were killed to prevent the huge herds from blocking the trains
Buffalo were also killed for their hides that were made into leather

81. Why were the white settlers so easily able to defeat the Native Americans on the Plains?

82. Conflict Until the 1860s, most whites left the Plains Indians alone
As more people settled in the west the government adopted new policies to deal with the Native Americans

83. Reservations
Reservations- tracts of land set aside for Native Americans
Not a new policy but the government started increasing its efforts
2 of the largest reservations were in Oklahoma and Dakota Territories

85. What were the problems with reservations?

86. Problems
Government officials often tricked Native Americans into moving
Located on poor land
Failed to deliver on promises of food and supplies

87. Conflict on the Plains
During the 1860s many armed clashes took place between whites and Native Americans

88. Little Crow
Little Crow- led Sioux warriors in an uprising against settlers in St Paul, MN
They began attacking settlements after the government refused to give them food they had been promised
Led to US soldiers patrolling the plains

89. Crazy Horse
Crazy Horse- Lakota leader who fought against US soldiers in Montana
Fetterman Massacre- ambush set up by Crazy Horse where 80 US soldiers were killed in Montana

91. Little Bighorn
Little Bighorn- battle between Sioux and Cheyenne forces in the Black Hills of the Dakotas
“Custer’s last stand”
Forces led by Sitting Bull and Crazy Horse killed 250 US soldiers

93. The Apache Wars
The Apache Wars- series of fights in the Southwest US between Apaches led by Geronimo and US forces
Thousands of troops pursued Geronimo and his forces throughout the Southwest
Geronimo became the last Native American to formally surrender to the US in 1886

94. Changing Culture
To end the poor treatment of Native Americans some reformers supported assimilation- absorbing Native Americans into white culture

96. Dawes Act
Dawes Act- law aimed at assimilating Native Americans into American culture. It aimed to end the Native American nomadic tradition and lack of private property

97. Wounded Knee
In an effort to preserve their native traditions the Sioux began performing a ritual known as the Ghost Dance
Reservation officials became alarmed and decided to ban the dance
Sitting Bull- Sioux leader who was killed when reservation officials tried to arrest him for performing the Ghost Dance

100. Wounded Knee
Wounded Knee- last armed conflict between whites and Native Americans where 200 Sioux were killed

103. How did the loss of the buffalo affect Native Americans?

104. Farmers in Protest
Sec 4

105. Warm Up
As farming expanded into the west after the Civil War, the supply of crops grew faster than demand.
What happened to the price of the crops?
Why?
How did this affect farmers?

106. Problems for Farmers Prices fell steadily as supply increased
1866, a bushel of wheat sold for $1.49, by the mid-1890s the price was $.49
Expenses increased
Equipment
Seeds
Transportation

107. Farmers blamed their troubles on 3 groups
Railroads- charged more money for farmers than they did for manufacturers
Manufacturers- charged high prices for their goods
Bankers- set high interest rates for farmers and would take their farms if they could not repay the loans

108. The Grange
National Grange- first farmers organization in the United States
Helped farmers with education and support

110. Cooperatives
Cooperatives- stores where farmers bought products from each other
Charged lower prices than regular stores
Provided an outlet for farmers crops

111. Farmers’ Alliances
Farmers’ Alliances- networks of farmers that sprang up in the West and South in the 1880s
Sponsored education and cooperative buying and selling
Torn apart by regional differences

112. Populist Party
Populist Party- People’s Party of the USA, political party rooted in appeal to the common people
Believed the government should own telegraphs and railroads
Wanted to base the economy on free silver- unlimited production of silver coins
Believed this would give farmers more money to pay debts

116. Election of 1896
Populists and Democrats chose William Jennings Bryan to run
Defeated by Republican William McKinley

119. Populist Legacy
Never won any elections but many of their reforms were later adopted
US abandoned the gold standard
8 hour work day
Income tax
Direct election of senators