1. Chapter 26: The Great West and the Agricultural Revolution Items you should be looking for
Comstock Lode
Homestead Act
Life on Frontier
Sod houses
Battle of Sand Creek [massacre]
Battle of Little Big Horn
Battle of Wounded Knee [massacre]
Frederick Jackson Turner
Helen Hunt Jackson
Reservation system
Dawes Severalty Act

2. Comstock Lode
After Gold Fever had swept the West. Henry Comstock mistakenly discovered enormous deposits of pure silver in sticky, blue clay as he was prospecting for gold in the Nevada territory in 1858 spurring a sliver rush in Prospectors were called the ’59ers.
News of silver deposits caused the population of Nevada to explode and it was soon after admitted as a state.
The profits reaped from the silver mines were useful in funding the U.S. Civil War. 2

3. Homestead Act
Law passed by President Lincoln in 1862 to encourage Western expansion.
For $10 individuals could apply for a land grant [free land]. Freed blacks and poor whites often took advantage of this. Former Confederates were excluded.
Lots of 160 acres were available if homesteaders improved the land by developing and farming. After 5 years homesteaders owned the property. 3

4. Life for U.S. Settlers on the Great Plains
Life on settlers on the Great Plains was extremely harsh and challenging.
During summer months temperatures were regularly greater than 100 degrees.
During the winters extreme cold temperatures and severe snow storms were frequent.
Timber/Lumber was very rare on the prairies so settlers built sodhouses out of tightly packed blocks of earth and sod [grass]. The threat of fire destruction was ever present during the dry summer months.
Occasional swarms of grasshoppers/locusts could destroy crops within hours. 4

5. One of the most disgraceful events in U.S. history.
Cheyenne and Arapaho Nation peoples were mostly friendly with U.S. citizens near their territories.
In 1864 the U.S. Civil War was still being fought and Union armies were on high alert to threats.
The Cheyenne Chief Black Kettle approached the U.S. Army Fort Lyon in Colorado.
U.S. Army Colonel Chivington may have misunderstood or felt threatened by the Chief.
The result was the slaughter and mutilation by the U.S. Army of over 100 Native Americans including women and children.
Sand Creek Massacre 5

6. Battle of Little Bighorn
One of the most embarrassing defeats in U.S. Military history.
During a patrol Lt. Colonel George Custer encountered a massive camp of Lakota and Cheyenne.
Custer launched an attack in three directions underestimating the Natives.
Custer and all of his troops but one were defeated and killed under the leadership of Lakota Chief Sitting Bull. 6

7. Wounded Knee Massacre
The U.S. Government had banned the Ghost Dance for all Native tribes.
The Ghost Dance was when Natives led by a Chief or spiritual leader would call the spirits to help them.
The U.S. Government believed the dance threatened peace with the natives.
On December 29, 1890 at Wounded Knee Creek, South Dakota over 150 Sioux were killed by U.S. Army troops after tried to disarm the Sioux during a ceremony. 7

8. Frederick Jackson Turner and Helen Hunt Jackson
Two American authors who chronicled [wrote about] the effects of Western expansion were Frederick Jackson Turner and Helen Hunt Jackson.
Turner explained that settlement of the Western Frontier was important but would lead to overseas expansion later on.
Jackson wrote a book called A Century of Dishonor that criticized the injustice and mistreatment of Native-Americans by the United States. 8

9. Reservation System and the Dawes Act
In 1891 Senator Henry Dawes led the passage of the Dawes Act [a.k.a. the Dawes Severalty Act]
To solve the Indian Problem land was reserved [set aside] to remove from their lands.
Vast areas called reservations were created to make room for American settlers. “Indians” were required to live on these reservations. 9

10. Western Expansion Poster Assignment
Select one of the topics starred * in the Chapter 26 Study Guide [Check with me before you select. One topic per student you must sign topic sheet]
Poster must be on 8”11” computer paper [any color] and be laminated [Media Center can do that]
Poster must contain at least one pertinent/related image [can be hand drawn or copied] if copied and pasted provide exact source in small print beneath image.
Details that must be included: [a] Significance of term/topic/person in your fact based opinion [b] Overall impact on West (people, land, animals, culture) [c] Your personal assessment/judgment of the topic/term/person (good, bad, evil, helpful, harmful). You must explain how and why you draw your conclusions.
All text must be written in complete grammatical sentences.

11. Grading Rubric
Poster on 8”11” paper [10 points] and laminated [10 points]
Pertinent/Related image [20 points]
Explanation of significance [20 points]
Explanation of impact [20 points]
Explanation of personal assessment/judgment [20 points