America West Flashcards
why did the mormons move west
persecution in the east
why were the mormons persecuted
religious reasons - it grew very quickly which worried people, they moved in large numbers causing tensions with existing communities
political reasons - people were angry about the financial crash and wanted someone to blame, Americans worried that Joseph Smith was planning to overthrow the us government and disrupt the economy
religious reasons - people were against polygamy, they claimed to be christians but other christians were offended by their new religion
who was the first leader of the mormons and when did he set it up
Joseph smith - 1830
when did the Mormons settle in salt lake and who was a key figure in this
bringham young
1847 - 1848
when did young become leader of the mormons and why
1844 bc smith was killed
how did the mormons solve this problem
the journey to salt lake was dangerous and there was lots of ppl to move
young organised a count of all the people and wagons they had to move so he was able to plan carefully.
the migrants were divided into small groups and each group had a leader
to avoid arguments amongst the mormons he made sure everyone knew what to do and gave them a specific job
how did the mormons solve this problem
they did not know what to expect when they got to the salt lake valley
he spoke to a number off guides to find out as much as he could about the destination so they could prepare thoroughly
how did the mormons solve this problem
life in salt lake was very hard, the land was dry and there was no trees for wood
irrigation systems were quickly organised to divert water from melting snow in the mountains
homes were made from mud brick instead of wood
how did the Mormons solve this problem
they had to be able to produce everything they needed
young declared that the church owned all the land and that everyone must work together for the good of the community. settlements were organised carefully with each one producing something under the leadership of a church elder
settlements further away from the lake had to send products back to salt lake city
how did the mormons solve this problem
the area was part of Mexico when the Mormons arrived in 1848 but was soon occupied by the American government
young declared the settlement part of a separate state called the deseret.
to begin with, it looked like American government and mormons would go to war but young eventually came to a compromise with the government and the area became part of the new territory of Utah in 1850
pull factors for moving west
freedom and indapendance
free farming land
government promotion
manifest destiny
positive stories from traders and fur-trappers
Oregon train
gold
push factors for moving west
financial crisis of 1837
overpopulation
persecution
unemployment
when did the first migrants to travel the Oregon trail by wagon reach their destination
1836
when did the governor of Illinois tell mormons to leave the state
1846
when did mormons reach salt lake valley
1847
when was gold discovered in rocky mountains
1858-1859
when was gold discovered in black hills
1874
why were pioneer trails dangerous/what was some troubles using them
fear of attacks by plains indians
crossing the Great Plains was dangerous because of extreme temperatures, storms, disease etc…
you had to have enough supplies for the journey
migrants going west:
the Donner party, 1846
they set off for California as a part of a train of almost 500 wagons and only 46/87 survived because:
arguments divided the group over whether to take a largely untested route
arguments because supplies were running out
weather
they ran out of food so resorted to cannibalism
migrants going west:
sagar party, 1844
Naomi and Henry sagar set out on the Oregon trail with their six kids.
extreme weather slowed their progress
Naomi gave birth while on the trail and never really recovered
they got sick with typhus which meant the parents died leaving the six kids as orphans
what was the gold rush and when
in 1848, gold was discovered in California leading to a gold rush in 1849. large numbers of migrants headed west.
what was the biggest pull factor for migrants moving to California.
gold
effects of the gold rush
good:
helped American economy to recover from its financial problems.
farming in California grew into a strong industry.
strengthened the image of the west and manifest destiny
bad:
problems with plains Indians due to increased use of Oregon trail.
people disobeying the law in mining camps
racism and tension because the miners were from all over the world
impact of the gold rush on plains indians
the trails the migrants used went across the black hills of Dakota which was sacred land to the indians
white settlers Brought diseases with them that the plains indians had not been exposed to before
importance of horses on the plains indians
horses for transport when following buffalo
hunting
used in warfare
measured their wealth and status based on the amount of horses they owned
the plains indians beliefs on circles
believed life was a circle from birth to death. respected circles like sun and moon. tipis were circular. tribal councils would sit in a circle as part of this spiritual belief.
what did the plains indians think of farming
they thought it was disrespectful to then earth and their holy land
sun dance
thanks the sun for past help and guidance in future
buffalo dance
brings buffalo to them
ghost dance
invented in 1889 after battle of little big horn. spirits of the dead could be reunited with the spirits of the living and together they could defeat white settlers
scalp dance
celebrate victory in war
war dance
before going on a raid, tribes would do 4 days of rituals designed for them to enter the spirit world and ask the spirit for help
leadership in the nations
bands - smallest units of a tribe made up of extended families, led by chiefs and a council
tribes led by chiefs, chiefs advised by tribal council made up of elders
decisions made collaboratively
roles within tribes:
women
responsible for looking after families, maintaining tipis and processing parts of the buffalo. greatly respected and had special parts in ceremonies like the buffalo dance
roles within tribes:
elderly
young took care after elderly it was seen terrible to not do so.
roles within tribes:
children
excepted to behave and look after the family especially the elderly
when was the Indian removal act
1830
what was the Indian removal act
forced indians living east off Mississippi to move west so they could live separately and without government interference.
when was the Indian trade and intercourse act
1834
what was the Indian trade and intercourse act
put a permanent Indian frontier between Indian territory and eastern states. they thought the plains was useless so sent them there
fort when was the fort Laramie treaty
1851
what was the fort Laramie treaty
each of the plains tribes would be given its own territory
white settlers, travellers and railroad surveyors would be allowed to cross tribal lands safely
the American government was allowed to establish forts and roads within Indian territory
promised to protect them from white settlers
if they stuck to the treaty, they would be given $50,000 a year and food
what was one difficulty of the fort Laramie treaty for the plains indians
it was written in English so they didn’t really understand it so the tribes did not know what was expected of them.
failures of the fort Laramie treaty
payments weren’t often made
the American government did nothing to protect the plains indians from white settlers
many tribes and white settlers didn’t know about it so ignored it
what were some reasons for Indian wars between 1862 and 1867
clash of cultures
manifest destiny
broken agreements
poor conditions on the reservations
failure of fort wise treaty (1861):
moved Cheyenne onto the sand creek reservation but the land was only a 1/13 of the size of the reserve they had before.
what was the little crow war and when was it
1862:
little crow was the chief of a band of Dakota Sioux
in 1851, the tribe signed treaties agreeing to move to a reservation which was in southern Minnesota which meant they gave up 24m acres of land
land on the reservation was not good for farming and the Americans did not make promised payments, their crops failed and they began to starve
in response:
august 1862 - small Sioux hunting party killed five white settlers.
the next day, little crow attacked a town and stole food and killed around 700 white settlers
so,
america sent in a huge army and many Sioux surrendered in the battle of of wood lake on 23 September 1862.
300 Sioux sentenced to death
Cheyenne uprising
date and what happened
1863:
after fort Laramie treaty, 7 Indian nations were given a vast territory covering parts of present day Wyoming, Nebraska, Colorado and Kansas.
gold in Colorado caused a gold rush in 1858 so more white settlers moved into Indian territory.
treaty of fort wise in 1861 reduced Cheyenne lands and meant they were living in places that were bad for farming and far from buffalo herd.
in response:
many bands of Cheyenne indians were angry about giving up land
1863, because they were getting starved some Cheyenne began to steal from wagon trains and attack them
name Indian wars between 1862 - 1867
little crow war - 1862
Cheyenne uprising - 1863
sand creek massacre - 1864
red clouds war. - 1866 - 1868
fettermens trap - 1866
sand creek masacre
1864:
lead by black kettle (the chief)
Cheyenne attacked wagon trains and stole food
in response,
American army commanded by chivington and attacked their settlement at sand creek in November 1864
plains indians surrendered but still 150 of them were massacred
red cloud war
1866 - 1868
a miner called Bozeman established a Bozeman trail which connected the Oregon trail to Montana where gold had been found
this trail crossed the Cheyenne, Sioux and arapaho hunting grounds, breaking the treaty of fort Laramie. this meant there were attacks agains the travellers between these times
fettermens trap
1866
during the red clouds war, American government had established fort Phil kearny and plains indians vegan to concentrate their attacks there.
a small group of Sioux, Cheyenne and Arapaho hid near the fort
fettermens trap
1866
during the red clouds war, American government had established fort Phil kearny and plains indians vegan to concentrate their attacks there.
a small group of Sioux, Cheyenne and Arapaho hid near the fort