AMERICAN LITERATURE CONTEXT

Question 1

(History of going West) - Before 1860, few people moved West to try to settle on the Great Plains, the ________ soil and harsh ________________ discouraged them along with…

Answer 1

• Before 1860, few people moved West to try and settle on the Great Plains, the poor soil and harsh climate discouraged them (along with the fact that they were officially ‘Indian Territory’).

Question 2

(History of going West, After 1865, thousands of settlers moved to the Plains)
- Freed Slaves :
- European Immigrants :
- Younger Sons :

Answer 2

• Freed slaves went there to start a new life as free men, or to escape economic problems after the Civil War.
• European Immigrants flooded onto the Great Plains, seeking political or religious freedom, or simply to escape the poverty in their own country.
• Younger sons from the eastern seaboard went because it was a chance to grow their own land.
  —- They were followed by other Americans, such as tradesmen and government officials who hoped to make their living from the farmers who had been moved onto the plains.

Question 3

(History of going West, Factors encouraging people)
- The Homestead Act, 1862 :
- Railroads :

Answer 3

• The Homestead Act, 1862 : Allowed homesteaders to claim 160 acres of land for free if they lived for free if they lived and worked on it for 5 years. The prospect of free land was very attractive to people who could never have afforded a farm back home.
• Railroads : In order to encourage railroad companies to build the transcontinental railways, the government gave them a 2-mile stretch of land either side of the railroad which have the companies profit if they sold it. They offered massive sale campaigns, offering a ‘settlement package’.

Question 4

(History of going West, Factors encouraging people)
- Manifest Destiny :
- Tall Tales :

Answer 4

• Manifest Destiny : The idea grew that white Americans were superior, and that it was America’s manifest destiny (obvious fate) to expand and encourage ‘the american way of life’ on the Great Plains. The writer Horace Geeeley, who popularised this idea, advised Americans, ‘Go West, Young man’.
• Tall Tales : Once the population of an area reached 60,000, it could apply to become a state of the USA. Local governments could therefore encourage publicity campaigns, which claimed that farmers in the Wear could grow pumpkins as big as barns.