American west Flashcards
What were the White Americans attitudes towards the race of the Native Americans?
White Americans regarded Native (and black) Americans as subhuman. Horace Greeley wrote that: “…their wars, treaties, habitations, crafts, comforts, all belong to the very lowest ages of human existence”.
President Jefferson wrote that they were: “…backward in civilisation like beasts”.
What did the US government do that frequently led to conflict?
The US government regularly broke its treaty promises - as the Sioux Chief Gall said: “If we make peace, you will not keep it”.
What preparations were made for the battle of little bighorn?
General Philip Sheridan was sent to defeat the Sioux.
In June 1876 US armies, led by the generals Alfred Terry and John Gibbon, met at the Yellowstone river.
Gibbon was set to march up the Little Bighorn river, and Lt Colonel George Custer was ordered to march round the Wolf mountains, as part of a two-pronged attack on the Sioux camp.
What were the native americans method of government and law?
Influence of chief
Community spirit
Horse stealing
How did the railroads help the White Americans to win the Plains?
thousands of white Americans and US soldiers could travel to the West in hours by railroad.
What policies were introduced between the years 1851-1867?
In the Fort Laramie Treaty of 1851, the US government agreed that large areas of land should belong to Native American tribes ‘for all time’ (eg the Sioux were given the Black Hills of Dakota).
What happened in November 1876 which led to the destruction of the Indian’s way of life?
The US Army began winter campaigns against the Sioux, starving them into surrender. Colonel Mackenzie destroyed Dull Knife’s Cheyenne camp - driving the Cheyenne into the hills to survive the winter without any food.
What were the views of the white Americans about how the Indians were adapted to the Plains?
White Americans demanded a settled, farming way of life. They thought that tipis were: ““…too full of smoke … inconceivably filthy””.
Horace Greeley despised the Native Americans for: ““…sitting around the doors of their lodges at the height of the planting season””, and said they were ““…squalid and conceited, proud and worthless, lazy and lousy. These people must die out,… God has given this earth to those who will subdue and cultivate it.””
Why was general Custer defeated?
He acted alone - even though Gibbon’s last words to him were: ““Custer, don’t be greedy. Wait for us. “”
Instead of going round the Wolf mountains, Custer force-marched his men through the mountains. His troops and horses arrived tired after the long march.
He weakened his forces by dividing them into three (although this was classic US Army tactics).
He expected the Sioux warriors to scatter and run. Instead they outmanoeuvred and surrounded him.
He was hugely outnumbered.
He was arrogant and over-confident, and wanted the victory to bolster his political ambitions. He ignored the advice of his Crow scouts to wait for reinforcements.
The Sioux leaders - especially Crazy Horse - were expert and experienced generals.
The Native Americans regarded the war as their last chance - they fought with desperation.
The Sioux were determined: ““The whites want a war and we will give it to them””, said Chief Sitting Bull.
Custer had poor information - he did not know how big the Sioux army was, nor that they were armed with Winchester repeating rifles.
What were the native americans view of war?
Preserve life
Ambush and stealth
Coups
Scalping
How could the conflict on the Plains be seen as being due to racism?
. The white settlers believed that the Native Americans were inferior. They felt justified in saying that ‘complete extermination is our motto’, and in slaughtering the buffalo to starve the Native Americans to death. In 1864, Colonel Chivington justified the massacre at Sand Creek by saying: “Kill them all, big and little: nits make lice”
How did lies help the White Americans to win the Plains?
the US government made promises which it later broke.
What were the views of the white americans over how the native americans treated the land?
White Americans believed that God had given them the right to ““subdue the earth””, and they wanted to make money from it. They thought land ownership, fences and cultivation were natural.
White Americans thought only they could make full use of the land.
They gave the Plains to the Native Americans when they thought they were ““wholly unfit for cultivation””, but when they found this not to be true, they took the land for themselves.
How were the Indians adapted to the Plains?
Nomadic
Tipis
Leisure crafts
Acceptance
How did education help the White Americans to win the Plains?
the Indian boarding schools (which the children were made to attend) forced Native American children to become ‘white’. They were beaten if they even whispered in their own language - the motto of one school was ““kill the Indian to save the man””.
How did the battle of little bighorn help the White Americans to win the Plains?
the massacre of Custer’s regiment caused thousands of ‘Custer’s Avengers’ to join up, and it made the US Army determined to hunt down and destroy the Native American warriors.
How did the economy help the White Americans to win the Plains?
the US government had unlimited men and money. After the Little Bighorn, the Sioux had to disband their army because the land could not support so large a group for long.
What happened in 1881 (- 1817)which led to the destruction of the Indian’s way of life?
Geronimo led a series of rebellions by the Apache warriors, but eventually had to surrender and become a vegetable farmer.
What views did the Native Americans have of the land?
Land cannot be owned or sold
What does the source that shows the traditional view about the heroism of Custer and his men at the Battle of the Little Bighorn - Custer can be seen brandishing two guns, fighting until the very end reveal?
this painting illustrates the problem of reliability of sources. This depiction is almost certainly wrong. An archaeological survey in 1983 found that Custer’s men fell in a running battle, perhaps as they scattered and fled down the hillside towards the river. It also found that Custer was not scalped, which suggests that he shot himself, because the Sioux did not scalp a suicide.
How did the white americans view the native americans way of war?
White soldiers saw ambush as treachery, scalping as barbarous and retreat as ““a total lack of courage””.
"”The first impulse of the Indian,”” wrote Colonel Dodge, ““…is to scuttle away as fast as his legs will carry him … “”
What pressures were put on the Native Americans between the years 1851-1867?
Gold was discovered in Colorado (1859). The first cattle drives were opened up (eg the Goodnight-Loving Trail, 1866). The Pony Express and a regular stagecoach service to California started up.
What did the Native Americans do that frequently led to conflict?
Meanwhile, some Native Americans wanted war. Early travellers on the Plains were robbed and murdered. And when some Native Americans made peace with the US government, others would stay out on the warpath - white Americans could not understand that the chiefs had no power to make their warriors obey. In 1866, a group of Native Americans wiped out a unit of US cavalry (the Fetterman Massacre), and events like this, and the defeat at Little Bighorn (1876), made the white Americans determined to win the war
How did the armies get to the battle of little bighorn?
The Sioux had been joined by the Cheyenne and Arapaho, making an army of more than 3,000 warriors, armed with Winchester repeating rifles.
Custer marched his men through (not round) the Wolf mountains, to arrive at the Sioux camp first.
Custer divided his 600 men into three groups.
How did the slaughter of the buffalo help the White Americans to win the Plains?
after the 1870s, white hunters destroyed the buffalo, not only for their hides, but partly to destroy the Native Americans, whose way of life depended on these animals. By 1895, less than a thousand buffalo remained on the Great Plains.
What were the religion and morality of the Native Americans?
Animistic (spirits)
Medicine men
Young marriage
Easy divorce
Polygamy
Exposure of old people to the elements, to dieWhat else could have led to the conflict on the Plains?
Faced by an attitude of genocide, Native Americans had nothing to lose - as the Sioux Chief Gall said: “You fought me and I had to fight back”. It could be argued that war broke out simply because the white men wanted the Great Plains - firstly to cross, then for gold, then for cattle and then for farming. Many white Americans believed that it was their manifest destiny to take over the Plains. They took the land that Native Americans believed belonged to everyone
What happened in 1889 which led to the destruction of the Indian’s way of life?
The Oklahoma Land Run. The government split 2 million acres of former ‘Indian territory’ into 160 acre plots, and people had to race to claim a plot. The race began at noon on 22 April 1889 and by next day all the land was claimed.
What happened in January 1877 which led to the destruction of the Indian’s way of life?
Chief Sitting Bull fled to Canada. He joined a Wild West show, but eventually returned to join the reservation.
What happened in the battle of little bighorn?
Custer sent Captain Frederick Benteen scouting, and sent Major Marcus Reno to attack the Sioux village from the south.
Custer headed north of the village with 215 men.
The Sioux cut off both Reno and Custer. Benteen rescued Reno, but Custer and all of his troops lost their lives.
The Sioux withdrew when Terry and Gibbon arrived.
What happened in 1879 which led to the destruction of the Indian’s way of life?
Richard Pratt opened the first boarding school for Native American children. The Sioux were given cattle and forced to become cattle-herders.
What caused the battle of little bighorn?
Chiefs Crazy Horse and Sitting Bull refused to accept the peace of 1868.
Gold was discovered in the Black Hills in 1874.
The Sioux refused to sell their land in the Black Hills.
The government ordered the Sioux onto small reservations. When the Sioux refused, they were declared ‘hostile’.
How did the white Americans view the religion and morality of the Native Americans?
Christian preachers thought ““…the Indians have no religion, only ignorant superstition””.
Native American customs of marriage, divorce and exposure of old people to the elements offended white Americans’ religion and morality.
What pressures were put on Native Americans between the years 1803- 1851?
First settler trails across Plains to the West - Oregon Trail (1841), Mormon Trail (1846), California Trail (to the goldfields, 1849).
What did the policies are pressures present between 1867-1875 result in?
Custer and his army were wiped out at the battle of Little Bighorn (1876).
Custer’s Avengers swelled the US Army, and superior US numbers, technology and winter campaigns forced the Sioux to surrender.
What policies were introduced between the years 1867-1875?
In the Treaty of Medicine Lodge (1867) the southern plains tribes agreed to move to Oklahoma.In the Second Treaty of Fort Laramie (1868) Red Cloud realised he could never defeat the US permanently, and the Sioux agreed to move onto a small reservation. The US government promised to supply food and medicine.
When did the battle of little bighorn happen?
1876
Why did the white Americans win the Plains?
The battle of little bighorn Lies Economy Technology railroads Slaughter of the buffalo The US army Reservations Education
How did the US army help the White Americans to win the Plains?
The US Army was too big and strong for the Native American warriors. It controlled the Plains from a system of forts.
How did technology help the White Americans to win the Plains?
the US Army had access to repeating rifles, machine guns, cannons and the telegraph. The Native Americans had to buy rifles, and used smoke signals to communicate.
How did a clash of cultures lead to conflict on the Plains?
White Americans did not understand the Native Americans’ way of life. Consequently, they distrusted and feared them, and could believe anything (including torture and deceit) of a people they did not understand. Conversely, the Native Americans felt that white Americans were devils who ruined the earth. Differences of culture caused them to hate and despise each other, and led to war.
What happened in October 1877 which led to the destruction of the Indian’s way of life?
Chief Joseph of the Nez Percé tribe tried to flee to Canada, but was intercepted. ““I will fight no more forever””. he vowed.
What happened in 1875?
The end of the Indians way of life. The US government made Native American territory available to white settlers (eg the Oklahoma Land Run, 1889). Homesteaders arrived. The Native Americans’ own law courts were abolished. The Native Americans had to seek justice in the white man’s court.
What happened in 1887 which led to the destruction of the Indian’s way of life?
The Dawes Act divided the Native American reservations between the different families.
What pressures were put on the Native Americans between the years 1867-1875?
Railroads. Cow towns and cattle ranching. Gold was discovered in the Black Hills. Many white Americans wanted to exterminate the Native Americans. Slaughter of the buffalo. The US government broke its promises of 1868, and supplies were inadequate.
What did the policies are pressures between 1851-1867 result in?
Little Crow’s war (1860-61)
Massacre of Sand Creek by Chivington’s 3rd Colorado Volunteers (1864)
Red Cloud led the Sioux in a successful war against the US (1866-7). During this war the Fetterman massacre (1866) occurred, in which 80 US cavalry troopers died.
How did the white americans view the native americans method of government and law?
White Americans could not understand why chiefs could not make their warriors obey them.
Government based on ‘community spirit’ was incomprehensible to white Americans, whose government was based on laws and compulsion.
They particularly hated horse stealing, because ““depriving a man of his horse could mean life itself on the Plains.””
White observers declared that the Native Americans were ‘without government’.
What policies were developed between the years 1803-1851?
In 1803, the US government purchased Louisiana from the French. The Indian Removal Act of 1830 forced all Native Americans in the eastern United States (eg Cherokee, Seminole) to go there (the Trail of Tears).
What happened in 1890 which led to the destruction of the Indian’s way of life?
A medicine man called Wovoka started a Ghost Dance - although it was peaceful, the Army, fearing a rebellion, tried to arrest Sitting Bull, who was taking part (he was killed during the attempt). Then when Sioux Chief Big Foot, trying to avoid the trouble, led his people to Wounded Knee Creek, they were massacred by the US Army.
What happened in 1883 which led to the destruction of the Indian’s way of life?
The Bureau of Indian Affairs issued the Code of Religious Offences, banning Native American religious customs such as the Sun Dance.
What did the policies and pressures present between the 1803-1851 result in?
First skirmishes between Native and white Americans.
How did reservations help the White Americans to win the Plains?
destroyed the Indian way of life, because people on them were forced to become farmers. Many warriors became alcoholics. The influence of the chiefs declined, because the reservations were run by agents. The Code of Religious Offences destroyed the Native American religion, and the Dawes Act ended community ownership.
What did Red Angus do in response to the lynching party?
In response, Red Angus raised a posse of 319 men, who rode out and trapped the cattlemen at a ranch called the TA.
The cattlemen were eventually rescued by the Army cavalry.
How did the first farmers on the Plains overcome the problem of drought?
The well driller and windpump allowed deep wells to be dug, which gave water. New methods of dry farming were invented (the ‘Turkey Red’ variety of wheat was imported from Russia, and farmers put a layer of dust on the soil after rain, which stopped evaporation).
How did the first farmers on the Plains overcome the problem of food?
The government realised that 160 acres was not enough to sustain people. The Timber Culture Act of 1873 gave farmers another 160 free acres if they grew some trees.
How did the first farmers on the Plains overcome the problem of fences?
Barbed wire (patented by Joseph Glidden in 1874) solved the problem of fencing.
What contributed to the problems of law and order in the West?
Distance (difficult to cover the large areas and isolated communities of the West)
Poverty and harsh conditions (people were prepared to resort to desperate measures)
More men than women (no calming influence; prostitution)
Different races (differences of language and culture led to there being little sense of a united community)
Culture of violence (everyone carried guns, and sorted out problems by using violence)
Land claims and gold (arguments over land ownership; greed, gamblers, criminals)
Cattle barons (fear of reprisal; ‘respectable’ citizens were scared to speak out; juries could be bribed and were often biased)
Poor court system (judges often had poor knowledge of law; courts often gave unfair verdicts; lack of convictions)
Vigilantes (often as much a problem as the criminals)
What happened when the area reached a population of 5,000?
When the area reached a population of 5,000, it became a territory, with - in addition - locally elected sheriffs, who could deal with local criminals. New territories were notoriously lawless.
Why did the homesteaders face a problem of housework?
There was no wood for fuel, and no shops to buy items such as candles and soap. A typical household had only two buckets, some crockery and one cracked cup. There was no water and little food.
Why did the idea of Manifest Destiny?
The idea grew up 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 Greeley, who popularised this idea, advised Americans: ‘Go West, young man’.
When was the Timber Culture act created and what did it provide?
The Timber Culture Act of 1873 gave farmers another 160 free acres if they grew some trees.
Why did Freed slaves move onto the Plains after 1865?
Freed slaves went there to start a new life as freemen, or to escape economic problems after the Civil War
When was the Homestead Act passed?
1862
Why did the first farmers on the plains face a problem of drought?
There was only 38cm of rainfall in a year, and the hot summers evaporated dampness from the land. In the 1860s there were terrible droughts, followed by fires.
How did the homesteaders overcome the problem of dirt and disease?
A ‘good thick coat of whitewash’ killed bedbugs. ‘A layer of clay’ stopped leaks. Homesteaders eventually built more modern houses.
What did the settlement package that the railways offer include?
a safe, cheap and speedy journey west
temporary accommodation in ‘hotels’ until the families had built their own home
other attractions such as schools, churches and no taxes for five years.
What did newly-occupied land on the Plains become?
At first, newly-occupied land on the Plains was federal territory (it belonged to the US government) and was administered by a governor, three judges and a US marshal.
What problems did the first farmers on the Plains face?
Farming Drought Food Fences Insect Pests Law and order
How did the first farmers on the Plains overcome the problem of law and order?
Law courts and sheriffs such as Wyatt Earp slowly established law and order.
How did the homesteaders overcome the problem of isolation?
People had to make the most of any trip to their nearest town, where the women talked of the harvest and the men smoked corncob pipes and talked politics.
What groups were set up to try and install law and order?
Miners in the mining towns set up miners’ courts, which settled local matters such as disputed claims, but were powerless to stop gangs of outlaws or rustlers. In many areas, local citizens set up vigilante groups, who dished out summary justice to people suspected of crimes.
How did the homesteaders overcome the problem of building a house?
Settlers built ‘sod houses’, while they lived out of doors - people did their cooking on an open fire.
What two lawman are famous for helping to establish law and order?
Among the lawmen who helped achieve this were Pat Garrett (who shot Billy the Kid) and Wyatt Earp (famous for his shoot-out with the Clanton gang at the OK Corral).
Why did European immigrants move onto the Plains after 1865?
European immigrants flooded onto the Great Plains, seeking political or religious freedom, or simply to escape poverty in their own country.
What Tall tales were spread in order to encourage people to go onto the Plains?
Once the population of an area reached 60,000, it could apply to become a state of the USA. Local governments therefore encouraged publicity campaigns which claimed (for example) that farmers in the west could grow pumpkins as big as barns and maize as tall as telegraph poles. Many people moved west thinking they would make a fortune.
What happened when the area reached a population of 60,000?
When the population reached 60,000, the territory became a state, with its own laws, government and finances, although there was still a US marshal with responsibility for criminals who broke federal laws. Slowly, helped by improved communications (for instance the telegraph), law and order was established.
Why did few people settle on the Plains before 1865?
The poor soil and harsh climate discouraged them (along with the fact that the Plains were officially ‘Indian territory’), land was expensive to buy, and anybody wanting to go west faced a long, dangerous and uncomfortable journey.
Why did the homesteaders face a problem of law and order?
Local government was non-existent, and some early lawmen (such as Henry Plummer) were worse than the bandits.
Why did the homesteaders face a problem of dirt and disease?
Outdoor toilets and open wells. The sod houses leaked, and fleas and bedbugs lived in them ‘by the million’. It was impossible to disinfect the floor. As a result the death rate, especially from diphtheria, was high.
Who did the The sheriff of Buffalo (Red Angus) support in the Johnson County war?
The sheriff of Buffalo (Red Angus) supported the homesteaders, who said the cattle barons were stealing their land.
Why did the homesteaders face a problem of isolation?
No doctors or midwives. No social life ‘because of the distances between farmhouses’. In the winter families were shut in ‘and longed for spring’.
What problems did the homesteaders face?
Building a house Dirt and disease Housework Isolation Law and Order
How did the homesteaders overcome the problem of housework?
A travelling shoe-maker or tinker might pass through who would provide or mend household items, but usually families just had to make do. The women collected ‘buffalo chips’ for fuel, stoked the stove, and made their own candles and soap. ‘I have often wondered how my mother stood it’, wrote an early settler.
Why did younger sons move onto the Plains after 1865?
Younger sons from the eastern seaboard - where the population was growing and land was becoming more expensive - went because it was a chance to own their own land.
How did the first farmers on the Plains overcome the problem of insect pests?
Settlers tried to harvest the crops before the grasshoppers came. They tried to kill them, but gave up, ‘weary and dispirited’.
The government raised relief funds.
Modern insecticides solved this problem.
How did the homesteaders overcome the problem of law and order?
Law courts and sheriffs such as Wyatt Earp slowly established law and order.
Why did the railways encourage people to settle on the Plains?
In order to encourage the railroad companies to build the transcontinental railways, the government gave them a two-mile stretch of land either side of the railroad - part of the companies’ profit came from selling this land. Therefore they launched a massive sales campaign, offering a ‘settlement package’
How did the Johnson County war start?
The cattlemen assembled a list of 70 rustlers they wanted killed. In spring 1892 they hired a lynching party of 43 cattlemen (including 20 hired gunmen).
The lynching party attacked a ranch known as the KC ranch. They killed Nick Ray and his partner Nate Chapman, who was roundup foreman of the local Northern Wyoming Farmers & Stock Growers Association.
Who did the Governor Barber of Wyoming support in the Johnson County war?
Governor Barber of Wyoming supported the cattlemen, who said homesteaders (‘nesters’) were rustling (stealing) their cattle.
Why did homesteaders face a problem in building a house?
There was little wood to build log cabins.
Why did the first farmers on the plains face a problem of farming?
A hard crust on the soil made it hard to start farming.
Farmers could not afford a plough or machines.
There were not enough workers.
Who started to move onto the Plains after 1865 ?
Freed Slaves
European immigrants
Younger sons from the eastern seaboard
other Americans - such as tradesmen and government officials
Why did the first farmers on the plains face a problem of law and order?
Rival settlers
Bandits
Renegade Native Americans
Vigilante cattlemen
What did the 1862 Homestead Act promise?
This allowed homesteaders to claim 160 acres of land free if they lived and worked on it for five years. The prospect of free land was very attractive to people who could never have afforded a farm back home.
How did the first farmers on the Plains overcome the problem of farming?
Teams of ‘sodbusters’ using steel ploughs did the first ploughing.
After 1880, thresher teams travelled around following the harvest. Farmers could hire them for just a few days.
Why did the first farmers on the plains face a problem of food?
Farmers could not grow enough on their farms to feed a family.
Why did other americans follow these people onto the Plains after 1865?
They were followed by other Americans - such as tradesmen and government officials - who hoped to make their living from the farmers who had moved onto the Plains
Why did the first farmers on the plains face a problem of fences?
Lack of wood for fencing meant farmers could not keep cattle off their crops. This led to trouble with the cattlemen.
Why did the first farmers on the plains face a problem of insect pests?
In the 1870s, grasshopper plagues stripped the cornstalks ‘naked as beanpoles’ and sent pregnant women insane.
Colorado beetle destroyed potato crops.
What was the result of the Johnson County war?
The cattlemen were charged with murder. They bribed the jury and the case was dropped. Nevertheless, the war marked the end of the power of the cattlemen.
What was it that cattlemen regularly did to homesteaders?
The cattlemen regularly caught and hanged local homesteaders.
Among those they hanged were Ella Watson and Jim Averill (a poor local couple), and nine trappers who were out hunting wolves.
What did Red Angus do in response to the lynching party?
In response, Red Angus raised a posse of 319 men, who rode out and trapped the cattlemen at a ranch called the TA.
The cattlemen were eventually rescued by the Army cavalry.
How did the first farmers on the Plains overcome the problem of drought?
The well driller and windpump allowed deep wells to be dug, which gave water. New methods of dry farming were invented (the ‘Turkey Red’ variety of wheat was imported from Russia, and farmers put a layer of dust on the soil after rain, which stopped evaporation).
