American West

Question 1

When and what was the Indian removal act?

Answer 1

• 1830

- 46,000 indians from eastern states are forced by US government to relocate to the great plain

Question 2

When and what was the oregon trail?

Answer 2

• 1836

- trails opens safe passage for settlers across great plains and Rocky Mountains to Oregon country

Question 3

When and what was the mormon migration?

Answer 3

• 1846-47

- migration of those from Mormon faith westwards to find their homeland. They settled in sal lake city

Question 4

When and what was the gold rush?

Answer 4

• 1849

- discovery of gold in California led to huge migration to the west, over 300,000 moved by 1855

Question 5

When and what was the fort Laramie treaty?

Answer 5

• 1851
• agreement between Indians and government that Indians would not attack settlers using Oregon trail and in exchange for large areas of land being given to Indians

Question 6

When and what was the homestead act?

Answer 6

• 1862

- government offered 160 acres of for $30 to settlers to encourage settlement on the Great Plains

Question 7

When and what was the red clouds war?

Answer 7

• 1866-68

- Sioux go to war against whites in Dakota leading to the fetterman massacre and second fort Laramie treaty

Question 8

When and what was the transcontinental railroad?

Answer 8

• 1869

- first railroad connecting east and west america is completed, increasing settlement in west

Question 9

When and what was the battle of the little big horn?

Answer 9

• 1876

- general clusters soldiers were wiped out by crazy horses indians, in a major defeat for the US government

Question 10

How many people crossed the Oregon trail in total?

Answer 10

400,000

Question 11

What were the problems of the journey of the Oregon trail?

Answer 11

• needed to complete before winter
• sandstorms, quicksand, extreme heat and cold, lightning storms
• getting stuck, ill or running out of supplies
• enough food to survive journey

Question 12

Donner Party…

Answer 12

• may 1846
• led by Jacob and George Donner
• left Missouri with 60 wagons and 300 people
• trapped in heavy snow and turned to cannibalism to survive
• only 46 survived

Question 13

What places did John smith settle the Mormons between 1831-46?

Answer 13

• Kirtland, ohio ~ 1837 depression, Mormon bank collapsed
• independence, Missouri ~ vey unpopular as they were anti slave
• nauvoo, Illinois ~ 35,000 settled, smith said polygamy was okay and in 1845 he was arrested and murdered

Question 14

Why did Brigham Young decide to move west to the great salt lake valley?

Answer 14

It was isolated, had water and farming land, Mormons could live freely and most importantly it wasn’t part of the USA

Question 15

What was brigham Young’s plan?

Answer 15

1. Ensure safe journey west
2. Farm an arid landscape and provide fresh water
3. Allocate land for each family
4. Become self-sufficient and free to worship
5. Encourage mass Mormon settlement
6. Keep order with no conflict

Question 16

What were consequences of the gold rush?

Answer 16

• thousands came from all over the world
  
  • over 25,000 Chinese miners sailed from Hong Kong
• California population grew from 15,000 in 1848 to 300,000 by 1855

Question 17

What problems did settlers face on the plains?

Answer 17

• natural disasters ~ heatwaves, prairie fires and grasshoppers
• extreme weather
• poor soil ~ grasses and roots were dense, crops were not suited to climate
• drought ~ no rainfall between 1859 and 1860
• lack of building materials
• lack of water

Question 18

What would the Indians do in the fort Laramie treaty?

Answer 18

• end fighting
• allow migrants to travel safely
• permit railroad companies enter land safely
• allow roads and army posts to be built
• pay compensation if terms were broken

Question 19

What would the government do in the fort Laramie treaty?

Answer 19

• protect them from white settlers
• agree Indians to specific territories
• pay tribes annuity of $50,000

Question 20

What were the key problems of the west? (9)

Answer 20

• isolation
• poverty ~ unemployment
• culture of violence ~ everyone carried guns
• new crimes ~ claim jumping, road agents
• disorderly lifestyle ~ alcohol, gambling and prostitution
• racism ~ against Chinese
• law enforcement ~ not enough enforcement available, crimes were unpunished
• gangs ~ San Francisco
• poor court system

Question 21

Why was the homestead act important?

Answer 21

• first proper settlement of the Great Plains
• allowed homeless and landless to purchase own land
• by 1867 over 6 million acres had been claimed by homesteaders, this increased to 80 million

Question 22

What were the limitations of the homestead act?

Answer 22

• 80 out of 500 million acres available were homestead
• rich took more land for cheap and got people to claim for them
• 60% failed and quit

Question 23

When was the little crows war?

Answer 23

1862

Question 24

When was the sand creek masaccre?

Answer 24

1864

Question 25

When was the red clouds war?

Answer 25

1866-1868

Question 26

What happened in little crows war?

Answer 26

• santee Sioux moved his tribe to reservation in return of $80,000 a year
• the land had poor land and money never arrived
• 12000 Sioux were starving which led them to steal and become in debt
• in august 1862 the Sioux burnt down agency, stole food and attacked white settlements (600 settlers and soldiers were killed)
• US army publicly executed 38 Sioux

Question 27

What happened in the red clouds war?

Answer 27

• red cloud and 3000 Sioux attacked forts and settlers because they let on walking across there land
• December 1866, captain William fetterman and 80 soldiers rode into a Sioux trap of 1000 warriors, this was the worst defeat for the US army in the west