American West II Flashcards
Problems with new migrators farming
- Low rainfall - dry soil - crops
- Few trees - no timber
- Extreme climate - hot summer, cold winters - uncomfy
- Insects - grasshoppers
- Ploughing - tangled with deep roots under dry soil
Consequences of American Civil War on migration in 1865?
Confederates and Union - Union won
7 USA states join into confed, others union - rejoined USA
- end of war in 1865, over 600,000 died, 40,000 wounded
- gov needed to rebuild the south and gave citizenship to african american slaves
- NEW LIFE
Homestead Act 1862?
Wanted to set up individual farms in the West owned by men and women - 10$ to register land, someone to live for a good 5 years was 30$, and ANYONE could register including ex slaves and women, not Plain Indians tho
The Pacific Railroad Act 1862?
Aimed at developing more of a connection between the new land in the West and the more industrialised northern cities
Homestead Act 1862 advantages and disadvantages?
ADV:
- Made land smaller so more affordable
- Encourage farming
- Good for families to settle
DISADV
- Only 13M acres had been fully bought by 1884
- Many homesteads were bought from railroad companies
- People had problems with farming so not all was bought up
- Big business owners could still make a profit
Homestead Act 1862 significance?
- 6M acres sold
- Part of the Great Plains settled for the 1st time
- Half of Nebraska was Homestead Land - had enough people to become a state
- Encouraged more immigration - 1875, over half were
KEY DATES FOR NARRATIVE ACCOUNT OF RAILROADS
- 1835-55 - survey of railroads
- 1861 - Civil War removes any oppositions to a northern railroad
- 1862 - Pacific Act passed
- 1863 - Work begins on both sides
- 1869 - completed of railroad
ADV and IMPORTANCE of Railroads
ADV
- Removed Plain Indian rights on railroad
- 61M for the track built
- Took 45M acres of land
- Encouraged settlers, particularly 60,000 Germans and 10,000 Scandinavians - EUROPE
IMPORTANCE
- Homesteaders could visit family members - pull factor for no isolation in the west
- Could order manufactured goods
- More towns - business links
CONSEQUENCES of railroads
- Buffalo moved away
- Indians moved away for precaution
- Plain Indian attacks on railroad caused conflict
- Led to invasion
- Caused problems with law and order - hell on wheels
ADV of new farming tools
- Self windmills 1854 - could pump water from the 30 metres ground to irrigate farmland, make soil more fertile, Steel blades can bear Plain Indian winds and work harder
- Barbed wire 1874 - cheaper than timber, quicker to erect, more effective, fenced off crops to protect from being eaten by livestock
- Sulky Plow 1875 - Ploughed tough weeds, easier and quicker, 50,000 sold in 6 years
DISADV of new farming tools
Self windmills 1854 - needs constant maintenance, can’t below 30M
Barbed wires 1874 - early types rusted, expensive at first
Sulky Plow 1875 - very expensive for farmers, could tip up as they were unstable
Timber Culture Act 1873 and it’s consequences
- Homesteaders plant more trees for more land
DISADV
- Wind breaks to shelter crops from damage and soil being dry from the weather
- Timer for settlers to build
- Fuel for fire
- Huge tree growth in Minnesota
What were the impacts of the Civil War to Law and Order?
- Many ex soldiers and runaways in the west after the war
- OUTLAWS who couldn’t find work
- Still tension between confederates and union soldiers
- RENO GANG - 1866 - train robbery, took $112,000, and bribed police and terrorised. Arrested and lynched.
Cattle Industry before Civil War?
- Cattlemen known as cowboys
- Cowboys herded cattle drives
- Texas fever for cows
- 1855 Missouri farmers formed a vigilante to stop cattle drives
Cattle Industry after Civil War?
- North - beef in great demand - cows worth 40$
- South - Price dropped dramatically, Longhorn cattle not managed properly, half wild, people devastated from war so can’t pay high prices, cow worth 5$, cowboys went all the way to Kansas but stopped because of fear of Texas Fever
