American West - The Knowledge Flashcards
Where are the Great Plains located in America?
Western Centre of America
Name two mountain ranges in America that were an obstacle to cross.
Appalachian, Sierra Nevada or Rocky Mountains
Name 3 Indian tribes.
Sioux, Arapaho, Cheyenne
Name 3 uses of the buffalo.
Dried buffalo dung providedfuelfor fires. Buffalo skin could be used to maketipis, clothes, moccasins, bedding, saddle covers and water-bags. Dried buffalo meat, calledpemmican, provided food to eat through the winter. Buffalo sinews were used asbowstringsand thread. Buffalo tongue was used as a hairbrush.
Describe one way the Indians hunted the buffalo.
The Indians on horse back would surround or stampede the buffalo and shoot them with arrows. The arrows were marked so you knew who killed which buffalo. They wanted to know who killed the buffalo as it was a great honour for an Indian. To get close enough to kill one was very dangerous for the man and his horse and took a lot of bravery.
Another method was that the Indians used was to creep up on the buffalo when they were grazing (eating the grass) and shoot them with arrow, whilst disguised as wolves. Buffalo herds (groups) would allow wolves to get quite close to them.
Another method of hunting was to stampede (surround) a buffalo herd (group) into buffalo jumps. This meant that they either trapped the buffalo in a narrow valley where they couldn’t get out or they drove them over a cliff and killed them like shown in the picture.
What was the Indian attitude to the land?
No one owned land - it belonged to Wakan Tanka
What is counting coup?
‘Counting coup’ is a ritual.
This meant that it was seen as braver for a warrior to touch his enemy with his ‘coup’ and come away unharmed than it was to hurt or kill his enemy.
This meant that war was often bloodless. In fact, the Sioux lost fewer than 4 men a year in warfare.
Why did Indians practice polygamy?
In the Indian society there were more women than men and it meant that all the women were looked after and as many babies as possible were made.
What is a medicine man?
A ‘medicine man’ was the name given to the Indian shamen by white people. A shamen could cure illness by making contact with spirits.
Give 1 reason that the tipi was well suited to the Indian way of life.
The Tipi had a conical shape which meant it could cope with the strong winds of the Plains.
The Tipi was made mostly from Buffalo hide which meant that the Indians could still use them despite the lack of wood on the Plains.
The Tipi could be taken down in 10 minutes and turned into a Travois which would then carry their belongings which suited the Indians nomadic lifestyle. The movement was necessary so the Indians could follow the buffalo.
The Tipi could be rolled up in the summer to deal with the extreme heat on the Great Plains. It could also be banked down in the winter to deal with Extreme cold on the Great Plains.
Give 3 reasons why people were attracted (pulled) to moving West.
Free /cheap / plentiful land (Homestead Act 1862)
Gold
Stories from Mountain Men, Railroad Companies
Manifest Destiny – the West needed civilising
Give 3 reasons why people were pushed away from their home and needed to move West.
East was becoming overcrowded
Farming crisis in the East
Economic depression in the 1840s in the East
Religious and racial persecution
What happened to the Donner Party?
The Donner Party – 1846. Took a ‘shortcut’ to California, ended up getting trapped in deep snow in Sierra Nevada. Only 50/87 survived the journey, and they only did because they ate those that died.
What is Manifest Destiny?
Manifest Destiny was an idea.
It said that it was the duty of white Americans to spread their way of life across the entire continent – rather than just the 13 colonies that had originally.
They believed it was what God wanted them to do.
Those who went West were following their ‘Manifest Destiny’.
Why was Manifest Destiny a bad thing for the Indians?
Anyone who tried to stop them following their ‘Manifest Destiny’ was standing in God’s way.
They felt it was their job to change the West, including the Great Plains and the Indians, to their way of living. They wanted to civilise it.
What were Mountain Men the first people to do?
The first white people to travel West through the Rocky Mountains were the Mountain Men. This was between 1820 and 1840.
Name a trail that the Mountain Men established.
They found safe routes through the Rockies, including the start of the Santa Fe and Oregon Trails.
What was the Mountain Men’s relationship like with the Indians?
The Mountain Men lived a similar lifestyle to the Indians. They tended to have good relationships with the Indians, but did encounter problems with some hostile tribes.
Also Mountain Men sometimes married Indian women.
In what year and where was gold discovered?
1848 – James Marshall discovers gold in California when working at a sawmill.
In what year was the ‘gold rush’?
People in the East heard about the discovery and by 1849 tens of thousands of people had travelled West to California. These people are called the ’49ers’. 1849 is the year associated with the ‘gold rush’.
What was the first method for finding gold called?
The first people in California found gold by panning, but this surface gold ran out quickly and the only way to access underground gold was through expensive machinery that few could afford.
What was set up to deal with law and order in mining towns?
Problems with law and order – no proper government or law officials.
Claim jumping, racial attacks, violent crimes
Miners Courts set up – unofficial, no prisons so death penalties used a lot!
What is the full name of the Mormon religion?
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
Who founded the Mormons and in what year?
The Mormon faith was started by Joseph Smith, who claimed to have seen a vision of an angel called Moroni in 1823.
Name 3 beliefs Mormons had.
What the Mormons believed and practiced in the 1800s: Polygamy Conversion Political power of Mormon leaders No single ownership of property God’s chosen people No caffeine, alcohol, tobacco, gambling, premarital sex Anti-slavery
What was the name of the Mormon secret army?
Danites – Mormon army who attacked non-Mormons (Gentiles)
What 3 places were the Mormons driven out of and why?
The Mormons kept being driver out of places because of their beliefs:
Kirtland, Ohio – this was the first place the Mormons settled, between 1831-1837. The Mormons were unpopular and Joseph Smith was tarred and feathered. They built a temple in 1833, and a bank. In 1837 the Mormon bank collapsed and people lost a lot of money and forced the Mormons to leave.
The Mormons then went to Missouri in 1838. There were lots of slave owners in Missouri and the Mormon’s anti slavery beliefs made them unpopular.
The next place the Mormons moved to was Nauvoo in Illinois, led by Brigham Young. In Nauvoo the Mormons were allowed their own laws, and their own army (the Danites). Joseph Smith announced that he was going to run for President, which worried non-Mormons.
Who took over the leadership of the Mormons when their founder died?
Brigham Young, who had led the Mormons to Nauvoo, took over the leadership when Joseph Smith died.
Give one reason why their journey to Great Salt Lake was successful?
Brigham Young was incredibly organised and was an inspirational leader.
In 1845, the Mormons began their preparations to leave Nauvoo to move the Great Salt Lake.
By 1846, anti-Mormon violence had increased, so Brigham Young sent a group early to set up winter quarters on the bank of the Missouri River.
The same group also planted crops along the way, so the Mormons could eat on their journey.
What state is Great Salt Lake in?
Utah
