Farming on plains

Question 1

Homestead act 1861

Answer 1

160 acres for $10
had to farm and improve the land for 5 years
Anyone over 21 and head of a family, except for ex-confederate soldiers

Question 2

Timber culture act

Answer 2

1874
160 more acres if trees were planted on the land

Question 3

Barbed wire

Answer 3

1874
Solved problem of lack of timber
Expensive at first and rusted quickly
Improved and became cheaper
Prevented animals damaging crops

Question 4

Dawes act

Answer 4

1887
Native American families allotted 160 acre plot
80 acres for single people
40 acres for orphans <18
Could become American citizen after 25 years

Question 5

Problems with farming on plains

Answer 5

Lack of timber for fences, houses and fuel
Lack of water
Hard to farm
Extreme weather
Pests

Question 6

Solutions for farming on plains

Answer 6

Barbed wire 1874
Sod houses
Dried buffalo dung for fuel
Wind pumps and drills
Sulky plow
Dry farming
Turkey red wheat

Question 7

Impact on natives

Answer 7

Less space for buffalo
Lost land, put into smaller reservations
Indians got unwanted land that was hard to farm

Question 8

Consequences of Dawes act 1887

Answer 8

Natives couldn’t, and wouldn’t farm
In 1888, 1/2 the land they had had in 1887 had been lost to white Americans
160 acres wasn’t enough for a successful farm
Many were tricked out of land
Encouraged less reliance on tribes