History Unit 11 The New West

Question 0

The Homestead act of 1862

Answer 0

Free land (160 acres) to homesteaders (anyone who didn’t rebel)
They would live on the land for 5+ years and improve it
Lived in “soddies”
Many European immigrants took the offer
Increased expansion into the plains

Question 1

Importance of railroads

Answer 1

Allowed easy access for settlers
Allowed for products to move into and out of the region
Slaughter of the buffalo (31 million) between 1868-1881

Question 2

Industries of the west

Answer 2

Railroads
Mining
Cattle farming

Question 3

Cattle Trails

Answer 3

Cattle allowed to graze over the open land

Cowboys drive herds of cattle from grazing areas to railroads–>RR carry cattle to slaughterhouse in Midwest cities

Question 4

The Cowboys

Answer 4

Romanticized stories of life on the range
Many African Americans and Mexicans worked on the “Long Rivers”
Hard work, hard life

Question 5

How were the cowboys portrayed in the media

Answer 5

Wild West shows, western movies, dime novels, Frederick Remington, Wild Bill Hickok, Calamity Jane, Jesse James, Billy the Kid, Wyatt