Homesteaders And Railroads Flashcards
What was the goal of the homestead and pacific railroad acts??
To encourage people to move west
When was the first homestead act and pacific railroad act introduced??
1862
What was the result of the homestead act 1862
Gave every American person the right to 160 acres of land (on the plains) for an $18 fee
Slaves and unionists were eligible but not confederates
Lincoln used this to reward soldiers and encourage slaves
To own it people had to live on the land and farm
Significance of homesteading
Over 10% of US land was claimed through this act in the coming century (160 million acres)
Why was the pacific railroad act created
After the creation of electric railroads, many different companies were fighting to build railroads leading to the same cities
During the civil war, the confederates were stopping the transcontinental railroad from being built
This act allowed the union to build said railroad
Two companies: Union Pacific railroad, central pacific railroad
When was the trand continental railroad finished??
1869
What were some issues with homesteading
Difficulty building houses- the plains were weak in supplies and railroads weren’t efficient enough to deliver lots of resources eg timber yet
Rainfall was rare so a lack of drinking water
This also meant infertile land and therefore less crops and more difficulty farming
Very isolated (meant lack of education, medical help and vulnerability to crime)
What were some solutions to these problems
The timber culture act 1873, giving them more land and more crops to survive
More railroads
Water pumps and irrigation
Technology advances eg barbed wire, dry farming, sodbuster plough, barbed wire etc
What was the timber culture act 1873
An act letting people claim a further 160 acres of land
This meant they had more land and therefore more area for crops and timber to survive
What was the impact of railroads
Made it easier, faster and cheaper for people to travel across the US esp west
Allowed cattle transportation, creating an industry around that (more cattle= less land for buffalo)
Buffalo did not understand it and therefore walked onto the tracks a lot, getting injured, killed and trapped in some areas
What two tribe# in particular did the returning gold rush affect??
Cheyennes
Arapaho
