Making Of America - Unit 4: Settlement And Conflict On The Plains, 1861-77

Question 1

Homesteaders - why did people move?

Answer 1

The Homestead Act offered people 160 acres of land free for five years
Ex slaves could buy land to farm and escape the South - cheap land could be bought on the Plains
A banking crisis in the 1870s meant that many people were out of work
The 1860s were Ann unusually good period for rain on the plains. New technology meant that water could be extracted from the ground more easily
Railroad companies advertised the plains as a great place to farm. Railroads allowed people to sell farm goods to cities more easily.