Miners, Ranchers, And Railroads Flashcards
What is the comstock lode?
A huge deposit of gold and silver in Nevada that was found by miner Henry comstock
What is a “frontier”
An undeveloped area
What were the dangers of mining?
Miners had to use unsafe equipment such as elevator platforms without protective walls, They worked in dark tunnels and breathed hot stuffy air (they suffered from lung disease), they were often injured or killed by poorly planned explosions or cave-ins, fire
Where did the settlers going to work in the western mines come from?
Eastern United States, Europe, Central America, South America, and Asia
What does “boomtowns” mean?
Communities that grew suddenly when a mine opened
What was a women’s role in a boomtown?
Women washed, cooked, made clothes, chopped wood, raised families, established schools, and wrote for newspapers
What started the cattle industry?
A growing economy and population created a greater demand for beef in the east.
What was the most popular breed of cattle? Why?
Longhorn
Longhorn cattle needed very little water and could survive harsh weather. The cattle were well suited to the dry desert like environment of western Texas.
How could Texas ranchers move the longhorns to eastern markets?
Joseph McCoy built pens for cattle in Abilene Kansas. The Kansas pacific railroad line went through Abilene. Cattle could be shipped by rail from there. Many Texas ranchers were soon making the trip north to Abilene to sell their herds of cattle.
What is the cattle kingdom?
The Great Plains from Texas to Canada where many ranchers raised cattle in the late 1800s.
What are “vaqueros”?
Mexican ranch hands who cared for cattle and horses.
What is “the cattle drive”?
Long journeys where cowboys herded the cattle to the market or to the northern plains for grazing.
What is “The Chisholm trail”?
A trail that led from San Antonio Texas to the cattle town of Abilene Kansas. It was one of the earliest and most popular routes for cattle drives.
What caused the end of the cattle kingdom?
Competition between farmers, large ranchers and small ranchers for land. The cattle herds had eaten most of the prairie grass and they were experiencing unusually severe winters in 1885 and 1886 which caused thousands of cattle to die, this was the end of the cattle kingdom
List 3 reasons people from other countries came to America to work in the mines.
Better paying jobs, more freedom, better work conditions
Define open range.
Land once occupied by Indians, then used by ranchers. It is public land that ranchers let the herds of cattle graze on.
List 3 conditions that started the cattle kingdom.
Demand for beef, railways, open range
What was the pony express?
A system of messengers on horseback used to carry messages west.
Explain why the federal government supported the transcontinental railroad.
The railway could carry mail and us troops at a lower cost. More importantly it would improve the economy because the population would increase.
What where some geological challenges railroad companies faced?
Crossing mountain ranges, harsh weather, snowdrifts collapsed and killed workers.
What goods were shipped east via the railroad?
Wood, metals, meat, and grain
How many more miles of railroad track where there in 1890 than in 1865?
164,000 more miles
What is the transcontinental railroad?
A railroad that would cross the continent and connect the east to the west.
What two companies led the race to complete the transcontinental railroad?
Central Pacific and union Pacific