Solutions To Crime On The Plains

Question 1

Vigilante committees form in San Francisco to tackle crime

They hung 89 suspects despite having no authority to do this

Answer 1

1851

Question 2

1850-1895 The Pinkerton Agency was set up
They were a private law enforcement agency
They were used to track down outlaws and bring them to justice
Their role declined as the years went by as the West became more civilised and lawlessness decreased

Answer 2

1850-1895

Question 3

Impact of the Homestead Act
More families moved to the West by buying 160 acres from the Homestead Act
Reduced violence because families were more stable

Answer 3

1862 and onwards

Question 4

Once frontier towns (towns further West) were connected to bigger towns by rail and electric telegraph, lawlessness decreased

Answer 4

1869

Question 5

Abilene hired Wild Bill Hickok as the town marshal
Feared by cowboys but spent most of his time drinking in saloons
He was fired and the mayor decided to ban cowboys to keep law and order in Abilene

Answer 5

1871

Question 6

Lawlessness decreased because towns had developed more
People wanted their businesses and families to be secure
The West became more civilised over time

Answer 6

Late 1870s and 1880s

Question 7

Once ranching became more popular than the long drive to the cow towns, the lifestyle of cowboys changed as they became more settled
Reduced drunken violence in the West
Some cattle barons banned alcohol on their Late 1870s and 1880s

Answer 7

1870s and 1880s