Unit 6 Modules 6.1-6.2 Flashcards
Semiarid territory in central North America. Oklahoma Territory, established in the Fort Laramie Treaty. A territory that was once set aside for use by Native Americans that was thrown open for settlement in 1889, and by the end of the Civil War in 1865, 2/3 of all American Indians lived on. Natives like the Sioux, Comanche, and Cheyenne tribes were dependent upon the buffalo and the horse. The Indian Country” was located here and was protected from white settlers.
Great Plains
A railroad linking the East and West Coasts of North America. Completed in 1869, this railroad facilitated the flow of migrants and the development of economic connections between the West and the East.
Transcontinental Railroad
A fake construction company created by Union Pacific promoters. They used to funnel government bonds and contract money into their own pockets. They also bribed congressmen to avoid investigation into their sordid dealings. Despite these efforts, in 1872 a congressional investigation exposed this corruption. This was when the government-subsidized railroad construction boom also provided new opportunities for corruption.
Credit Mobilier
November 1864 massacre of 270 Cheyenne and Arapaho Indians by the Third Colorado Cavalry of the U.S. army.
Sand Creek Massacre
1851 treaty that sought to confine tribes on the northern plains to designated areas in an attempt to keep white settlers from encroaching on their land. In 1868, the second one gave northern tribes control over the “Great Reservation” in parts of present-day Montana, Wyoming, North Dakota, and South Dakota.
Fort Laramie Treaty
A colonel that lost to in the Battle of little bighorn The Sioux, led by Crazy Horse and Sitting Bull, retaliated by killing 268 soldiers of the 7th Cavalry at Little Bighorn (Greasy Grass) in 1876, When Americans flooded into Sioux (Dakota, Lakota) territory in South Dakota and Montana when gold was discovered
George A. Custer
1876 battle in the Montana Territory in which Lieutenant Colonel George Armstrong Custer and his troops were massacred by the Lakota Sioux.
Battle of Little Bighorn
ended federal recognition of tribal sovereignty and divided American Indian land into 160-acre parcels to be distributed to American Indian heads of household. The act dramatically reduced the amount of American Indian-controlled land and undermined American Indian social and cultural institutions.
Dawes Act, 1887
An American poet, novelist, and advocate for Indigenous rights. Author of the 1881 book A Century of Dishonor. The book exposed the U.S. governments many broken promises to the Native Americans. For example the government wanted Native Americans to assimilate, i.e. give up their beliefs and ways of life, that way to become part of the white culture.
Helen Hunt Jackson
Religious ritual performed by the Paiute Indians in the late nineteenth century. Following a vision he received in 1888, the prophet Wovoka believed that performing this would cause white people to disappear and allow American Indians to regain control of their lands.
Ghost Dance
Massacre committed by U.S. military in South Dakota, December 29, 1890. The Plains Indians, on the edge of starvation, began the “Ghost Dance,” which they believed would protect them from bullets and restore their old way of life. Following one of the dances, a rifle held by an American Indian misfired. In response, U.S. soldiers invaded the encampment, killing some 250 people.
Wounded Knee
Towns of the west that were built around mining sites. They started out as little camps with tents. As more and more people learned about the area that might have potential of making prospectors rich, more people came. With the increase of population came the increase of merchants and mining companies. They were mining camps that grew rapidly in size to become cities almost overnight.
Boomtowns of the West
Massive silver deposit discovered in the Sierra Nevada in the late 1850s.
Comstock Lode
Moving of cattle from the grazing lands of Texas to rail depots in Kansas. Once in Kansas, the cattle were shipped eastward to slaughterhouses in Chicago.
Long Drives
As farmers began settling in the Far West in the late 19th century, they threw up fences around their claims, blocking trails and breaking up the open range. Tensions grew between cattlemen and farmers and a series of these broke out and resulted in significant loss of life and extensive property damage. Many times on the open range, conflict erupted between cattle drivers. Typically triggered by disputes over rights for this land. These were not official wars, more like gang battles.
“Range Wars”
