Unit 6: Topic 3 - Westward Expansion: Social and Cultural Development Flashcards
During Westward Expansion in the second half of the 1800’s, what type of jobs did migrants commonly have in boomtowns and rural areas?
In boomtowns and rural areas, people worked in mining, farming, ranching, and on the railroads.
Examples:
The Cattle Kingdom - Cowboys went on long cattle drives, herding cows as they grazed towards the railroads and slaughterhouses
Sodbusters - Farmers either purchased land from railroad companies or the government, or they used the Homestead Act to acquire land to farm
How did the invention of barbed wired change the landscape of the West?
Barbed wire effectively ended the “cowboy era” of cattle drives and open ranges. With barbed wire fencing, a rancher could maintain a herd with minimal help, as opposed to a full outfit of cowboys continuously rounding up cattle as they grazed and moved towards a destination. The continued expansion of farming further contributed to this decline in the Cattle Kingdom.
What was Turner’s Frontier Thesis?
Frederick Jackson Turner’s Thesis, also known as the Frontier Thesis, was an idea that the American frontier helped shape the character of the United States by fostering individualism and democracy, and providing a safety valve for economic distress.
If you were unemployed or impoverished on the East coast, you could always move west to find new opportunities. However, frontier living was also a harsh experience and leveled the playing field, eliminating many class distinctions.
In 1890, the U.S. Census Bureau declared that the frontier was closed, meaning that the “open land” of past was relatively full of settlers.
How did increased settlement in the West lead to further conflict?
Settlers moved West at an increasing rate as a result of the transcontinental railroads, mining booms, and economic opportunities. This led to a near-extinction of bison from over hunting and increased conflicts between groups in the West. Native Americans who relied on the bison herds found their land rapidly taken by settlers backed by the force of the U.S. government. An sharp increase in violent conflict occurred during the mid to late 1800’s.
What was the reservation system?
Native Americans were forced to live on reservations with strict boundaries and give up nomadic lifestyles. While many resisted, the destruction of the buffalo herds and confrontations with the U.S. Army eventually forced Native Americans to end their resistance.
While on reservations, the U.S. government attempted to force assimilation into mainstream U.S. society.
What were the Sioux Wars?
The Sioux Wars were one of the most significant examples of Native American resistance to the reservation system.
The biggest victory for Native Americans in the Sioux Wars was the Battle of Little Bighorn, in which Sioux Leaders Sitting Bull and Crazy Horse defended themselves against an attack in a one-sided defeat for the U.S. Army. This brought increased attention from the U.S. Government and their efforts to force Native Americans onto reservations significantly increased.
How did the Dawes Act (1887) further change Native American reservations?
While it was supposed to promote individual property rights and assimilation, the Dawes Act resulted in a significant decrease in reservation land. Rather than communal ownership by the entire tribe, reservation land was divided into sections similar to the Homestead Act. In theory, this would transition Native Americans into individual farmers and ranchers. Surplus land was sold, most often to white farmers and ranchers.
What was the goal of U.S. policy towards Native Americans during the late 1800’s?
The U.S. government pursued a policy of assimilation, forcing Native Americans to adopt the “American way of life”.
This included attempts to force conversion to Christianity and send children to Native American boarding schools to forget their religion, language, and culture while they were assimilated. The most famous was the Carlisle Boarding School where they tried to “kill the indian… to save the man”.
What was the Ghost Dance movement?
The Ghost Dance was created in response to Westward Expansion. It was supposed to result in white people disappearing and a return of the ancestors.
The U.S. government, concerned that the Ghost Dance encouraged resistance to the reservation system and assimilation, made the dance illegal to perform. After the U.S. Army killed over 200 Lakota practicing the Ghost Dance in the Battle of Wounded Knee (Wounded Knee Massacre), the Ghost Dance movement effectively ended.
