settlement - making of america (1861-1877)

describe the impact of new railroads

• fully opened the West to settlement - made it easier to migrate west

• government and rail companies gave free land to farm either side of the railway

• rail companies got 6400 acres of land for each of mile railroad built

• made it easier to get goods to cities

• thousands of workers were needed

• it made cattle ranching much easier

• cattle towns developed - they had reputations for violence and debauchery

• the railroads divided Indian lands and disrupted the buffalo herds

who ordered the construction of the Transcontinental Railroads

Abraham Lincoln

what were the names of the companies involved in the Transcontinental Railroads and where did they start from

• Union Pacific (originated in Nebraska)

• Central Pacific (originated in California)

who did most of the hard work during the construction of the Transcontinental Railroads

• Irish and Chinese labourers

• who faced horrific conditions for low pay

how did the railroad impact Native Americans lives

• forced Native American nations off their lands

• buffalo populations (their main food source) were dwindling due to over predation by white settlers

• destruction of Native American ways of life - main factor of conflict post-construction

where was the meeting point for the 2 railroads

Promontory Summit, Utah

what date was the Transcontinental Railroads finished

May 10th 1869

what was the significance of the railroads for migration and settlement

cut the journey West from 6 months by wagon to 7 days by train

state the problems faced by homesteaders on the Plains from 1862

• water shortages

• weather extremes

• fuel

• dirt and disease

• lack of building materials

• natural hazards

• ploughing

• protecting crops

• growing crops

explain why water shortages was a problem faced by homesteaders on the Plains from 1862

• winter temperatures were freezing - caused available water sources to freeze up

• extreme summer temperatures - approx. 30 degrees C, increased water evaporation from available sources

explains the solutions homesteaders created to solve the problem of water shortages on the Plains from 1862

• drilling holes

  • deep holes were drilled into the ground

  • a wind pump was built above the hole to bring water to the surface

• ‘dry farming’

  • farmers would only plough their land when there was heavy rain

  • this left a thin layer of fine soil on the top of the land, which trapped the water beneath it

explain why fuel was a problem faced by homesteaders on the Plains from 1862

there was a lack of timber on the Plains, meaning there was no wood to burn as fuel

explains the solutions homesteaders created to solve the problem of fuel shortages on the Plains from 1862

homesteaders used dried buffalo and cow droppings as fuel for fires

explain why dirt and disease was a problem faced by homesteaders on the Plains from 1862

• most houses had an earth floor, sod walls and a grass roof

  • this caused an influx of mice, fleas and bedbugs in homesteaders’ homes

• lack of available water

  • meant it was more difficult for homesteaders to wash and stay clean

• diseases such as cholera and typhoid were rampant in the homesteader community

explains the solutions homesteaders created to solve the problem of dirt and disease on the Plains from 1862

many homesteaders lived in isolation, which limited the spread of disease through the entire population

explain why building materials was a problem faced by homesteaders on the Plains from 1862

there was a distinct lack of trees on the Plains, causing homesteaders to have to build ‘sod houses’

explains the solutions homesteaders created to solve the problem of building materials on the Plains from 1862

• many homesteaders learn to build houses out of sod, which was dry blocks of earth, often with grass roofs

• 1860s-1870s - most sod houses had holes for windows, with simple shutters as covers

• if built properly, these houses were cool in the summer and warmer in the winter

explain why natural hazards were a problem faced by homesteaders on the Plains from 1862

• WILDFIRES

  • summer - warmer temperatures meant grasslands on the Plains became extremely dry

  • this led to an increased frequency and intensity of wild fires

  • which spread rapidly across the Plains and destroyed the homes of homesteaders

• LOCUSTS

  • 1874-1877 - locusts swarmed across parts of the Great Plains, destroying crops grown by homesteaders

explain why ploughing was a problem faced by homesteaders on the Plains from 1862

• there was an immediate shortage of labour on the Plains due to the small populations of white settlers

• the Plains had never been ploughed, so issues like grasses with though roots damaged the iron ploughing equipment

explains the solutions homesteaders created to solve the problem of ploughing on the Plains from 1862

many homesteaders ploughed and harvested their own fields

explain why protecting crops was a problem faced by homesteaders on the Plains from 1862

• lack of timber on the Plains made fencing the land surrounding crops extremely difficult

• this lack of fencing meant the crops were prone to being eaten by cattle

explains the solutions homesteaders created to solve the problem of protecting crops on the Plains from 1862

• 1874 - Joseph Glidden invented barbed wire

  • barbed wire was a cheap and easy solution to allow homesteaders to fence their crops in

explain why growing crops was a problem faced by homesteaders on the Plains from 1862

• incredibly hard to plough land due to tough grass roots

• these roots were said to create ‘dense, tangled mats’

state 3 factors that led to people moving onto the Plains AFTER 1861

• American/European dream of becoming an independent farmer

• Lincoln’s government introducing the 1862 ‘Homestead Act’

• railroad companies created demand for land on the Plains by promoting the West as a land of great opportunity

explain how the American/European dream of becoming an independent farmer led to people moving onto the Plains AFTER 1861

• increasing price of land in Oregon and California in the 1860s meant this dream could only be fulfilled on the Plains

• due to this land being seen as ‘less desirable’ and cheaper

explain how Lincoln’s government introducing the 1862 ‘Homestead Act’ led to people moving onto the Plains AFTER 1861

• Homestead Act promised white Americans 160 acres of land on the Plains if they farmed it for a full 5 years and paid a small fee

• Homestead Act also allowed for single women to apply alongside men

  • 5-15% of all homesteaders were women

explain how railroad companies created demand for land on the Plains by promoting the West as a land of great opportunity led to people moving onto the Plains AFTER 1861

from the 1860s - railroad companies began huge advertising campaigns in both America and Europe on the concept of the promising American West

explain how US ‘colonialism’ led to tension and conflict on the Plains, 1861-1877

• between 1860s-1870s - more ranches and homesteaders colonised the West

• this colonisation forced Indigenous populations out of their land

  • led to the later formation of Indigenous reservations

• US colonialism was the driving force of conflict

explain how ecological tensions led to tension and conflict on the Plains, 1861-1877

• existing intense competition for land on the Plains between Native American nations

  • largely caused by the US government’s colonialism forcing Native American nations on to much smaller areas of land

• growing number of white settlers migrating onto the Plains created more competition for resources

• 1860 - white American settlement meant that the ecological tensions, created by competition for grassland and water, reached a crisis point

explain how hardening attitudes towards race led to tension and conflict on the Plains, 1861-1877

• white Americans believed in scientific theories that wrongly suggested that they were genetically-superior to other races

  • this influenced the white American belief that it was entirely natural that Indigenous Peoples should lose their lands

explain how increasing gun ownership led to tension and conflict on the Plains, 1861-1877

• growing gun ownership coupled with increasing suspicion and fear caused violence across the Plains

• 1850s - owning handguns and revolvers became widespread

  • Winchester’s repeating rifles were sold to hunters, farmers, local militia and Native Americans

• 1861-1865 - civil war led to an increase in gun ownership

• 1865 - 1/3 of households owned at least one gun

• guns were increasingly used to ‘solve’ conflicts

explain the causes of Little Crow’s War, 1862

• history of Dakota Sioux being cheated out of 28 million acres of land and forced to live on a small reservation in Minnesota

• Dakota Sioux faced starvation in summer, 1862, due to a lack of meat and corn

• the Santee Sioux appealed to local white traders for help, such as Andrew Myrick, but were told to eat ‘grass and dung’

explain actions during Little Crow’s War, 1862

• Sioux violence - attacks on farms, town and forts

  • violence killed 500 settlers, including Andrew Myrick

  • Andrew Myrick’s mouth was stuffed with grass - demonstrates that this tension was largely caused by racist attitudes

• Minnesota soldiers fought back, defeating the Sioux on September 23rd, 1862

• Little Crow, leader of the Sioux, escaped the Minnesota soldiers, but was shot by a farmer

describe the consequences of Little Crow’s War, 1862

• 300 Santee Sioux were put on trial and sentenced to death

  • however, Lincoln intervened to limit the execution to those guilt of murder or rape

• 38 were hanged on December 26th, 1862, hundreds were imprisoned

• Santee Sioux forcibly removed to a reservation in Dakota territory

explain the causes of the Sand Creek Massacre, 1864

• discovery of gold at Pike’s Peak in 1858, led to the relocation of Cheyenne and Arapaho to small reservations in eastern Colorado

  • these reservations were known for insufficient food production

• government agents refused to give more supplies, leading to Cheyenne warriors to hunt outside reservations and raid white settlements by 1864

• Lincoln granted the Governor of Colorado permission to raise a volunteer army for 100 days to counter the ‘Indian threat’

explain actions during the Sand Creek Massacre, 1864

• Chief Black Kettle and Southern Cheyenne made a peace agreement with army officers at Fort Lyon, rendering the Third Colorado Volunteers redundant

• The murder of a white settler by a Cheyenne warrior on 23 Nov 1864, led to Rev Chivington leading the 'Bloodless Third' to attack and massacre 105 Cheyenne women and children and 28 men.

describe the consequences of the Sand Creek Massacre, 1864

• Rocky Mountain News, a Colorado newspaper, glorified Chivington's 'victory', whilst a parade was held in Denver where crowds cheered the soldiers parading scalps.

• Soon the Government launched an investigation, arresting six of Chivington's men and forcing Chivington to resign from the army.

• Black Kettle moved his Southern Cheyenne to safer lands, but some fled north spreading news of their treatment to the Lakota Sioux

explain the causes of the Red Cloud’s War, 1866-1868

• 1862 tension between US army and the Lakota Sioux when gold miners created the Bozeman Trail across Sioux land, breaking the 1851 Fort Laramie Treaty.

• 1866 USA call a meeting at Fort Laramie to agree a treaty protecting white settlers but Chief Red Cloud refused to sign.

• USA began to establish army forts and a permanent military presence outraging the Lakota.

explain actions in the Red Cloud’s War, 1866-1868

• 1866 - Red Cloud and Crazy Horse led attacks on US forts, such as Fort Kearny whose garrison of 80 men led by Captain Fetterman were killed.

• Red Cloud's success continued through 1867-1868, forcing the US to negotiate.

describe the consequences of Red Cloud’s War, 1866-1868

• 1868 Fort Laramie Treaty granted vast lands to the Lakota Sioux, including the Black Hills of Dakota. White settlers were not permitted to enter these lands without permission.

• Treaty was a humiliation for the US government and led to a tougher policy: control of the Indian Conflict was handed over to Generals Sheridan and Sherman.

explain the causes of the Great Sioux War, 1876-1877

• 1874 claims of gold discovery in Black Hills led to tens of thousands of miners trespassing on Sioux land.

• Government treaty with Lakota to buy Black Hills for $6 million. Some chiefs (Red Cloud) signed, some didn't (Sitting Bull).

• Government ordered all Sioux and allies to return to reservation forts by Jan 1876, but Sitting Bull did not, so General Sheridan decided to round them up.

explain the actions in the Great Sioux War, 1876-1877

• 8 June 1876: First bloodshed - Crazy Horse led a small band of Cheyenne and Sioux to oppose the advancing forces of General Crook.

• 17 June: Inspired by a vision, Sitting Bull and Crazy Horse force Crook's army to withdraw at Rosebud River/Creek.

• 25 June: General Custer launches a daring cavalry charge of 210 men into the Sioux camp of 6000 by the Little Bighorn River. His force was wiped out.

describe the consequences of the Great Sioux War, 1876-1877

• Despite defeat at Little Bighorn the US government gradually gained the upper hand against the Sioux by starving them of resources.

• Crazy Horse was arrested and killed in 1877 on the pretext that he had tried to escape. Sitting Bull and a small band escaped to Canada.

• The remaining Sioux surrendered and the US took the Black Hills and a further 40 million acres of land.