The American West - Unit 1 Flashcards

Vocabulary flashcards covering key historical terms, legislation, events, and individuals from Unit 1 of The American West.

Counting coup

The act of touching an enemy during battle.

Wakan Tanka

The Great Spirit believed by Indigenous peoples to have created all living things.

Black Hills

A location regarded by Indigenous peoples as very sacred land.

Tipis

Shelters made from buffalo skin that allowed Indigenous tribes to live a nomadic lifestyle; decorated by men and looked after by women.

Indian Removal Act of 1830

A law that forced Indigenous peoples to move west of the Mississippi River, creating a permanent Indian frontier separating them from white settlers.

Trail of Tears

The forced movement west of Indigenous peoples following the Indian Removal Act of 1830.

Indian Appropriations Act of 1851

Legislation that established reservations and introduced schools intended to 'civilise' Indigenous peoples.

Fort Laramie Treaty of 1851

An agreement aimed at ending tribal conflict, creating borders, and allowing white migrants to cross Indigenous land in exchange for government protection and $50,000 a year.

Manifest Destiny

The belief that America was a perfect country and God wanted Americans to expand across it.

Early Pioneers

Men who hunted beavers for fur in the mountains and discovered routes and passages through the mountains.

Oregon Trail

A route from Missouri to Oregon created in 1836 with the help of Early Pioneers to make travelling west easier.

Donner Party

A group led by the Donner brothers that set off in May 1846 from Independence, Missouri to California, became trapped in the Sierra Nevada mountains, and had 46 out of 87 members survive after some resorted to cannibalism.

Hastings Cutoff

A route taken by the Donner Party that took longer than planned, causing them to lose wagons and cattle.

Polygamy

The practice of a man having more than one wife, as was practiced by the Mormons.

Brigham Young and Joseph Smith

The two Mormon leaders named on the study sheet.

Sutter's Mill

The California location where gold was discovered in 1849.

Claim jumping

The act of trying to take mining land that somebody else had already claimed.

Aurora

A mining town developed after silver was discovered in 1860, featuring a mostly white and male population, about 200 women (50% prostitutes), 1 church, 25 saloons, 80 children, and 1 school.

Lawlessness

A lack of law and order which leads to more crime.

Miners' courts

Courts created in mining communities without proper legal systems to put accused criminals on trial before a court and jury.

Vigilantes

People who took law and order into their own hands, putting suspected criminals on trial and hanging them.

The Reno Gang

A gang in San Francisco formed by people who turned to crime after being unable to find work.