American History: Plains Indians, Westward Expansion, and the Civil War

Vocabulary flashcards covering the culture of the Plains Indians, early westward migration, the Mormon movement, Plains Indian wars, causes and effects of the American Civil War, and the settlement of the Homesteaders.

Tipis

Circular dwellings used by nomadic Plains tribes that were quick to assemble and dismantle, could withstand extreme plains weather, and stayed hot in winter and cool in summer.

Exposure

The tribal practice where elderly members who were too old willingly remained behind to die, placing the good of the tribe first.

Counting Coup

A Plains warrior practice of tapping an enemy with a stick to demonstrate bravery by getting close without dying, rooted in the belief that an enemy dead was not an enemy overcome honourably.

Dog Soldiers

Elite Native American warriors responsible for protecting the tribe at all costs and organising the communal buffalo hunt.

Wakan Tanka

The Great Spirit revered by Plains Native Americans within their belief system of Nature's Great Circle and universal harmony.

Mountain Men

Early nomadic trappers who hunted animals in the dangerous conditions of the Rocky Mountains, traded fur in NYC, and later served as trailblazers for settlers moving West.

Forty-Niners (49ers)

Migrants who traveled to California following the 1848 discovery of gold, facing harsh conditions, high crime rates, and depleted gold supplies upon arrival.

Manifest Destiny

The belief held by white Americans that it was God's will for them to expand across and populate the West, viewing those in their way as traitors to God and the United States.

Danites

A secret Mormon army established in Missouri between 1837 and 1838 that raised tensions with non-Mormon settlers.

Gentiles

The term used by Mormons to designate non-Mormons, reflecting their belief that Mormons were God's chosen people.

Extermination Order

An official decree issued by Governor Boggs in Missouri that forced the Mormons to flee the state in 1838.

Brigham Young

The Mormon leader who took over following the death of Joseph Smith and organised the migration of 15,000 Mormons to the Great Salt Lake Valley.

Autarky

The Mormon policy of complete economic self-sufficiency at Salt Lake City designed to avoid contact with non-Mormons.

Perpetual Emigration Fund

A financial system established by the Mormons that planned and funded the journey of converts from around the world to Salt Lake City.

Mountain Meadow Massacre

An incident where Mormons killed unarmed settlers crossing their land and blamed the attack on Native Americans, leading the US government to establish the Utah Territory instead of the state of Deseret.

Little Crow's War (1862)

An uprising by the Santee Sioux led by Little Crow following crop failure and broken government promises; it ended in the defeat of the Dakota and the hanging of 38 prisoners.

Sand Creek Massacre (1864)

The slaughter of 163 Native Americans, primarily women and children, led by Colonel Chivington against Chief Black Kettle's camp after they were promised protection.

Red Cloud's War (1866–1868)

A conflict sparked by the Bozeman Trail crossing Sioux hunting grounds, resulting in the Fetterman Massacre (80 white casualties) and the US Army surrendering and abandoning its forts.

Missouri Compromise (1820)

An agreement establishing that new states north of the Missouri state line would be free and those south could hold slaves.

Compromise of 1850

A legislative compromise that admitted California as a free state, organized new western territories, and established a stricter Fugitive Slave Law.

Kansas-Nebraska Act (1854)

A law allowing settlers in new western territories to decide by vote whether to be free or slave territories, turning the region into a violent battleground.

Nat Turner's Rebellion

A slave uprising that resulted in the deaths of 60 white people, followed by the execution of Turner and over 200 slaves and new Virginian laws prohibiting slaves from reading and writing.

Secession of South Carolina

The formal departure of South Carolina from the Union on 20th December 1860 following the election of Abraham Lincoln, prompting 10 other southern states to follow.

Jefferson Davis

A former Mississippi senator elected as President of the Confederate States of America, who led the South and ordered the attack on Fort Sumter.

Fort Sumter

A federal Union fort in South Carolina fired upon by Confederate forces on 12th April 1861 under Davis's orders, marking the start of the Civil War.

Emancipation Proclamation (1863)

An executive order issued during the Civil War declaring all enslaved people in Confederate territory free.

14th Amendment (1868)

A constitutional amendment providing freed enslaved people with full legal protection under the law.

Carpetbaggers

Northern individuals who moved to the South during the Reconstruction Era to profit financially from the rebuilding process.

Homestead Act (1862)

A law passed to encourage western settlement by granting settlers 160 acres of public land.

Timber Culture Act (1873)

Legislation granting homesteaders additional land on the condition that they planted 40 acres of trees.

Sodbuster (1872)

A durable steel plow developed in 1872 that allowed Plains homesteaders to break through tough, dry prairie sod.

Battle of the Little Bighorn (1876)

A clash where General Custer and all 200 men of his immediate command were killed by Sioux warriors under Crazy Horse after Custer divided his forces and refused Gatling guns.

Dawes Act (1887)

A federal policy aimed at dismantling tribal reservations and forcing Native Americans to assimilate into individual Christian farmers.

Indian Agents

Government-appointed officials assigned to administer Native American reservations, undermining traditional tribal authority and chief leadership.

Battle of Wounded Knee (1890)

The final major armed conflict between the US Army and Plains Indians, marking the suppression of the Ghost Dance movement and Native resistance.