The New South and Settlement of the West (Hist 2511)

A comprehensive set of Q&A flashcards covering the key points from the lecture notes on the New South, segregation, the West’s economic development, and Indigenous displacement.

Who were the dominant, conservative oligarchs that came to control the Southern economy and politics after Reconstruction?

The Redeemers, also known as Bourbons.

What economic stance did Redeemers advocate in the New South?

Low taxes, reduced spending, and diminished state services.

How did textile manufacturing in the New South compare to the North, and what change occurred in spindles from 1800 to 1900?

It developed similarly to the North initially; the number of spindles increased by about 90% from 1800 to 1900.

Which company established a near monopoly on smoking products in the South?

The American Tobacco Company.

What change occurred in railroad development in the late 19th century?

Railroad track length doubled from 1880 to 1890.

By 1900, how did Southern incomes compare to Northern levels?

Southern incomes were only about 40% of Northern levels.

What remained the backbone of the Southern economy despite industrial growth?

Agriculture.

What system became more dominant in the decades after Reconstruction to finance farming?

The Crop Lien system.

Why was credit hard to obtain in the postwar South, and who filled the gap?

There was no viable banking sector; furnishing merchants provided credit.

Describe the terms of credit offered to farmers under the Crop Lien system.

Credit at exorbitant rates with loans backed by liens on property and crops; goods often purchased at inflated prices.

What agricultural pattern did the Crop Lien system encourage?

Single-crop agriculture to quickly convert crops into cash.

What was lacking in the South that affected black equality and federal policy?

General lack of federal support for black equality; federal troops were withdrawn and Congress lost interest.

Which 1883 Supreme Court action weakened protections of the 14th and 15th Amendments?

The Civil Rights Cases (1883).

What major ruling in 1896 upheld racial segregation with 'separate but equal' facilities?

Plessy v. Ferguson.

What did the 1899 case Cumming v. County Board of Education establish about education facilities?

Allowed separate education facilities for whites even if no comparable black facilities were provided.

What was one of the most effective methods used to maintain white supremacy in the South?

Disfranchisement of Black voters.

List some methods used to disenfranchise Black voters.

Poll taxes, property qualifications, literacy tests, and grandfather clauses.

What broader system did Jim Crow laws expand?

A system of segregation across the South (separate facilities for whites and Blacks).

What violent practice became a regular feature of life for Black people in the Jim Crow era?

Lynching.

What was the general impact of Westward settlement on the Plains?

Settlement accelerated by federal acts and rail links, though population growth was slow.

Name the three major federal acts that promoted Plains settlement in the 19th century.

Homestead Act (1862), Timber Culture Act (1877), Desert Land Act (1877).

What area remained unorganized as states by 1900 besides Arizona and New Mexico?

Oklahoma.

What resource boomed the West economically through mining?

Mining (gold, copper, etc.).

Where and when were major early gold discoveries made in the West?

Colorado (Pike’s Peak) in 1858, Nevada (Washoe) in 1859, and the Black Hills of Dakota Territory in 1874.

What role did cattle play in Western growth, and what routes facilitated this growth?

Cattle were a major economic driver; long drives to Sedalia, MO, and Abilene, KS via routes like the Chisholm Trail.

What happened to open cattle ranges in the 1880s, and what followed?

Open ranges were overstocked and hit hard by two severe winters (1885–86); permanent ranches and more intensive farming followed.

What thesis (1893) argued that the frontier shaped American democracy and individualism?

Frederick Jackson Turner’s Frontier Thesis.

What cultural impact did the West have, according to Turner’s thesis and later culture?

A romantic image of the cowboy; literature glorified rough Western life; frontier inspired American identity.

What act aimed to assimilate Native Americans by breaking up communal land ownership, and when was it enacted?

The Dawes Act of 1887.

How were Native lands allocated under the Dawes Act?

160 acres to the head of a family, 80 acres to a single adult, and 40 acres to a dependent child.

How long did landowners have to wait before they received title to their allotments under the Dawes Act?

25 years.

What was the intended purpose of the Dawes Act, and how successful was it?

To assimilate Native Americans into American society; it was largely a failure and abandoned by World War I.

What impact did U.S. policy have on buffalo herds, and why did this matter for Plains tribes?

Buffalo herds were destroyed due to policy corruption, undermining Plains tribes and facilitating settler encroachment.

What were some major Indigenous uprisings or resistance events in the West during the 1860s–1880s?

Sioux uprising in Minnesota (Little Crow); Sand Creek Massacre; Crazy Horse and Sitting Bull; Battle of the Little Bighorn (Custer’s Last Stand, 1876); Nez Perce resistance (Chief Joseph, 1877); Apache wars ending with Geronimo (1886); Ghost Dance and the Wounded Knee Massacre (1890).