Topic 3 People, Places, and Things

Dawes General Allotment Act

Law that broke up tribal lands into small parcels for individual families.

Exodusters

African Americans who moved from the South to Kansas seeking freedom and land.

Grange

An organization formed by farmers to advocate for better economic conditions.

Homestead Act

Law that offered 160 acres of free public land to settlers who agreed to farm it.

Pendleton Civil Service Act

Law requiring federal government jobs to be filled based on merit and exams.

Political Machine

An organized group that controlled party activities in a city to maintain power.

Populist Party

A political movement calling for a larger money supply and economic reform.

Reservations

Specific areas of public land set aside by the government for Native American tribes.

Spoils System

The practice of rewarding political supporters with government jobs.

Vigilantes

Groups of citizens who took the law into their own hands to punish criminals.