Chapter 17 - Conquering the West Terms & IDs

bison

a large wild animal of the cow family that is covered with hair. The North American bison is also called a buffalo.

Homestead Act of 1862

Encouraged westward settlement by allowing heads of families to buy 160 acres of land for a small fee ($10-30); settlers were required to develop and remain on the land for five years. Over 400,000 families got land through this law.

Mormons

Church founded by Joseph Smith in 1830 with headquarters in Salt Lake City, Utah, religious group that emphasized moderation, saving, hard work, and risk-taking. Led into Utah by their 2nd leader Brigham Young.

Brigham Young

Successor to the Mormons after the death of Joseph Smith; responsible for the survival of the sect and its establishment in Salt Lake City, Utah.

reservations

public lands where Native Americans were required to live by the federal government.

Buffalo Soldiers

Name given to African American soldiers who served in the U.S. Army on the western frontier and fought in the Indian Wars (1854-1890).

First Treaty of Fort Laramie

Agreement that established distinct tribal borders, essentially codifying the reservation system with a return for annual payments to the tribes as well as the hollow promise of noninterference from westward settlers. Indians agreed to stay clear of the path of settlement.

Sand Creek Massacre

1864 incident in which Colorado militia attacked a camp of Cheyenne and Arapaho Indians, some of who were under U.S. Army protection.

Indian Peace Commission

Established in 1867 to end the Indian wars in the West, the commission's solution was to contain the Indians in a system of reservations.

General George Armstrong Custer

United States general who was killed along with all his command by the Sioux at the Battle of Little Bighorn.

Sitting Bull

a war chief and important spiritual leader who became the first-ever chief of all the Lakota Sioux bands in the 1860s. After surrendering t the Army in 1881, he lived on a reservation where he was killed by Indian policy sent to arrest him.

Battle of Little Bighorn

1876 battle in which the Sioux defeated U.S. Army troops, including General George Armstrong Custer in what became known as "Custer's Last Stand."

The Long Walk

On this 300-mile march Navajo were forced to walk across the desert to a reservation in Bosque Redondo, New Mexico.

The Treaty of Bosque Redondo

Unprecedented treaty permitting the Navajo to return to their homeland.

Chief Joseph

succeeded his father as chief of the Nez Percé in 1871. Six years later he led his followers on an unsuccessful flight to escape confinement on a reservation. First sent to Oklahoma, they were eventually returned to a new reservation in Washington state. However, he was unable to secure their return to their tribal homeland.

Transcontinental Railroad

Completed in 1869 at Promontory, Utah, it linked the eastern railroad system with California's railroad system, revolutionizing transportation in the west

cowboys

Cattle handlers who drove large herds across the southern Great Plains. The era of the cowboy lasted from 1870 to the late 1880s.

cattle drive

Method cowboys used to move large herds of cattle north from ranches in Texas towns along Rail Road in late 1800's.

allotment

a plot of land assigned to an individual or a family for cultivation.

Dawes General Allotment Act

legislation passed by Congress that split up Indian reservation lands among individual Indians and promised them citizenship

Ghost Dance

A ritual the Sioux performed to bring back the buffalo, and return the Native American tribes to their land.

Wounded Knee

1890 confrontation between U.S. calvary and Sioux that marked the end of Indian resistance.

Wild West Shows

Traveling vaudeville performances in the United States and Europe that used music, dance, comedy, trained animals, and more to tell romanticized stories of the Wild West.

William "Buffalo Bill" Cody

Rugged frontiersman and sharpshooter who created "Buffalo Bill's Wild West" traveling show, one of the touring extravaganzas that enjoyed incredible popularity during the last quarter of the nineteenth century.

Annie Oakley

Was a famous American sharpshooter who starred in Buffalo Bill's Wild West show for over 16 years.

Frederick Jackson Turner's Frontier Thesis

American historian who said that humanity would continue to progress as long as there was new land to move into. The frontier provided a place for homeless and solved social problems.

assimilated

absorbed

land grants

Federally owned acreage granted to the railroad companies in order to encourage the building of rail lines

open-range system

system in which ranchers did not fence in their property, allowing cattle to roam and graze freely

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