AMSCO Chapter 17

The Great American Desert

Name given to lands between the Mississippi and the Pacific Coast before 1860. There was very little rainfall in this area and the conditions were poor for settlement.

buffalo herds

These animals were essential to the nomadic Native American tribes. In early 19th century there were 15 million of these animals on the Great Plains, but by 1900 they were nearly wiped out.

Great Plains

The region west of the Mississippi River and east of the Rocky Mountains.

mining frontier, boomtowns

In 1848, the discovery of gold in California caused the first flood of newcomers to the territory. Gold and silver were later discovered in many other areas of the west. These discoveries caused towns to grow up very quickly, then often lose population and collapse after the mining was no longer profitable.

Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882

In the 1860s, about one-third of the western miners were Chinese immigrants. Native-born Americans resented the competition of these immigrants. In 1862, this act was passed to prohibit further immigration by Chinese laborers to the United States. (p. 341)

long drives

Moving the cattle from Texas to railroad towns in Kansas.

Homestead Act

In 1862, this act offered 160 acres of public land free to any family that settled on it for 5 years.

Great Plains tribes

These nomadic tribes, such as the Sioux, Blackfoot, Cheyenne, Crow, and Comanche, had given up farming in colonial times after the introduction of the horse by the Spanish. By the 1700s, they had become skillful horse riders and their lives centered on hunting buffalo.

Southwest tribes

These tribes in the Southwest, such as Navajo and Apache adopted a settled life, raising crops and livestock, and producing arts and crafts.

Battle of Little Big Horn

In 1876, the Sioux Indians, led by Crazy Horse and Sitting Bull, massacred the U.S. 7th Cavalry led by General Custer. This was the last major battle between the U.S. Army and the American Indians. (p. 345)

Assimilationists

The idea that Native Americans should be integrated into American society by becoming educated, adopting American culture, customs, and Christianity.

Dawes Act of 1887

This act supported the idea of assimilation of the American Indians. It divided tribal lands into plots of up to 160 acres. U.S. citizenship was granted to those who stayed on the land for 25 years and adopted the habits of American life.

Ghost Dance movement

This religious movement was a last effort of Native Americans to resist U.S. government domination and drive whites from their ancestral lands. In an effort to suppress the movement, at the Battle of Wounded Knee more that 200 American Indians were killed. This battle marked the end of the Indian Wars.

Indian Reorganization Act of 1934

In 1934, this act promoted the re-establishment of tribal organization and culture. Today, more than 3 million American Indians, belonging to 500 tribes, live within the United States.

Yellowstone, Yosemite

In 1872, this area of Wyoming was declared the first national park. In 1864 this area in California was declared a state park, later it became a national park.

John Muir, Sierra Club

In 1892, he founded this organization, with the goal of preserving some natural areas from human intervention.

New South

After the Civil War, the South was in a period of recovery. There was a new vision for a self-sufficient southern economy built on economic diversity and laissez-faire capitalism.

Henry Grady

Journalist from Georgia who coined the phrase "New South". Promoted his ideas through the Atlanta Constitution, as editor.

Birmingham steel

This Southern city developed into one the nation's leading steel producers.

sharecropping; tenant farmers

After the Civil War, most Southerners of both races remained in traditional roles and barely got by from year to year as sharecroppers and farmers.

George Washington Carver

An African-American scientist, who promoted planting of diverse crops such as peanuts, sweet potatoes, and soybeans.

Tuskegee Institute

An industrial and agricultural school established by Booker T. Washington to train blacks.

Plessy v. Ferguson

An 1896, Supreme Court landmark case, which ruled that separate but equal accommodations in public places were constitutional and did not violate the 14th amendment.

Jim Crow laws

In the 1870s, the South passed segregation laws which required separate washrooms, drinking fountains, park benches, and most other public facilities, for blacks and whites.

literacy tests, poll taxes, grandfather clauses

After Reconstruction, various political and legal devices were created to prevent southern blacks from voting.

white primaries, white juries

After Reconstruction, discrimination took many forms. Political party primaries were created for whites only, and African Americans were barred from serving on juries.

lynch mobs

In the 1890s, more than 1,400 African American men were hung by a mob without trial by Southerners.

Ida B. Wells

She was the editor of a black newspaper, she campaigned against lynching and Jim Crow laws.

Booker T. Washington

Famous African-American, who established an industrial and agricultural school for African Americans in 1881. He taught the virtues of hard work, moderation, and economic self-help. In 1900, he organized the National Negro Business League to support businesses owned by African Americans.

crop price deflation

After the Civil War, increased American and foreign food production caused a downward pressure on prices. For instance, corn per bushel prices, went from $.78 in 1867 to .$.28 in 1889.

National Grange Movement

In 1868, this organization was created primarily as a social and educational help for farmers.

Granger laws

In some states, the Grangers, with help from local businesses, successfully lobbied their state legislatures to pass laws regulating the rates charged by railroads and elevators.

census of 1890

The census of 1890 declared that except for a few pockets, the entire frontier had been settled.

Frederick Jackson Turner, "The Significance of the Frontier in American History"

He argued that 300 years of frontier experience had shaped American culture by promoting independence and individualism.