The Conquest of the American West and the New South

A set of vocabulary flashcards covering key terms and concepts from the lecture on the American West and the New South.

The New South

A vision for a self-sufficient Southern economy built on modern capitalist values.

Henry Grady

The chief proponent of the New South advocating for industrial growth and improved transportation.

Transcontinental Railroad Act

Acts from 1862 and 1864 that approved land grants and subsidies for building a transcontinental railroad.

Buffalo Bill Cody

Famous for providing bison meat to railroad workers and for his 'Wild West' traveling show.

Reservation System

Federal policy that forcibly moved Native American tribes onto land specifically reserved for them.

Band Creek Massacre

In 1864, a massacre where military forces killed over 200 Cheyenne and Arapaho tribesmen.

Wounded Knee Massacre

A massacre in 1890 that marked the end of the Indian Wars, resulting in the death of 250-300 Native Americans.

Homestead Act

Enacted during the Civil War, allowing citizens to claim government land and requiring them to reside and improve it.

Exodusters

African American families that left the South after the failure of Radical Reconstruction.

Dawes Act of 1887

Legislation that broke up tribal lands into individual plots for Native American families, promoting assimilation.

Granger Movement

An organization of farmers aimed at economic reform to restrict the power of monopolistic companies.

Interstate Commerce Act

Federal law aimed at regulating the railroad industry, particularly its monopolistic practices.