Unit 9: Immigration and Changes on the Western Frontier practice flashcards

Flashcards covering the history of the Western Frontier, indigenous nations, populism, and late 19th-century immigration as presented in the lecture.

James Garfield

A Republican Party member elected as President in $1880$ who wanted to be a reformer; he was inaugurated in March $1881$ and died on September $18, 1881$ after being shot.

Charles Guiteau

The individual who shot President James Garfield on July $2nd, 1881$.

Great Plains

A large grassland in the center and west of the US where many indigenous nations had long established histories prior to the Mexican American War.

Treaty of Fort Laramie ($1868$)

An agreement that established a reservation for the Sioux Nation and closed the Bozeman trail.

Bozeman Trail

A path leading to Montana that cut through indigenous hunting territory and was the site of violence during Red Cloud’s War.

Cowboys

A diverse workforce (composed of $25\%$ African American and $12\%$ Mexican workers) that handled the increased demand for beef after the Civil War.

Transcontinental Railroad

A rail link completed in $1869$ that connected the East and West coasts, primarily built by Civil War veterans and various immigrant groups.

Closure of the Frontier

A declaration by the government in the $1890$ Census that the frontier no longer existed, as the percentage of the population living west of the Mississippi grew to $30\%$ by $1900$.

Dugouts

Homes carved into the side of a ravine used by families who needed to be self-sufficient on the Great Plains.

Soddies

Houses made of sod built by settlers living on the Great Plains.

Homestead Act ($1862$)

A law where Congress offered $160$ acres of free land to any citizen or intended citizen who was the head of a household.

Sooners

Settlers who claimed land in Oklahoma (Indian Territory) "sooner" than they were legally allowed during the $1889$ land giveaway.

Morrill Acts

Laws passed in $1862$ and $1890$ that gave federally owned land to states for the creation of agricultural colleges.

Hatch Act

An $1887$ law that created agricultural experiment stations to develop and teach new farming techniques to Great Plains farmers.

Solomon Butcher

A photographer known for taking pictures of homesteaders in the Great Plains during the $1880s$, often documenting their homes and livestock.

Panic of $1893$

An economic depression that occurred when many railroads went bankrupt, resulting in a nationwide unemployment rate of $20\%$.

Greenbacks

US currency issued during the Civil War that was not backed by gold or silver and was worth less than gold-backed dollars.

Deflation

An overall lowering of prices in an economy that increases the value of money but makes it harder for farmers to pay back loans.

The Grange

A social club for farmers that evolved into a political movement used to fight against railroad companies.

Farmers’ Alliance

An organization that educated people in various towns on how interest rates could be lowered.

Populism (People’s Party)

A "movement of the people" that advocated for an increase in the money supply, a graduated income tax, an $8$ hour work day, and the popular election of senators.

Gold Bugs

Bankers and businessmen who favored the gold standard to decrease the amount of money in circulation, resulting in deflation.

Silverites

Farmers and laborers who favored bimetallism to increase the money supply, resulting in inflation and decreasing the value of money.

William Jennings Bryan

The Democratic candidate in the Presidential Election of $1896$ who was supported by the Silverites.

Leon Czolgosz

The anarchist who shot and killed President McKinley at the Pan American Exposition in Buffalo, NY, in $1901$.

Massacre at Sand Creek

An event occurring under General Curtis where the US Army killed $150$ members of the Cheyenne tribe, mostly women and children.

Sitting Bull

The indigenous leader whose forces defeated the entire $7th$ Cavalry within an hour at the Battle of Little Big Horn.

Battle of Little Big Horn

Also known as "Custer’s Last Stand," an indigenous victory where the Sioux and Cheyenne defeated US military forces.

Wounded Knee

An $1890$ massacre where the US cavalry killed between $150$ and $300$ Sioux people, ending the era of military resistance.

American Bison ("Buffalo")

A vital food source for Great Plains indigenous nations that was systematically exterminated by the US government to destroy the tribes' way of life.

Dawes Act ($1887$)

An act intended to assimilate Native Americans by dividing reservations into individual $160$ acre plots of land.

Indian Boarding Schools

A system of residential schools designed for forced assimilation where Native American children often faced harsh treatment, abuse, and neglect.

Agrarianism

An ideal held by Founders like Jefferson who believed a nation of farmers was more pure and less corrupt than a nation of cities.

Urbanization

The growth of cities resulting from the Second Industrial Revolution, leading to new jobs and economic mobility but also causing overcrowding and child labor.

Ellis Island

The arrival point in New York for many European immigrants during the late $19th$ century.

Angel Island

The arrival point in San Francisco where many Asian immigrants entered the United States.

Chinese Exclusion Act ($1882$)

The first US law to limit immigration based on national origin, it prohibited the entry of Chinese laborers for $10$ years.