APUSH CHAPTER 26

Clash of Cultures on the Plains

Conflict between settlers and Native Americans over land, resources, and culture on the Great Plains

Destruction of Buffalo

Hunters and railroads killed bison for hides, food, and to weaken Native American resistance

Reservation System

Government policy forcing Native Americans onto designated lands to open territory for settlers

Sand Creek Massacre (1864)

Colorado militia attacked and killed a peaceful Cheyenne village

Custer’s Last Stand (1876)

Lt. Col. Custer and his troops were defeated by Sioux and Cheyenne at Little Bighorn

Sitting Bull

Lakota Sioux leader who resisted U.S. expansion and supported the Ghost Dance

Chief Joseph

Nez Percé leader known for resistance and attempted escape to Canada

Dawes Act (1887)

Law that broke up reservations and gave land to individual Native Americans to promote assimilation

Effects of Dawes Act

Native Americans lost millions of acres to speculators and tribal identity weakened

Ghost Dance

Religious movement promising Native American renewal and disappearance of settlers

Wounded Knee (1890)

U.S. cavalry killed hundreds of Sioux, marking the end of major Native resistance

Pacific Railroad Act (1862)

Gave land and money to railroad companies to build a transcontinental railroad

Transcontinental Railroad (1869)

Connected East and West; boosted settlement and trade

Chinese Railroad Workers

Major workforce for Central Pacific Railroad construction

Homestead Act (1862)

Gave 160 acres to settlers who farmed land for five years

Homesteader Challenges

Drought, isolation, insects, and harsh weather made farming difficult

Mining Frontier

Gold and silver discoveries created boomtowns and rapid migration west

Bonanza Farms

Large, factory-like farms using machinery; hurt small farmers

Oklahoma Land Rush (1889)

Mass movement of settlers racing to claim Oklahoma land

Sooners

Settlers who illegally entered Oklahoma early to claim land

Frontier Thesis

Frederick Jackson Turner’s idea that the frontier shaped American democracy and character

Cattle Frontier

Cowboys drove cattle to railroads; ended by barbed wire and overgrazing

Billy the Kid

Famous outlaw and cattle rustler of the Wild West

Wyatt Earp

Western lawman known for law enforcement in boomtowns

Conservation Movement

Effort to protect western land and resources

Yellowstone National Park (1872)

First national park created to preserve natural land

John Muir

Leading conservationist and promoter of national parks

Grange Movement

Farmers’ organization pushing for railroad regulation

Farmers’ Alliances

Groups demanding economic reforms for farmers

Populist Party

Political party supporting farmers, free silver, and regulation of railroads

Panic of 1893

Economic depression causing unemployment and bank failures

Coxey’s Army

Group of unemployed workers who marched on Washington for jobs

William Jennings Bryan

Free-silver advocate known for the Cross of Gold speech

Election of 1896

McKinley defeated Bryan; supported gold standard and industry

End of the Frontier (1890)

Census declared frontier closed, signaling shift in U.S. expansion