Chapter 17: Conquering the West

Native Americans have long inhabited the American West, culturally and geographically connected through
trade, travel, and warfare.
Indigenous groups controlled most of the land west of the Mississippi River until the nineteenth century.
Various imperial powers (Spanish, French, British, American) interacted with regional economies, yet no
power had achieved military control over the continent.
The Civil War decoupled the Western expansion from the slavery question and coincided with U.S. industrialization.
Unprecedented westward migration followed, leading to the removal of Native Americans to reservations and
the incorporation of the West into statehood.
The history of the late nineteenth-century West represents intertwined narratives of tragedy and triumph.

Post-Civil War, there was a mass migration across the Mississippi River as Americans sought new opportunities.
Early migrants aimed for fortunes in gold and silver during mid-century mining booms in various states.
- Gold rushes occurred in Colorado (1858), Nevada (1859), Idaho (1860), Montana (1863), and the Black Hills (1874).
Despite initial hopes in mining, many found livelihood through service industries in mining towns.
An influx of approximately 100,000 migrants significantly contributed to regional development beyond mining wealth.
Many settlers sought bison hides for industrial leather, resulting in mass bison slaughters by the 1870s.
The number of American bison plummeted from over 10 million mid-century to a few hundred by the early 1880s.
Railroads began to replace bison with cattle ranching on the Great Plains.

The so-called "Indian Wars" consisted of brief military engagements largely driven by U.S. expansionism.
The ongoing movement of Native American tribes conflicted with American settlement and railroads.
Federal policies sought to isolate Native American tribes onto reservations post-Civil War.
The Dakota War of 1862 marked significant tension as Sioux tribes clashed with settlers and the military.

August 17, 1862: Tensions escalated with the killing of five settlers by the Dakota Sioux.
Following calls for war, spearheaded by governor militia in Minnesota, fighting resulted in significant casualties.
Over 2,000 Sioux were taken prisoner, leading to military tribunals convicting 303, with Lincoln commuting most sentences.
Minnesota settlers pressured for the Sioux to lose reservation land, followed by military pursuits.

The massacre of two hundred Cheyenne at Sand Creek in Colorado heightened violence and pushed for a new peace policy.
Congress created an Indian Peace Commission in 1868 to reform Indian policies after such tragedies.

Other tribes like the Utes and Paiutes faced similar fates due to American expansion.
The Navajo were forced into the Bosque Redondo after the Long Walk, which holds historical significance today.
The reservation conditions were dire and led to a return to their homeland via the 1868 Treaty.
Conflicts in California and the Pacific Northwest resulted in significant violence and population decline among Native peoples.

The economic landscape of the West evolved with agriculture, metal extraction, ranching, and railroads.
Railroads significantly transformed the economy, providing infrastructure for existing industries while attracting enormous capital investment.
- The Pacific Railroad Act allowed vast land grants and bonds for railroad construction.
By 1880, the railroad workforce included approximately 400,000 men, predominantly immigrants.
The first cattle drives began post-Civil War, supplying beef to burgeoning eastern markets and resulting in the establishment of various trails.
The growth of ranching was significant, with cattle drives dwindling as rail lines reached Texas, changing the cowboy way of life.

Native Americans faced intensified pressures to privatize their lands under the Dawes Act of 1887.
The Dawes Act aimed to allot individual lands to Native Americans, undermining tribal sovereignty.
The act operated under the guise of protection but stripped Native Americans of their communal lands and resources.

Wovoka, a Paiute prophet, preached a vision of spiritual revival among Native Americans, gaining popularity and leading to the Ghost Dance movement.
Fears of suppression by federal agents heightened as leaders were arrested, culminating in the Wounded Knee Massacre in 1890.

The American West portrayed in culture includes images of cowboys, Indians, and outlaws, largely shaped by literature and spectacle.
Rodeos originated as casual contests and evolved into celebrated competitions that reflected the cowboy lifestyle.
Buffalo Bill Cody’s Wild West shows popularized Western life, mixing actual cowboys and farmers with a romanticized view of frontier struggles.

Frederick Jackson Turner’s frontier thesis argued that American civilization progressed through the expansion westward.
Turner expressed concerns about the loss of the frontier and its implications for American identity and culture.
Critics noted Turner’s oversights regarding non-white populations and economic dynamics of frontier life, yet his ideas influenced historic perspectives.

Comprehensive references for further reading on topics within the chapter, including titles from various authors on Indian history, western expansion, and cultural representations.