The American West, 1865-1900

Selling the Western Frontier: Chief Joseph

  • Focus: Selling the Western Frontier and its impact on Native Americans.
  • Chief Joseph: Known for "I will fight no more forever."
  • Impact on Natives: Western settlement and buffalo destruction affected Native American groups.

The Three D's

  • Destruction: Of resources and way of life.
  • Disorganization: Of social structures.
  • Disposability: Displacement and marginalization.

Buffalo and Native Americans

  • Buffalo Slaughter: Systematic wiping out of buffalo to harm Native American populations who relied on them for food, shelter, and tools.

Reservations and Assimilation

  • Reservations: Natives were confined to reservations after being pushed out of the West.
  • Government Promises: The government promised food and fuel but often failed to deliver consistently.
  • Assimilation: Natives were pressured to assimilate by abandoning their customs, converting to agriculture, Christianity, and adopting English language and culture.
The Dawes Act
  • Assimilation Legislation: The Dawes Act aimed to assimilate Native Americans.
FDR's New Deal
  • Reverse Dawes Act: FDR's New Deal included policies that reversed some aspects of the Dawes Act.

Sand Creek Massacre

  • Government Injustice: The Sand Creek Massacre exemplified the government's inability to differentiate between peaceful and non-peaceful Native Americans.
  • Peaceful People: Peaceful Native Americans camped at Sand Creek, Colorado, were attacked.

Custer and Little Bighorn

  • Custer's Actions: Custer split his army and viewed natives with contempt.
  • Black Hills: Custer was in the Black Hills to confirm the presence of gold.
  • Battle of Little Bighorn: Custer and his men were wiped out, but he was viewed as a hero and martyr by the rest of the country.

Fort Robinson Massacre

  • Lack of Supplies: The Fort Robinson Massacre occurred due to the lack of fuel and food.
  • Chief Dull Knife: Involved Chief Dull Knife and his people, who were hunted down after breaking out of Fort Robinson, Wyoming.

Ghost Dance and Wounded Knee

  • Sitting Bull: Sitting Bull was blamed for the Ghost Dance cultural ceremony and was killed by reservation police.
  • Wounded Knee Massacre: Followed an attempt to disarm a young native, resulting in a major massacre and considered one of the worst in American history.

Apache and Assimilation Schools

  • Apache: Considered aggressive, leading to the name of attack helicopters.
  • Assimilation Schools: Native American children were sent to assimilation schools, where they faced sexual and physical abuse while being forced to learn English and Christianity.

Helen Hunt Jackson and the Dawes Act

  • Century of Dishonor: Helen Hunt Jackson wrote about broken treaties and government lies in "A Century of Dishonor."
  • Dawes Act: Focused on assimilation, with chiefs sending their young people to violent assimilation schools.

Orange Shirt Day

  • Commemoration: Orange Shirt Day commemorates the violence and abuses that occurred at assimilation schools.

Homesteading

  • Requirements: Settlers could claim land if they lived on it for five years.
  • Hardships: Homesteading involved troubles such as horrible, dry land, conflicts with natives, locusts, starvation, freezing, disease, and backbreaking work.

Gold Rush and Bonanza Farms

  • Gold Rush: Led to boom towns throughout the Rockies.
  • Bonanza Farms: Large-scale factory farms that outcompeted small farmers, leading to their downfall.

Oklahoma Land Rush

  • Indian Removal: The land was taken from Native Americans after the Indian Removal.
  • Sooners: People who left early and claimed land illegally were called Sooners.

Turner Thesis

  • Frederick Turner: Frontier line was disappearing, with more settlement in the 19th and 20th centuries.
  • Impact: Led to songs, paintings, movies, radio programs, and TV shows about the West.

Western Figures

  • Billy the Kid: An outlaw made famous, eventually tracked down and killed.
  • Wild Bill: Associated with Deadwood, South Dakota.

Conservation and Preservation

  • John Muir: Scottish immigrant, conservationist, and preservationist who influenced Teddy Roosevelt.
  • Teddy Roosevelt: Conservationist who set aside a lot of land as president.
  • National Parks: Yellowstone and Yosemite were set aside during this time.

Farmers and Populists

  • Oliver Kelly: A Granger who got into politics with the Populists.
  • Farmers Alliance: Started in Texas and southern states.
  • Populist Platform: Included a one-term president, income tax, nationalized railroads and communication, and unlimited coinage of silver.

Labor Issues and Eugene Debs

  • Grover Cleveland: Lowered pay but did not lower rent in company towns.
  • Eugene Debs: A union organizer and socialist who ran for president and was jailed for opposing World War I.

Election of 1896 and Gold Standard

  • William Jennings Bryan: A Democrat who adopted Populist ideas and ran against McKinley.
  • McKinley: Won the election twice.
  • Gold Standard: Republicans supported the gold standard.