Changes on the Western Frontier: Mining, Logging, and Culture Clash

1. U.S. History Chapter 13 NotesChanges on the Western Frontier. The culture of the Plains Indians declines as white settlers transform the Great Plains. Meanwhile, farmers form the Populist movement to address their economic concerns

2. Section 1Cultures Clash on the Prairie The cattle industry booms in the late 1800s, as the culture of the Plains Indians declines

3. Geography of the West • Area between the Mississippi Valley and the Pacific Mountains • Areas where settlers and Indians lived • By 1900 Indians had been forced off their lands - Transcontinental Railroad opened up the west for settlement a. carried materials and people

4. Minors in the West • 1859 - Gold found in the Rocky Mountains (Clear Creek near Pikes Peak) - 1st found by George Jackson • 1959 - Gold found in Nevada - Lode produced 100s of millions of dollars worth of gold and silver - Lode - a deposit of a valuable mineral buried between layers of rock

5. Mining Life • Boom towns sprang up - They were rough towns • Women worked in the mining towns - Cooked - Laundry - Dance halls - Boarding towns

6. The Business of Mining • Few prospectors became rich • Lack of technology prevented most people from becoming rich - Most were placer mining - where people wash the sand and gravel from a stream

7. The Business of Mining • More efficient methods developed in the 1870' s - Water cannons were used to strip the dirt off the hillside - Exposed gold - Very harmful to the environment • Only companies had the money to use water cannons • Working conditions were brutal - 100 degrees fairenhight in some caves - Workers wore thick boots to protect against hot water - Accidents such as cave-ins and dynamite explosions were common

8. Most of the mining towns became ghost towns Gold rush changed the geography of the United States Mining Boom Ends

9. Mining Boom Ends The population grew so much in some areas that they were able to become states - 1864 - Nevada - 1876 - Colorado - 1889 - North Dakota, South Dakota, and Montana -1890 - Idaho

12. Logging became a big business in the west Pacific Northwest had an abundance of trees -Redwoods - Douglas fur Settlers needed lumber for homes and mine timbers Lumber Industry

13. Alaska • 1867 - William Sewardarranged for the purchase of Alaska from Russia • Skeptics had called the purchase of Alaska “Seward's Folly,” but the former Secretary of State was vindicated when a major gold deposit was discovered in Alaska • Alaska was rich in natural resources - Gold - Copper - Oil -Timber

14. Government policy • Early 1800's Plains Indians lived and hunted between the Mississippi River and Rocky Mountains - 1840' s - Whites begin to settle the west coast - U.S. Gov. ask Indians to let settlers pass safely - Asked the Indians to limit their hunting to certain are - Indians had to move with buffalo • Mid 1800's - U.S. Gov changes policy - Established reservations -special areas used by a specific group - Indians agreed to live on reservations based on the promise that the land would be theirs forever (signed Treaties with the U.S. Gov.) - They were also promised food, money and other help

16. Clash of culture • Indians and settlers looked at the world differently • Settlers felt that the resources were their to be used - Large scale hunting, mining, and farming • Plains Indians used only the resources they needed for their actual needs - They saw the white settlers as being greedy and destructive

17. By 1860's - Treaties were being broken by both sides Settlers continued to pass through areas where they were not allowed Groups of Indians raided white settlements and wagon trains 1864 - Sand Creek Massacre - Colorado militia attacked Cheyenne and Arapaho at Sand Creek - Indians thought they were under the protection of a nearby government outpost - Over 100 Indians were slaughtered (including women and children) Fighting begins

18. 1866 - Chief Red Cloud (Sioux:) defeated Captain W.J. Fetterman and 80 U.S. army soldiers Led them into a trap and killed them Fighting begins

19. Fighting begins • Little Bighorn(most famous battle of the Indian wars) • The Black Hills of South Dakota had been set aside for the Sioux and Northern Cheyenne • 1874 - U.S. Army exploring party found gold - Settlers went looking for gold - Gov. tried to buy the Black Hills (Sioux considered land sacred) - 1875 and 1876 - Sioux warrior left their reservations and united under the leadership of two Sioux chiefs (Sitting Bull and Crazy Horse)

20. Fighting begins • June 25, 1876 - George Armstrong Custer and several hundred army soldiers found a Sioux camp near the Little Bighorn River - Custer gained fame fighting in Civil War - Admirers considered him a daring brilliant officer - Critics considered him a dangerous showoff • Custer had orders to attack any Indians he came into contact with • When he attacked he was actually stepping into a trap • Custer and all of his men were killed - Became known as "Custer's Last Stand"

21. Fighting begins • People in the East were shocked by the news of the Battle of Little Bighorn - U.S. Gov. sent 1000's of troops to fight the Indians • The Battle of Little Bighorn was the last Indian Victory in the Indian Wars - 1876 - U.S. Army defeated the Sioux - Sitting Bull and his followers escaped to Canada • Crazy Horsewas arrested - He was fatally stabbed as he was being arrested - Not sure if guard or another Indian stabbed him

22. Chief Joseph • Led the Nez Perce people • Nez Perce lived in northwest (Oregon and Idaho) - Fished for salmon, gathered food, and hunted • Chief Joseph refused to sell land to government • 1877 - Gov. ordered the Nez Perce people to move to a reservation - They fled and tried to evade the army • Captured about 40 miles south of Canada - Chief Joseph made speech - Said that he would fight no more

23. Southwest Indians • Navajo were forced to move to reservations in the east - March called "The Long Walk" • Reservation was a failure - Navajo allowed to return home • Mid 1870's - Apache were forced to move away from their traditional territory - Geronimo - led his people off the reservation - Evaded the army many times due to their knowledge of southern Arizona - 1886 - Geronimo captured and forced to live far away from his people

24. Indians way of life destroyed • Whites killed buffalo • Indians depended on buffalo • Indians were unable to survive without the buffalo • Many Indians turned to the Ghost Dance Religion - It taught that the spirits of the dead Indians would return to help the Indians reclaim their land • Many whites were fearful of this movement - Asked the army for help - Cavalry rounded up Sioux men on the Pine Ridge Reservation - Place called wounded knee

25. Indians way of life destroyed • Wounded Knee Massacre - 300 men, women, and children Sioux were killed - Considered to be the last battle of the Indian Wars

26. Assimilation • Conditions grew worse as more Indians were forced on to reservations • Reformers began calling for changes • Many white though that only solution was to make the Indians become more like the whites - Assimilation- to adopt the culture of the people around you

27. Assimilation • Dawes Act (1887)- intended to make Indians give up their traditions and accept White customs - Reservation lands were divided up in farm plots for families and individuals (40 to 160 acres) - Any remaining land was sold to white settlers - Profits used to pay for Indian schools - Indians who accepted the plots of land could become citizens for the 1st time • Dawes Act failed - Many western Indians didn't want to settle down as farmers - Lacked tools and training - Many sold their plots to white settlers cheap • End 1800's - situation of the American Indians was tragic - Lost land, people, and culture - 20th century U.S. government finally realizes importance of Indian way of life

28. Cowboys • 1/6 were Mexican American • Some were black - Nat Love- born in a slave cabin - Moved west when he was a teenager - Became famous performing in rodeos

29. Birth of the Cattle Industry • Cowboys' roots were in Texas • Small herds - (only sold cattle locally) • Joseph McCoyorganized 1st cattle drive - Drove cattle to Abilene Kansas (Railroad) - Cattle sold for $40 per head in the east ($3 per head in Texas) • Dodge city also becomes a cattle town

30. Long drives • Cowboys herded cattle over the open plains to cattle towns • 12 cowboys 3000 head • Made sure that cattle had plenty of grass to eat along the way • Drives were tough - Had to keep cattle together - Watch for thieves

31. Wild West • Cowboys ended drives in cattle towns - Were dirty and nasty - Weren't always law abiding - Had money to spend • Large spaces with little settlement made it hard to catch outlaws - Frank and Jesse Jamesbecame legendary bank robbers - Belle Starrbecame famous cattle thief • Westerners formed vigilante groups - Groups that took the law into their own hands

32. Late 1800's -long drives end Overgrazing, bad weather from 1883 to 1887 destroyed whole herds Ranchers began keeping smaller herds that yielded more meat per animal Tick fever caused land owners to cutoff land from the long drives Fence land with barbed wire & turn open range into separate ranches The End of the Open Range

33. Section 2 Settling on the Great PlainsSettlers on the Great Plains transform the land despite great hardships.

34. Gov. encouraged western settlement (1862) Homestead Act- Gov. offered 160 acres to head of family over age 21 in return for living on the land 5 years and improving it - 1862 to 1900 – 600,000 families settled in the west Farming the Plain

35. Exodusters - Southern African-American settlers in Kansas Farming the Plain

36. Farming the Frontier • Gov. created Department of agriculture • Introduced new crops (Russian wheat) that could survive harsh winters • Morrill Act of 1862, 1890 financed agricultural colleges • 1880 Windmills are created • Accessed water for ranchers, farmers, and railroads • 1846 Steel Plow is created • Broke through tough sod • Made farming easier • Sod houses

37. Lumber was scarce Many settlers dug homes into sides of ravines or hills Made soddy or sod home by stacking blocks of turf Dry Farming – allowed food to be grown in dry areas Grew cash crops (wheat and corn) Had to fight year around battle against weather (blizzards and extreme heat) Life on the farming frontier

38. Life on the farming frontier • Homesteaders were virtually alone (Had to be self-sufficient) • Women did men’s work (plowing, harvesting, shearing sheep) - Also did traditional work (carding wool, making soap, canning vegetables) - Some worked for communities (sponsor schools, churches)

39. Farmers in Debt • Railroads, investors created bonanza farms (huge, single-crop spreads) • 1885 to1890 - droughts bankrupted single-crop operations • Rising cost of shipping grain pushed farmers into debt

40. 1872, Yellowstone National Park created to protect some wilderness 1890s - No frontier left - miners, ranchers, and farmers had swelled the population - 1874Barbed Wire – open ranges became stock ranches and homesteads 1889 Oklahoma Land Rush- Government gave signal for settlers to settle the Oklahoma territory - It was laid out within the day - 60,000 people lived there by the end of the year - Sooners- some people snuck into Oklahoma before the Gov. gave the signal Closing the Frontier

41. Section 3 Farmers and the Populist MovementFarmers unite to address their economic problems, giving rise to the Populist movement.

42. Unrest in Rural America • The growth of urban America made possible because farmers were so productive

43. Low Prices and High Cost • Farmer's lives were hard - droughts, floods, insects, and animal diseases • 1870's - faced another problem - Low prices for their crops - Sank farther into debt • Caused by overproduction - More people became farmers - Farming methods improved • Became more expensive to operate a farm - Tariffs on imported farm equipment - Railroads raised prices Late 1800's - most farmers weren't self sufficient - Grew cash crops Most were in debt - Western farmers owed banks money for their land and equipment - Southern farmers had taken on debt to rebuild farms destroyed in the Civil War

44. 1867 - Oliver H. Kelley started the Patrons of Husbandry(Grange) - Hoped to fight the loneliness of farm life and farming methods - Open to both men and women Meetings were held at local schools - Both social and educational Hard Times for Farmers

45. The Granger Movement • Turned their attention to economic and political issues • Economic goal - avoid using middlemen - People who made a living storing, transporting and selling product - Cut into farmers’ profits and added to cost for buyer • Grangers created cooperatives - An organization owned and operated by those who use its services - They shared crops in some places - Allowed them to set their prices • Politically - they elected legislatures that put limits on railroad and storage prices - Called Granger laws

46. The Populist Party • 1880's - Several political parties combined • Populism - movement of the people - Populist Party wants reforms • Economic: increase money supply, graduated income tax, & federal loans • Political: Senate elected by popular vote, secret ballot & 8-hour day • 1892 - Populist candidates elected at different levels of government • Democratic Party eventually adopted platform

47. Debate Over Money Policy • Pitted debtors against creditors • Debtors wanted more money to be put into circulation • Wanted the government to coin more silver (bimetallism) • Bimetallism - system using both silver and gold to back currency • Silverites - would create more money, stimulate economy • Creditors wanted to limit the amount of money - Favored gold standard • Gold standard- backing currency with gold only • Paper money considered worthless if cannot be exchanged for metal • Gold bugs - gold only would create more stable if expensive currency

48. Election of 1892 • 1892 - Populist nominate James B. Weaver for president • He had the following proposals - Wanted Gov. to control and operate railroads, telegraph and telephone systems - Wanted secret ballot in elections - Wanted graduated income tax - Wanted U.S. senators to be elected directly by the people rather than state legislatures - Demanded shorter working hours for labor • Grover Cleveland won 1892 election

50. Railroads expanded faster than markets - Some went bankrupt Government’s gold supply became depleted - Led to rush on banks - Businesses, banks collapse - Panic became depression The Panic of 1893