Westward Expansion: Challenges and Opportunities

1. Splash Screen

2. Chapter Introduction Section 1:Miners and Ranchers Section 2:Farming the Plains Section 3:Native Americans Visual Summary Chapter Menu

3. Why Did Settlers Move West? • After the Civil War, many American settlers continued migrating to the western frontier. The lives of western miners, farmers, and ranchers were filled with hardships. • Why do you think settlers continued migrating west when life on the Great Plains was so difficult? • When the frontier closed what effect do you think this had on American society? Chapter Intro

4. Chapter Timeline

5. Chapter Timeline

6. Miners and Ranchers What economic opportunities did miners and ranchers seek? Chapter Intro 1

7. Farming the Plains What difficulties might farmers have faced as they worked the new land? Chapter Intro 2

8. Native Americans Why did conflicts arise between Native Americans and the settlers? Chapter Intro 3

9. Chapter Preview-End

10. Big Ideas Geography and HistoryMiners and ranchers settled large areas of the West. Section 1-Main Idea

11. Content Vocabulary • vigilance committee • hydraulic mining • open range • long drive • hacienda • barrios Academic Vocabulary • extract • adapt • prior Section 1-Key Terms

12. People and Events to Identify • Henry Comstock • boomtown Section 1-Key Terms

13. A B Do you feel that people have a right to take land from others? A. Yes B. No Section 1-Polling Question

14. Growth of the Mining Industry The discovery of gold, silver, and other minerals attracted thousands of settlers who established new states on the frontier. Section 1

15. Growth of the Mining Industry (cont.) • In 1859 a prospector named Henry Comstock staked a claim in Six-Mile Canyon, Nevada. • He didn’t find gold and sold his claim; however, the land was full of pure silver ore. • The Comstock Lode attracted so many prospectors that Nevada was admitted as the 36th state. Section 1

16. Growth of the Mining Industry (cont.) • Strikes like the Comstock Lode created cities overnight, also referred to as boomtowns. • Law and order was enforce by vigilance committees. • Once the mines that supported the boomtowns were used up, the population dwindled, or it would become a “ghost-town.” Mining Helps Build a Nation, 1848–1890 Section 1

17. Growth of the Mining Industry (cont.) • Mining also spurred the development of Colorado, Arizona, the Dakotas, and Montana. • Some famous mining areas: • Pikes Peak • Leadville • The Black Hills • Tombstone Section 1

18. Growth of the Mining Industry (cont.) • Miners used many different methods to extract minerals from the rugged mountains of the American West: • placer mining • sluice mining • hydraulic mining • quartz mining Section 1

19. A B C D Which type of mining had the most devastating effect on the local environment? A.Placer mining B.Sluice mining C.Hydraulic mining D.Quartz mining Section 1

20. Ranching and Cattle Drives Ranchers built vast cattle ranches on the Great Plains and shipped their cattle on railroads to eastern markets. Section 1

21. Ranching and Cattle Drives (cont.) • While many Americans headed to the Rocky Mountains to mine gold and silver, others began herding cattle on the Great Plains. • Texas longhorn had adapted to the harsh conditions of the Great Plains. • Cattle ranching also prospered on the Plains because of the open range. Cattle Ranching and the Long Drive, c. 1870 Section 1

22. Ranching and Cattle Drives (cont.) • After the Civil War, beef prices soared and ranchers looked for a way to round up the longhorns and sell them to eastern businesses. • If they could move the cattle as far as the railroad, the longhorns could be sold for a huge profit and shipped east to market. • Many long drive trials soon opened. Section 1

23. Ranching and Cattle Drives (cont.) • The long drives ended due to barbed wire barriers, an oversupply of animals on the market, and the blizzards of 1886–1887. Section 1

24. A B C D Why was there an oversupply of animals on the market? A.It was due to over-breeding. B.Investors from the East and from Britain poured money into the cattle business. C.The longhorn cattle were thriving and giving birth to healthy calves. D.England sent many of their animals to the open range. Section 1

25. Settling the Hispanic Southwest The arrival of new settlers changed life for Hispanics in the Southwest. Section 1

26. Settling the Hispanic Southwest(cont.) • In place of the mission system in California, landowners owned vast haciendas. • After the California gold rush, however, Hispanic Californians were vastly outnumbered. • As they had done with the Native Americans, settlers from the East clashed with the Mexican Americans over land. Section 1

27. Settling the Hispanic Southwest(cont.) • As more railroads were built in the 1880s and 1890s, the population of the Southwest continued to swell with American, European, and Mexican immigrants. • In the growing cities of the Southwest, Hispanics settled in neighborhoods called barrios. Section 1

28. A B C In which state did the Hispanic population remain influential in public affairs? A.California B.Texas C.New Mexico Section 1

29. Section 1-End

30. Big Ideas Group ActionAfter 1865 settlers staked out homesteads and began farming the Great Plains. Section 2-Main Idea

31. Content Vocabulary • homestead • dry farming • sodbuster • bonanza farm Academic Vocabulary • prospective • innovation Section 2-Key Terms

32. People and Events to Identify • Great Plains • Stephen Long • Homestead Act • Wheat Belt Section 2-Key Terms

33. A B Would you move to unfamiliar territory if it was the only way you could own your own land? A. Yes B. No Section 2-Polling Question

34. The Beginnings of Settlement Settlers staked out homesteads and began farming the region. Section 2

35. The Beginnings of Settlement (cont.) • The population of the Great Plains grew steadily in the decades after the Civil War. • Land once thought to be worthless for farming was transformed into America’s wheat belt. • MajorStephen Longcalled the region the “Great American Desert” when he explored it in 1819. Section 2

36. The Beginnings of Settlement (cont.) • Several developments undermined the assumption that the region was uninhabitable: • Railroad companies sold land along the rail lines at low prices and provided credit to prospective settlers. • Pamphlets and posters spread the news to city dwellers across Europe and America that cheap farm land was theirs to claim. Farming the American West, 1870–1900 Section 2

37. The Beginnings of Settlement (cont.) • For more than a decade beginning in the 1870s, rainfall on the Plains was well above average. • In 1862, the government encouraged settlement on the Great Plains by passing the Homestead Act. • For a $10 registration fee, an individual could file for a homestead of up to 160 acres of land. Section 2

38. A B C D The following made life difficult on the Great Plains EXCEPT A.hot summers. B.prairie fires. C.cold winters. D.flooding. Section 2

39. The Wheat Belt As a result of new farming methods and machinery, settlers on the Great Plains were able to produce large amounts of wheat. Section 2

40. The Wheat Belt (cont.) • Many new farming methods and inventions in the nineteenth century revolutionized agriculture. • Dry farming was popular on the Plains. • Unfortunately, prairie soil could blow away during a dry season, so many sodbusters eventually lost their homesteads through a combination of drought, wind erosion, and overuse of the land. Section 2

41. The Wheat Belt (cont.) • Innovations such as the mechanical reaper, steam tractor, threshing machine, and mechanical binder made harvesting wheat possible. • The Wheat Belt began at the eastern edge of the Great Plains and encompassed much of the Dakotas and parts of Nebraska and Kansas. Section 2

42. The Wheat Belt (cont.) • Some of the wheat farms—referred to as bonanza farms—covered up to 50,000 acres. • A severe drought, coupled with competition from farmers in other countries, brought an end to the thriving Wheat Belt. Section 2

43. The Wheat Belt (cont.) • On April 22, 1889, the government opened one of the last large territories for settlement. • Although there was a lot of unoccupied land, and new settlement continued into the 1900s, the “closing of the frontier” marked the end of an era. Section 2

44. A B C D Why was historian Frederick Jackson Turner concerned about the “closing of the frontier”? A.Towns would now become overpopulated. B.Americans could no longer move somewhere to make a fresh start. C.Americans could no longer dream of unsettled land. D.None of the above Section 2

45. Section 2-End

46. Big Ideas Culture and BeliefsSettling the West dramatically changed the way of life of the Plains Indians. Section 3-Main Idea

47. Content Vocabulary • nomad • annuity • assimilate • allotment Academic Vocabulary • relocate • ensure • approximately Section 3-Key Terms

48. People and Events to Identify • Sand Creek Massacre • Indian Peace Commission • George A. Custer • Chief Joseph • Dawes Act Section 3-Key Terms

49. A B Do you agree with the idea of reservations for Indians? A. Agree B. Disagree Section 3-Polling Question

50. Struggles of the Plains Indians The settlement of the West dramatically altered the way of life of the Plains Indians. Section 3