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Tensions in the West

Tensions in the West. Homestead Act. Passed in 1861 What was it? Offered farmers 160 acres of land in the West for free Impact Promise of free land drew millions of people to the West & would lead to eventual conflict with Native Americans. Pacific Railroad Act.

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Tensions in the West

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  1. Tensions in the West

  2. Homestead Act • Passed in 1861 • What was it? • Offered farmers 160 acres of land in the West for free • Impact • Promise of free land drew millions of people to the West & would lead to eventual conflict with Native Americans

  3. Pacific Railroad Act • Law called for a transcontinental railroad to be built to link the Atlantic and Pacific coasts. • A transcontinental railroad is a railroad that crosses a continent • Union Pacific= Nebraska west • Central Pacific= California east • Railroads eventually met at Promontory Point, UT

  4. Transcontinental Railroad • Who built railroads? • Immigrants (especially Irish and Chinese), Mexicans, freed slaves, ex-soldiers • Dangers of building railroads: • Injuries & accidents • Conflicts with Native Americans • Building through mountains was risky • Death • Impact: • Allowed for further westward expansion and faster transportation—connected the coasts and helped the economy grow

  5. Miners • Many moved West to mine gold, silver, and coal • Boomtown: A fast growing settlement in the West due to the discovery of gold or silver • Problem: Instant towns had no government, no law, and little order • Murder and robbery were common= “Wild West” • Vigilante: A person hired to control crime in boom towns and give QUICK justice • Arrest, trial, conviction, death sentence all in a day! • Ghost Town: A boom town after gold and silver was used up

  6. Impact of Mining • Choose 3: • Destroyed a lot of land • Source of wealth and opportunity • Helped many cities develop (like Reno & Denver) • Opened up settlement in the mountains and deserts

  7. Cowboys • What did they do? • Tended herds of cattle to eventually sell beef • What did they exterminate? • The buffalo population • 1872-1874: Over 9 million were killed • Now almost extinct • What was life like? • Dangerous and low-paying, but adventurous • Impact: • Opened Great Plains even further to settlement & strengthened conflict with Native Americans

  8. Homesteaders • What did they do? • Farmed on the Great Plains • What was life like? • Weather was unreliable and many struggled to survive until they perfected farming the area—lonely & hard work • Challenge: Turning grassland into grain field • Hot, dry summers and freezing winters • Impact: Made the Great Plains the most productive wheat-growing region in the world

  9. Native Americans • REFRESHER: Indian Removal Act of 1830 forced Native Americans to move to regions in the West • Until the 1860s and 1870s, most people living in the West were the Indians • Why was there conflict between whites and Indians? • Over land and resources • Reservation: An area of land set aside by the government for Native Americans

  10. Battle of Little Bighorn • Most famous battle between whites and Indians, also known as “Custer’s Last Stand.” • Indian fighter George Custer & his soldiers vs. Sioux & Cheyenne Indians • George Custer and all of his men were killed by Indians--they were outnumbered and had bad leadership • Whites called it a massacre—led the army to track down Indian tribes and force them on reservations. • Impact: By 1887, most Native American people had been moved onto reservations

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