The Bolter (1904), Charles M. Russell.

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Growth in the West,1860–1900

Miners, ranchers, cowhands, and farmers help settle the West and conflict with Native Americans.

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SECTION 1

SECTION 2

SECTION 3

SECTION 4

Miners, Ranchers, and Cowhands

Native Americans Fight to Survive

Life in the West

Farming and Populism

Growth in the West,1860–1900

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Miners, ranchers, and cowhands settle in the West seeking economic opportunities.

Section 1

Miners, Ranchers, and Cowhands

Geography and Population of the West

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Miners, Ranchers, and Cowhands

• Frontier—unsettled, sparsely settled area, Native Americans occupy

1SECTION

• Despite Native American occupants, U.S. claims ownership, Great Plains

• Few whites settle in Great Plains, follow miners into California

• Great Plains—region from Missouri River to the Rockies

• Trains carry natural resources of the West to the East

• Bring white settlers to West, helps end Native American way of life

Map

Mining in the West

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1SECTION

• Miners rush to gold, silver strikes in Colorado, Nevada, South Dakota

• Strikes draw people from Eastern, Western U.S., other parts of world

• Boomtowns—towns that have fast economic population growth

• Mining companies use equipment to dig deep, strip land

• Mining boom over by 1890s, many boomtowns become ghost towns

• Mining work dangerous, causes deadly cave-ins, lung problems

Image

NEXT

1SECTION

• Before 1860, small cattle herds in West, ranchers sell cattle locally

• Cowhands take cattle drives—long drives—to cow towns along railways

• Ranchers, livestock dealers make large profits

The Rise of the Cattle Industry

• Follow specific trails, first is Chisholm Trail—San Antonio to Abilene

• Railroads make transport of cattle to Eastern cities possible

Map

Vaqueros and Cowhands

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1SECTION

• First cowhands, or vaqueros (Spanish word), come from Mexico

• Help Spanish, Mexican ranchers, teach American cowhands to rope, ride

• Many cowhands are former soldiers, Mexicans, African Americans

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The “Wild West”

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1SECTION

• Cow towns have no local government, law officers

• Some women become outlaws, Belle Starr, horse thief

• Some Union, Confederate veterans bitter about war, become outlaws

• Have gambling, “con men” are common

• Vigilantes—people who take law into their own hands

• Try to protect citizens, catch criminals, punish them without trial

End of the Long Drives

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1SECTION

• Cattle industry booms for about 20 years

• By 1886, several developments bring boom to an end:- price of beef drops sharply- farmers, sheep herders use barbed wire, end

open range- many cattle die in harsh winter of 1886–1887

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The Native Americans of the Great Plains fight to maintain their way of life assettlers pour onto their lands.

Section 2

Native Americans Fight to Survive

Native American Life on the Plains

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2SECTION

• Before Europeans arrive, Plains tribes live in villages along rivers

• Plains tribes use buffalo for food, use skins for shelter, clothing

• Hunters ride far from their village seeking buffalo

Native Americans Fight to Survive

• Learn to ride horses brought by Spanish (early 1540s)

Image

A Clash of Cultures

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2SECTION

• U.S. government promises huge area in West for Native Americans

• First Treaty of Fort Laramie (1851):- many but not all Plains tribes sign- allow U.S. government to buy back some Native

American land- sets boundaries for tribal lands

• White settlers pressure U.S. government for more land in West

Interactive

Continued . . .

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2SECTION

• Some Cheyenne, Sioux resist treaty, fight settlers, soldiers, miners

• Second Treaty of Fort Laramie with Sioux (1868):- Sioux, Northern Cheyenne, Arapaho sign- gives tribes land in Black Hills of South Dakota

• Plains tribes react, raid white settlements

• U.S. troops kill Cheyenne men, women, children—Sand Creek Massacre

continued A Clash of Cultures

Battle of the Little Bighorn

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2SECTION

• Seeking gold, miners ignore Fort Laramie treaty, rush onto Sioux land

• Unite under Sioux chiefs; Sitting Bull, Crazy Horse

• Many Sioux warriors flee reservation during winter of 1875–1876

• Tribal leaders reject government offer to buy back land

• Reservation—land set aside for Native AmericansImage

Continued . . .

NEXT

2SECTION

• U.S. 7th cavalry sets out to return Sioux to reservation

• Custer, men wiped out, U.S. steps up military action against tribes

• Fights thousands of Sioux, Cheyenne at Battle of Little Bighorn

• Lieutenant Colonel George A. Custer commands cavalry

• Crazy Horse, Sitting Bull’s followers surrender, return to reservation

continued Battle of the Little Bighorn

Resistance in the Northwest and Southwest

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2SECTION

• U.S. government forces Nez Perce to sell land, move to Idaho

• Apache forced to settle on Arizona reservation, Geronimo refuses

• In Southwest, Navajo, Apache fight against being moved to reservations

• Chief Joseph refuses, leads followers toward Canada, caught, surrenders

• Navajo surrender to U.S. troops, take “Long Walk” to reservation

• Leads Apaches on raids of settlers’ homes, surrenders (1886), prison

Image

A Way of Life Ends

NEXT

2SECTION

• Plains tribes depend on dwindling buffalo for survival

• Wovoka’s vision quickly spreads among Plains peoples

• Some Plains tribes turn to Paiute prophet, Wovoka, for hope

• Hired hunters kill millions of buffalo for sport, railroads, factories

• Preaches whites will be removed, tribes will freely hunt buffalo

Continued . . .

NEXT

2SECTION

• Wovoka’s followers flee reservations, U.S. troops track them down

• U.S. troops massacre 300 Native Americans—Wounded Knee Massacre

• Wovoka’s followers start to surrender to troops, someone fires a shot

• Ends Native American armed resistance in the West

continued A Way of Life Ends

The Dawes Act Fails

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2SECTION

• White reformers call for better treatment of Native Americans:- feel assimilation is only way for Native

Americans to survive• Dawes Act (1887):

- encourages Native Americans to reject traditions, become farmers

- divides reservations into plots of land- sends Native American children to schools, learn

white culture

•Dawes Act does little to help Native Americans

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Section 3

Life in the WestDiverse groups of people help to shape both the reality and the myth of the West.

Women in the West

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3SECTION

• Homestead—piece of land and the house on it

• Some women run dance halls, boarding houses

• On a homestead, women rarely see neighbors, do cooking, first aid

Life in the West

• In most Western territories, women own property, control own money

• Women often work as teachers, servants, do sewing, laundry

Image

• Wyoming Territory gives women the vote (1869)

The Rise of Western Cities

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3SECTION

• Railroad brings rapid growth to Denver, Omaha, Portland, other cities

• Denver quickly becomes capital of Colorado Territory (1867)

• Gold, silver strikes cause cities to grow rapidly in the West

Chart

Mexicanos in the Southwest

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3SECTION

• Railroads spur increase of white settlers in Southwest (1880s, 1890s)

• Mexicanos—southwesterners of Spanish descent who come from Mexico

• For centuries, Southwest is home to Mexicanos

• Hispanic society survives only in New Mexico Territory

• Mexicanos lose economic, political power, land to white settlers

The Myth of the Old West

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3SECTION

• Western myth continues with novels, plays, movies:- often show whites as heroes- usually show Native Americans as villains- ignore African Americans

• Sometimes hero was a real person, plots are fictitious, exaggerated

• “Dime novels” portray West as heroic place filled with adventures

• William “Buffalo Bill” Cody brings Wild West show to the world

Image

The Real West

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3SECTION

• African Americans serve in U.S. Army, known as “buffalo soldiers”

• Native Americans, African Americans help with cattle ranching

• First cowhands are Mexican vaqueros

• Chinese immigrants help greatly in building railroads

• Native American attacks often caused by broken treaties

• U.S. government contributes greatly to white settlement

Image

NEXT

Section 4

Farming and PopulismA wave of farmers move to the Plains in the 1800s and face many economicproblems.

U.S. Government Encourages Settlement

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4SECTION

• U.S. government passes Homestead Act (1862):- offers free land to anyone who will live on,

improve it for 5 years

• Many migrate to Kansas, call themselves Exodusters

• Reconstruction ends, African Americans face discrimination in South

Farming and Populism

• U.S. sells land to railroads, railroads resell much land to settlers

• Many Europeans immigrate to the West

Image

Life on the Farming Frontier

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4SECTION

• Farmers on the plains build homes out of blocks of sod

• Inventions like steel plow, reaper help farmers face challenges

• Farmers are called sodbusters, dig deep wells, face harsh weather

Image

The Problems of Farmers

4SECTION

• As farmers grow more food, prices for crops drop (1870s)

• Form cooperatives—organizations owned, run by members:- buy grain elevators- sell crops directly to merchants- allow farmers to keep more profits

• Farmers form Grange—group meets social needs of farm families

• Farmers have to pay more for machinery, railroad rates

• U.S. states regulate freight rates, storage charges

NEXT

The Rise of Populism

NEXT

4SECTION

• Farm groups form Populist Party, or People’s Party (1890)

• Inflation would increase crop prices, help farmers pay back loans

• Opponents want U.S. to keep gold standard to keep prices down

• Gold standard—U.S. backs every dollar with certain amount of gold

• Populist presidential candidate loses but has a good showing (1892)

• Want U.S. to adopt free silver policy to increase inflation

The Election of 1896

NEXT

4SECTION

• Nation suffers through depression, the Panic of 1893

• Populists back Democrat William Jennings Bryan for president

• Farmers in South, West vote overwhelmingly for Bryan

• Industrialists, bankers, business leaders vote for William McKinley

• Money issues matter more to voters

• McKinley wins presidential election by half million votes

Image

The Closing of the Frontier

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4SECTION

• Indian Territory, last remaining open land

• Indian Territory becomes Oklahoma Territory (1890), frontier ends

• Frederick Jackson Turner writes that end of frontier marks end of era

• Today many historians disagree, think U.S. remains land of opportunity

• Oklahoma land rush, settlers claim land that Native Americans once had

Image

NEXT

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