4.01 Compare and contrast the different groups of people who migrated to the West and describe the problems they experienced.

I. _________________________________________________

a. Term coined by magazine editor John Louis O’Sullivan in 1845

b. Idea that Americans had been given North America by God, who wanted them to settle it all and push out Indians, Mexicans

II. Routes West

a. _________________________ Trail: to Oregon and Pacific Northwest

b. _________________________ Trail: to Northern California

c. _________________________Trail: to New Mexico

d. _________________________Trail: to Utah and Southern California

e. _________________________Trail: to Montana

f. Wagon Trains:

i. Sometimes employed guides, sometimes followed guidebooks

ii. Loosely organized, usually no more than 20-40 wagons per train

iii. Covered about 15 miles/day for 5-6 months

iv. Wagons were circled at night to corral animals, not for protection against Indian attacks

v. Attacks by Native Americans were rare; more trade took place than fighting

vi. Occasionally met with disaster, such as the _____________________________________ who were trapped in an early snow in the Sierra Nevada Mountains and had to resort to cannibalism to survive

III. Reasons for Going West

a. Religion

i. The __________________ arrived in Utah in 1847 seeking religious freedom under leader Brigham Young

ii. Hundreds of other Christian missionaries went West to minister to the Indians and to frontiersmen

b. Mining

i. Colorado – Silver mines led to development of Denver as the 2nd largest city in the West

ii. Dakotas – gold in the Black Hills

iii. Montana – copper

iv. California Gold Rush of ___________________________

1. After discovery of gold at _____________________________________, over 300,000 gold-seekers called “49ers” flooded into California

2. Led to rise of _______________________________________________ as a major city, but also to tensions with Native Americans and environmental destruction

v. Nevada - The Comstock Lode: Major _________________ vein discovered by Henry Comstock in 1859

vi. Mining created “____________________________________________” cycles where towns would be built in a short period of time and then abandoned (ghost towns) when the mines were exhausted

c. Land

i. The Great Plains

1. Explored by Maj. Stephen Long in 1819, who described the area as the “Great American Desert”

2. With no wood and no water, many believed that the area was useless for settlement and farming

3. Still, settlers came and adapted

a. No trees for wood, so houses were built from ______________ – bricks of tough grass; burned grass and dried dung for cooking and heat

b. Little surface water, so settlers had to drill deep wells (300 ft+)

c. Summer = 100° +, winter = 0° or less

d. Prairie fires, swarms of grasshoppers, tornadoes, blizzards, hail, & thunderstorms were all serious threats

ii. __________________________________________ Acts of 1830 & 1841

1. Many settlers who went west just picked a spot and built a farm – they did not have any legal claim to the land; this is called “______________________________________”

2. The Pre-emption Acts protected squatters by guaranteeing them the right to claim land before it was surveyed by the US government (who technically owned all public land) and buy up to 160 acres for $1.25/acre

iii. ___________________________________ Act of 1862

1. $10 fee laid claim to 160 acres of public land; occupant received title after living there for 5 years

2. Anyone could file a claim, except former Confederates!

3. 1.6 million homesteads were awarded

iv. _____________________________Land-Grant Act of 1862

1. States were awarded 30,000 acres of federal land per member of the state’s Congressional delegation

2. States could use or sell that land to fund the creation of colleges which would teach ______________________________ and _______________________________________ skills

3. Many colleges started under the Morrill Act, including Purdue, Iowa St., Kansas St., LSU, Michigan State, Nebraska, Ohio St., Penn St., Clemson, Tennessee, Va. Tech, & NC State

v. _________________________________ Land Rush

1. As available land in the west began to disappear, pressure built to open the Indian Territory (Oklahoma) to settlers

2. 1889: Congress agreed to open the Territory to white settlers

3. April 22, 1889: Thousands gathered on the border to race to claim a share of 2 million acres; some (called “_______________________”) snuck into the territory early to claim the best lands

d. Ranching

i. Spanish cattle had been left to roam free and had evolved into the _______________________________

ii. Most cattle ranching took place in New Mexico & Texas

iii. Early ranchers took advantage of the _____________________________________ , the vast open grasslands of the Great Plains owned by the government

iv. During the Civil War, beef prices soared due to a kill off of Eastern cattle to feed troops

v. ______________________ built in 1860s allowed western cattle to be moved east to meet beef demands

vi. Cattle were driven north out of Texas to railheads in Abilene & Dodge City, KS and Sedalia, MO using routes such as the _________________________________________

vii. Cowboys were a mix of former Confederate soldiers, Hispanics, and freed slaves

IV. Opportunities for Minorities

a. Women

i. Outnumbered by men, so they had more opportunities

ii. Could own property & businesses, became influential community leaders

iii. Most were farmwives

iv. Some worked as cooks or laundresses

v. Some worked at “hurdy-gurdy” houses

vi. A few were adventurers, such as Annie Oakley and Calamity Jane Burke

b. Immigrants

i. Thousands of ________________________ immigrants flooded the Midwest in the 1840s through 1870s

ii. Thousands of ___________________________ immigrants arrived in California to seek job opportunities

iii. Both groups would play a key role in building the West’s railroads

c. African-Americans

i. Played a major role in the development of the West

ii. Worked on the railroads

iii. Worked as cowboys

iv. Settled in as farmers

v. Served as “________________________________________________” in the Indian Wars

1. 4 all-black regiments of the US Army created in 1866

2. Nicknamed “buffalo soldiers” by the Native Americans they fought against for their dark, curly hair and fierce fighting ability, both of which reminded Indians of the buffalo