chapter 7

borderlands, california, immigration, trade, sea otter, seal skins, hides, tallow, cattle

After Mexican independence in 1821, American influence in the _____ grew. A few Americans settled in _____ before Mexican independence, and ______ increased afterward. ______ with the United States increased significantly once Mexico was no longer part of Spain's empire. Traders from the United States, Russia, and other countries arrived in California ports to exchange manufactured goods for ___ _____ and ____ _____ and the _____ and _______ derived from ________.

surrender, force, Mexico City

Despite having lost vast territories, Mexico's leaders refused to _______. Polk decided to _____ things to a conclusion by sending soldiers on ships to the Mexican port of Veracruz. From there they would march west and capture the Mexican capital, ______ ____.

Guadalupe Hidalgo, ceded, Rio Grande, debts

After the fall of Mexico City, Mexico's leaders could no longer hold out. On February 2, 1848, Mexican leaders signed the Treaty of ____________ ________. In the agreement, Mexico _______, or gave up, some 500,000 square miles (1,295,000 sq. km) of territory to the United States. This land is now the states of California, Utah, and Nevada as well as parts of New Mexico, Arizona, Colorado, and Wyoming. Mexico also accepted the _____ ___________ as the southern border of Texas. In exchange, the United States paid Mexico $15 million and agreed to take over $3.25 million in ______ Mexico owed to American citizens.

ignored, plot, acquire, borders, immigration, enslaved labor, goods, discourage

Although most settlers _______ Edwards's call for revolution, the Mexican government feared it signaled an American ____ to ____ Texas. In 1830 Mexico closed its _______ to further ________ by Americans and banned the importation of ______ _____ as well. Mexico also taxed ____ imported from foreign countries, hoping to _____ trade with the United States.

rare, food, information, routes, edible plants, water, trading, horses

Although travelers feared attacks by Native Americans, these were ____. Native Americans often gave emigrants _____ and helpful ____ about __, ____ ___, and sources of ___. Overlanders also renewed their provisions by ___ other goods with Native Americans, sometimes using ____ as currency.

citizenship, customs, distrusted, lifestyle, rejection

Americans in Texas initially accepted Mexican _____, but many did not accept Mexican _____ or Roman Catholicism. Many Mexicans, in turn, ______ the settlers because of their American _______ and _______ of Mexican ways.

Santa Anna, treaty, independence, refused, unwilling, won

Among the captured men was ___ _____ himself. Houston forced him to order his army out of Texas and sign a _____ recognizing the ________ of the Republic of Texas. The Mexican Congress _____ to accept the treaty but was ______ to launch another military campaign. Texas had ____ the war.

fight, Oregon Treaty, south, west, Vancouver Island, navigation rights

Despite such slogans, few Americans wanted to _____ the British to gain control of Oregon. In June 1846, the two nations negotiated the __________ ________. In this agreement, the United States received all of Oregon ____ of 49° north latitude and ____ of the Rocky Mountains, except for the southern tip of ____________ _________. In exchange, the British were guaranteed ___________ ________ on the Columbia River.

overland traffic, angry, way of life, buffalo, everyday life, disrupted

As ___ ____ increased, Native Americans on the Great Plains became concerned and ___ over the threat pioneers posed to their __ __ ____ The Sioux, Cheyenne, Arapaho, and other groups relied on ____ for food, shelter, clothing, tools, and countless other necessities of ___ ___. Now they feared that the age-old wanderings of the buffalo herds would be _____.

new mexico, arizona, population, rural, sheep, rio grande valley, pueblo, corn

As in California, Mexican independence brought little immediate change to ___ ____ (which included present-day ___). Although New Mexico had a larger Hispanic ____ (approximately 44,000 in 1827), it remained largely ___. ____ ranching thrived in New Mexico's dry climate. Large ranches were established south of Santa Fe in the ____ _____ ____. Throughout the region, corn, peppers, and potatoes were staple crops. The local ____ people had raised ____ for centuries.

native americans, little, exploited, rancheros, escaped, california

At the bottom of society were ___ ___. Their situation improved ____ after independence. Although freed from the missions, they were often ____ by the new class of ____. Many ____ to live among the independent Native Americans on the edges of the _____ frontier.

John C. Frémont, uprising, strong, overcoming, independent, Bear Flag Republic, end, possession

Before Kearny arrived, and even before war with Mexico was officially declared, settlers in northern California led by American general ______ __. ________ had begun an _________. The official Mexican presence in the territory had never been ________, and the settlers had little trouble ____________ it. On June 14, 1846, they declared California ___________ of Mexico and renamed the region the _____ _______ ___________. A few weeks later, the Bear Flag Republic came to an _____ when American naval forces arrived and took ________ of California for the United States.

mestizos, vaqueros, craftspeople

Beneath these elites was a class of ____ . Some of this middle class worked as _____, but many were skilled _____.

Preemption, guaranteeing

Bowing to public pressure, Congress passed the _____ Act of 1830. This law protected squatters by ____ them the right to claim land before it was surveyed and the right to buy up to 160 acres at the government's minimum price of $1.25 per acre.

mission, spain, christianity, culture, land, cattle, horses, livestock, slavery, secularized, religious, civil, private, labor

By the time Mexico became independent, the ____ system used by ___ to spread ___ and Spanish ___ had nearly collapsed. Missions controlled vast tracts of ___ on which grazed ___, sheep, and ___. Native Americans tended the ___ and did other work at the missions under conditions of near ___. In 1834 the Mexican government ______ —or transferred from _____ control to ____ control— the missions and then transferred the land to ___ ownership. Most of the land ended up in the hands of cattle ranchers, who relied on Native Americans for ____.

colonial, chihuahua, 1821, william becknell, santa fe trail, trade, caravan, silver, mules, furs

During the ________ period, New Mexicans received most manufactured goods from traders who came north from the Mexican state of ______. This began to change in ____, the year of Mexican independence, when an American trader named _______ _______ arrived in Santa Fe. He opened the _____ ___ ______, which became a major _____ route connecting Santa Fe with Independence, Missouri. _______ wagons brought American manufactured goods to New Mexico and exchanged them for _______, _____, and ______. As trade increased, a small American population settled in Santa Fe.

afternoon assault, hill, prisoner

Eager for a fight, Houston's soldiers convinced the officers to launch an _____ _____. Shielded from sight by a hill, Houston's troops crept up on Santa Anna's sleeping soldiers and charged. Yelling "Remember the Alamo" and "Remember Goliad," Houston's men attacked the Mexican soldiers with guns, knives, and clubs. Hundreds were killed, and more than 700 of Santa Anna's troops were taken _____. The Texans suffered only 9 killed and 34 wounded.

squatters, own, real estate companies

Early pioneers became known as _____ because they settled on lands they did not ____. The federal government intended to survey the land and then sell large parcels to ___ ___ _____, but squatters wanted to buy the land they occupied directly from the federal government.

texas, raids, comanche, tejanos, San Antonio, Goliad, foreigners, flood

East of New Mexico, ______ had long served as a buffer territory between the United States and the rest of Mexico. Texas was a sparsely populated region where settlers faced recurring _______ by the __________ and Apache. Most of the 3,000 or so Spanish-speaking ______ were concentrated in the towns of ____ ______ and ____ (then called La Bahía). Just before Mexican independence, Spain began allowing ____ to settle in Texas. Mexico continued this policy, and Americans soon began to ______ into that territory.

wagon trains, frontier, mountain men, overlanders, guidebooks

Emigrants made the journey in groups of covered wagons called ______ _____. Before starting out, they assembled outside a ____ town. Early wagon trains hired ________ ______ to guide them. Later, most of the travelers—known as ______ —used ______ to find their own way.

diplomatic relations, southwestern border, Nueces, Rio Grande

Even before Polk took office, outgoing president Tyler pushed an annexation resolution through Congress in February 1845, and Texas joined the Union that year. As predicted, Mexico was outraged and broke ___________ __________ with the U. S. government. Matters worsened when the two countries disputed the location of Texas's ____________ _________. Mexico said it was at the _________ River. Texans, and then the United States, claimed the ______ ___________, about 150 miles (240 km) farther west and south, as the boundary, covering more territory than the Mexican claim.

military training, leader, Sam Houston

Few of the Texas rebels had any _____ _____ and at first had no ____. Finally, a former governor of Tennessee and proven military leader named ____ _______ took command. In the meantime, Santa Anna organized a force of several thousand to put down the rebellion.

diplomatic solution, Zachary Taylor, invasion, first shot, popular support, in favor of war

Herrera's snub ended any realistic chance of a _________ ______. Polk ordered troops led by General _________ ________ to cross the Nueces River—in Mexico's view, an ______ of its territory. Polk hoped that Mexico would fire the _____ ________ so he could win _________ _________ for a war. On May 9, 1846, news of an attack on Taylor's men reached Polk. In an address to Congress, Polk declared that the United States was at war "by the act of Mexico herself." On May 13, Congress voted overwhelmingly ___ _____ ___ _____.

Fort Laramie, eight, specific, peacefully, payments, approved

Hoping to ensure peace, the federal government negotiated the Treaty of __ ___ in 1851. The United States promised ___ Native American groups that __ territories of the Great Plains would belong to them as long as they allowed settlers to pass through ___. The government also agreed to make ____ to the groups. Not all Native Americans ___ of the treaty, however.

mistake, threat, sleep, afternoon

Houston was biding his time. Up against a larger, more disciplined army, he decided to wait for Santa Anna to make a _____. It came on April 21, when both armies were encamped along the San Jacinto River near what is now the city of Houston. Santa Anna no longer saw the Texan army as a ____. Confident that Houston would wait until the next day to launch an attack, Santa Anna allowed his men to _____ in the _______.

squatters

someone who settles on public land under government regulation with the hope of acquiring title to the land

decade, Spain, turmoil, political, national government, borderlands, california, texas

In 1821, after more than a ____ of fighting, Mexico won its independence from ___. During the decades that followed, Mexico experienced great ____ and __ chaos. As the young Mexican republic struggled to establish a stable _____ ______, it neglected its northern _____, which included ____, New Mexico, and ___.

Benjamin Edwards, rebellion, Fredonia, dispersed

In 1826 ________ ________, brother of empresario Haden Edwards, led a _________ against Mexican authority. He declared that American settlements in Texas now constituted the independent nation of _________. He gained few followers, however. When threatened by Mexican troops and militia from Stephen Austin's colony, the rebels ________.

juan Bautista Alvarado, sacramento, john sutter, sutter's fort, political,

In 1839, hoping to attract more settlers, ____ ______ ______, the governor of California, granted 50,000 acres in the _________ Valley to _____ ______. There, Sutter built a trading post and cattle ranch. "_____ ____" was often the first stopping point for Americans reaching California. As more Americans arrived, the differences between California and southern Mexico increased. This fueled _____ tensions between frontier leaders and the Mexican national government.

mob, Joseph Smith, Brigham Young, west, Mormon Trail, Desert

In 1844 a ___ murdered the Mormon leader ___ ___. Two years later, the church's new leader, ____ ____, took his people ___ to escape further persecution. Several thousand Mormons forged their way along a path that became known as the ______ ___. It served as a valuable route into the western United States. In 1847 the Mormons stopped at the Great Salt Lake in what is now Utah. Undeterred by the wildness of the area, they claimed the land they called "_______."

John Louis O'Sullivan, manifest destiny, God, continent, Americans

In 1845 a magazine editor named ___ ____ ______ declared that it was the "___ ____" of Americans "to overspread the continent allotted by Providence." Many Americans believed in this concept ofterm-3 Manifest Destiny—the idea that ___ had bestowed the entire ___ to the ____ and wanted them to settle the western lands.

Stephen F. Austin, american families, texas

In July 1821, ___ __. ____ set off from Louisiana for Texas. He went to carry out the plan his father, Moses Austin, had made with the Spanish government to bring 300 _____ _____ to settle in ___. Moses died before he could fulfill his part of the agreement. On his deathbed, he asked Stephen to take his place in Texas.

mormons, religious freedom

Unlike those bound for the West in search of land, the ___ followed a deeply rooted American tradition—the quest for ____ ______. The Mormons, however, had to seek that freedom by leaving the Eastern states, instead of coming to them.

Sam Houston, president, annexation, opposed

In September 1836, the newly independent republic called its citizens to the polls. They elected ____ _____ as their first ______ and voted in favor of ________, or becoming part of the United States. Given that Americans had enthusiastically supported the war, most Texans assumed the United States would want to annex the republic. Many Northern members of Congress, however, ______ admitting Texas as a slave state.

blundered, defense, pro-slavery plot, reelection

In early 1844, President Tyler brought the matter of Texas before the Senate. He ______, however, by including in the supporting documents a letter written by Secretary of State John C. Calhoun that contained a fierce _______ of slavery. Outraged Northerners pointed to the letter as evidence that annexation was nothing but a ____-________ ______. The Senate voted 35 to 16 against annexation. Tyler's failed maneuver destroyed his chances for _________.

defeated, Palo Alto, Resaca de la Palma, Matamoros, Monterrey

In early May, several days before Polk signed the declaration of war, Taylor's troops _________ Mexican forces, first at ______ _______ and then at ________ ___ ___ _______. Taylor then moved south, defeating Mexican forces at _______. By late September, he had marched about 200 miles (322 km) west from the coast of the Gulf of Mexico and captured _________.

navajo, apache, attacks, unable, protection, dissatisfaction, rebellion, killed, governor

In the 1820s, when the ____ and ___ launched a series of attacks on New Mexico, the Mexican government was ___ to provide _____. This fed a growing ____ with the national government. Finally, in 1837, Pueblo people and Hispanic settlers north of Santa Fe launched a _____ and ____ the unpopular territorial _____ and 16 other government officials.

men, vote, office, upper-class, property, marriage, redress, courts

In the California territory, ___ played a powerful role in the family, and only men could ____ or hold elective ___. Yet women, especially ___-____ women, had rights and privileges as well. Unlike American women of the era, Hispanic women retained control over their own ___ after ___ and could seek legal ___ in the ____.

peacefully, government, agree, arrested, rebellion, dictator, army

In the fall of 1833, negotiations stalled. Austin sent a letter to Tejano leaders suggesting that Texas start ________ organizing its own state ______. Then he visited Mexican president Antonio López de Santa Anna and convinced him to ______ to several demands. On his way home, Austin was _______. Mexican officials had intercepted his letter to the Tejanos. Suspected of trying to incite a ______, Austin was imprisoned in Mexico City, without trial. Soon afterward, President Santa Anna declared himself ______. Austin was released from prison in July 1835. Seeing that further negotiation with Santa Anna was pointless, Austin urged Texans to organize an ______.

Stephen W. Kearny, Leavenworth, Sante Fe, fled, California

In the meantime, Colonel __________ __. ________ led troops from Fort _____________, west of Missouri, toward _______ ___. The march through the dry countryside was brutal, but when Kearny's men reached the city in August, the Mexican force there had already ______. With Santa Fe secured, Kearny led a small U.S. force into __________.

difficult, mountain men, beaver, trails, Oregon, California, Sante Fe

Much of the western terrain was _______ to travel through. A small number of _____ _______ made their living by trapping ______ and selling the furs. At the same time, they gained a thorough knowledge of the territory and the local Native Americans. By the 1840s, these men had carved out several East-to-West _______ that helped settlers travel. The most popular route was the ______ Trail. Others included the ______ Trail and the ___ ___ Trail.

independence, constitution, slavery

On March 2, 1836, Texas declared its _______ from Mexico. Shortly thereafter, the Texans drafted a new ______ that drew heavily from the U.S. Constitution and specifically protected _____.

Jethro Wood, iron, John Deere, steel, mechanical reaper, Cyrus McCormick, hand, horses

Plowing became easier after 1819, when _______ patented an _____-bladed plow, and also in 1837, when___ ____ engineered a plow with ___ blades. Midwestern agriculture also received a boost from the___ ____, which ___ _____ patented in 1834. For centuries farmers had cut grain by ___, using a sickle or a scythe— exhausting and time-consuming work. With a McCormick reaper pulled by ____ or mules, farmers could harvest far more grain with far less effort.

three-pronged, undisciplined, unruly, less than ideal

Polk and his advisers developed a ______-________ military strategy to capture Santa Fe, New Mexico, to the north and California to the west, and advance to Mexico City to force Mexico to surrender. To implement the ambitious plan, Congress authorized the president to call for 50,000 volunteers.Some 73,000 answered the call. _______________ and ________, the volunteers proved to be ______ ______ ________ soldiers

Winfield Scott, Veracruz, Chapultepec Castle, control, occupation

Polk placed General _________ _____ in command of this campaign. In March 1847, Scott's force landed near _________, which his forces took 20 days later. Having taken control of this strategic port, the American troops then headed for Mexico City, fighting vicious and bloody battles with Mexican forces along the way. For two days they stormed ________________ ________, which guarded the city, and finally entered Mexico City on September 14. American forces were in _______ of the capital and went on to establish a formal _________ of Mexico.

Oregon Question, Convention of 1818, clear and unquestionable, 49th parallel

Polk took a strong stance on what came to be known as the ________ ________. Despite British claims to Oregon, which had been established in the _________ __ _____, Polk and the Democrats held that the United States had a "_______ _____ _______________________" right to all of the Oregon Country, including part of the region north of the ____ ________ that is today British Columbia. Their rallying cry, "Fifty-four Forty or Fight," declared that the United States should control all of Oregon below the line of 54°40' north latitude.

John Slidell, representative, refused

Polk's intentions in California added to the growing strife with Mexico. In November 1845, he sent _____ ______ as a special envoy , or _____________, to Mexico City to try to purchase the territory. Mexico's president, José Joaquín Herrera, _______ to meet with Slidell.

tenstions, war, annexation, resolution

President Andrew Jackson did not want to increase ______ between North and South or risk a ____ with Mexico, which continued to claim ownership of Texas. Jackson made no move toward ______, although on his last day in office, he did sign a ________ officially recognizing the independence of Texas.

John Tyler, slavery, opposed, Mexican territory

Tensions increased during the administration of _____ _____, who hoped to bring Texas into the Union. Since Texas had a large population of Southerners who had taken slaves into Texas, Texans were certain to support ______. Antislavery leaders in Congress therefore ________ Texas's annexation. Moreover, Mexico had never recognized the independence of Texas and still considered it _______ _________.

backpedal, antislavery, Liberty, abolition, Polk

The Democrats' unity on annexation caused Clay to _______ and say that he, too, supported the annexation of Texas. This so angered _____ segment of the Whig Party that they decided to back the small _____ Party, which supported _______. With the Whig vote split, ____ won the election.

political instability, leadership, Gonzales, refused, siege, san antonio

The Mexican army had serious problems. Continuing _____ _______ in Mexico City had denied the army sound _______, training, and support. Against this handicapped force, the Texan army enjoyed its first taste of victory at the military post of __________, about 70 miles to the east of San Antonio. There, Mexican soldiers ordered the Texans to surrender their arms. The rebels _____ and, having no orders to attack, the Mexicans retreated to San Antonio. The Texans followed and laid ____ to the city. In December 1835, the rebels, numbering between 300 and 400, drove the much larger Mexican force out of ____ ________.

sparsely, attacks, westward expansion, russian, alaska, presidios, weak, vulnerable

The Mexican frontier was threatened on several fronts. The region was ____ populated by Native Americans and Hispanic settlers. Settlements in Texas and New Mexico faced ___ by Apaches, Comanches, and other Native American groups. The region was also threatened by the ___ _____ of the United States and the southward expansion of ____ settlements along the Pacific Coast from ___. The frontier ___, or forts, became ___ and left frontier settlers ____ to attack.

Oregon, Washington, British Columbia, jointly, missionaries, convert, Willamette Valley

The United States, Britain, and Native Americans all laid claim to the ____ Country, which included present-day Oregon, _____, and ___ _____. In 1818 Britain and the United States had agreed to occupy the land ____. In the 1830s, American _______ began arriving in Oregon to _____ Native Americans. These missionaries spread the word about Oregon and persuaded others to come to the lush ____ _______.

unanswered, join, formally, stormed, overrun, two weeks

The call for reinforcements almost went _____. About 33 settlers, most from Gonzales, decided to ____ the fight and made it into the Alamo. The Texans held off Santa Anna's besieging army for 13 days. It was during the standoff that the new Texas government _________ declared independence. On March 6, 1836, Santa Anna's army ______ the Alamo. The Texans fought off their attackers for several hours before being _____. The defenders of the Alamo had bought Houston's army nearly ___ ______ to organize.

revolt, independence

The decision to invite Americans to settle in Texas led ultimately to a ____ against Mexican rule and _______ for Texas. California and New Mexico remained Mexican territory for 25 years after Mexican independence. Texas—where Americans soon vastly outnumbered Tejanos—broke away from Mexico after 15 years.

1803, Louisiana Purchase, strong

The dispute over Texas between the United States and Mexico began in _____, when the United States claimed Texas as part of the ___________ ________. The Adams-Onís Treaty of 1819 ended that claim, but the idea of acquiring Mexican territory still had ______ support.

Henry Clay, James K. Polk, Oregon Territory, California, balance

The presidential election of 1844 pitted Whig senator ________ ______ against Democrat ________ ___. ______, a former member of Congress and governor of Tennessee. Polk promised to annex not only Texas but also the contested _________ _______. In addition, he vowed to buy ______ from Mexico. This appealed to Northerners and Southerners because it expanded the country while maintaining the _______ between free and slave states.

five, six, 15, men, game, animals, women, children, cleaned, clothes

The typical trip west took _____ to ____ months, with wagon trains progressing about ___ miles (24 km) per day. Generally, ___ drove the wagons, hunted ___, and cared for the ___, while __ looked after the ___, cooked meals, ___ the camp, and washed ____.

infuriated, grow, higher, rules, obey, own

These laws ____ the settlers. Without immigration their settlements could not ____. The import tax meant _____ prices for goods they were accustomed to purchasing from the United States. Perhaps worst of all, the Mexican government was making _____ for them. They saw no reason to ____ a government they hardly considered their ____.

national colonization act, empresarios, settlers, gover, Stephen Austin

Under the ______ ___________ ____, Mexico gave ________, a Spanish word meaning "agents" or "contractors," large grants of Texas land. In exchange, the empresarios promised to fill the land with a certain number of ______ and _________ the colonies they established. Stephen Austin was the most successful empresario. By the mid-1830s, Austin had persuaded some 1,500 American families to immigrate.

surrendered, expel, Goliad, execution, united

Two weeks later, the Mexican army overwhelmed Texan troops led by James W. Fannin at Goliad, a town southeast of San Antonio near the Gulf Coast. Fannin and his men _____, hoping that the Mexicans would disarm them and ____ them from Texas. Though the Mexican field general at ____ wrote to Santa Anna requesting clemency, Santa Anna demanded _____. At dawn on March 27, 1836, a firing squad executed over 300 men. The losses at the Alamo and Goliad devastated Texans but also _____ them in support of their new country.

foreigners, colonization laws, cheap, taxes, citizens, roman catholicism

Unable to persuade its own citizens to settle on this frontier, Mexico allowed _____ to settle there. Between 1823 and 1825, Mexico passed three _______ ____, which offered ____ land to nearly anyone willing to come. The last law granted immigrants a 10-year exemption from paying _____, but required that they become Mexican ____ and convert to _______ ___________.

tejanos, settlements, apache, comanche, Coahuila

When Austin settled in Texas, it was not a wild and empty land. Spanish-speaking Tejanos had established settlements in the southern portion of the region, and the land to the north was the territory of the Apache, Comanche, and other Native American groups. In 1824 Texas was joined with Coahuila to become part of the Mexican state of Coahuila y Texas.

Alamo, delay, prepare

When Mexican forces arrived at San Antonio in February 1836, they found more than 180 Texas rebels holed up in an abandoned Catholic mission called the ______. Under the command of Lieutenant Colonel William B. Travis, the small force in the Alamo sought to ______ Santa Anna and give Houston's army more time to _______.

Manifest Destiny, ocean, ports, asia, slavery, civil war

With Oregon and the former Mexican territories now under the American flag, the dream of _________ ______ was finally realized: the United States now stretched from ____ to ________. Valuable ______ on the West Coast opened up new markets to the Pacific nations of ____. The question of whether the new lands should allow _____, however, would soon lead the country into a bloody ____ _____. The experience that soldiers such as Robert E. Lee and Ulysses S. Grant gained during the war with Mexico would soon be used to lead Americans in battle against one another.

conventions, San Felipe, Stephen Austin, reopen, ease, separate, constitution

With tensions simmering, Texas settlers met at ______ in the Texas town of ____ _______ in 1832 and 1833. At the first, _______ _______ was chosen the convention's president. This convention asked Mexico to ______ Texas to American immigrants and to _____ taxes on imports. The second convention sought to make Texas a _____ state from Coahuila, and it agreed on a _________. Austin was sent to negotiate with the Mexican government.

secularization, freed, cattle ranching, mainstay, rancheros, spanish dons, society

____ of the missions had a tremendous impact on life in California because it ____ up land for ___ ____, which became the ___ of the economy. ____, or ranchers, owned sprawling tracts of land. These predominantly white "____ ___" and their families constituted less than 10 percent of California's population but dominated California _______.

resolution

a formal expression of opinion, will, or intent voted by an official body or assembly

mestizos

a person of mixed blood or ancestry

empresario

a person who arranged for the settlement of Texas in the early 1800s

vaqueros

men on horseback who herded cattle on haciendas