Frontier APUSH

Chief Joseph

Nez Perce leader who led military retreat, where Indians surrendered and moved to reservation in Idaho

What were the characteristics and functions of the Western cow town that emerged in the late 19 Century?

Some of the characteristics of the Western cow town were its hostile weather, and the usual locations in the Midwest. The functions of these cow towns were to serve as terminal points for the "Long Drive" practice of cowboys. These terminal points were to usually give the cows a space to graze on free government grass.

What was the basic objective of the Dawes Severalty Act? How did it try to accomplish this goal?

The Dawes Act provided land in the West for the people who wanted a new stay they received: 160 acres to the head of a family, 80 acres to a single adult or orphan, 40 acres to each dependent child. Adult owners were given United States citizenship, but unlike other citizens, they could not gain full title to their property for 25 years. The act applied to most of the western tribes. The pueblo, who continued to occupy lands long ago guaranteed them, were excluded from its provisions. The Bureau of Indian Affairs relentlessly promoted the idea of assimilation that lay behind it. The people who owned the land had to improve it within five years.

How accurate was Frederick Jackson Turner's thesis about the American Frontier?

Turner's thesis was very inaccurate . The West had never been a "frontier" in the sense he meant the term: an empty, uncivilized land awaiting settlement. But Turner did express a growing and generally accurate sense that much of the best farming and grazing land was now taken, that in the future it would be more difficult for individuals to acquire valuable land for little or nothing.

Joseph F. Glidden

inventor of the barbed wire

Frederic Remington

painter and sculptor who captured romance of west, portraying the cowboy as a natural aristocrat

Battle of Wounded Knee, SD

(1890) battle between U.S. army and Dakota Sioux, 200 Indians & 29 soldiers died. Tensions erupted over Sioux practice of "ghost dance" which had been outlawed, and dispute over whether the Sioux reservation would be split because of the Dawes Act.

"Turner Frontier Thesis"

American exceptionalism and vitality was the frontier, and that the frontier provided freedom away from custom and into new experiences

Frederick Jackson Turner

American historian that claimed humanity would keep progressing as long as there was new land to move to

Why was Anglo- European hostility toward the Chinese so high in California? What actions resulted from this hostility? How did the Chinese Americans respond?

Democrats became more hostile because there was pressure to gain more power. They were racist towards them for economics and racial arguments. The Chinese did not accept the new laws quietly. They were shocked by the anti-Chinese rhetoric that lumped them with Blacks and Indians and they argued that they were better.

How did employment tendencies, residence patterns, and social relationships change in the Chinese community later in the 19th Century?

Employment tendencies changed as they all made communities called Chinatowns. This brought together the Chinese community closer, changing their social relationships.

What were the main grievances of the late 19th Century farmers?

Farmers were mostly upset about the railroad prices because railroads were the only way to transport food from the West to the East. With this advantage railroad people decided to over price farmers in order to make all the profit. Farmers were enraged by the unfair actions and start to band together to create a revolution.

Sitting Bull

Lakota chief known for his premonition in the major victory against the U.S. army at the Battle of Little Big Horn

Why has Wounded Knee, SD become a symbol in the struggle for the Native American civil rights?

On December 29, 1890, the Seventh Cavalry (which was once Custer's regiment) attempted to round up a group of about 350 cold and starving Sioux at Wounded Knee, South Dakota. Fighting broke out and about 40 white soldiers and up to 200 of the Indians, including women and children died. What precipitated the conflict is a matter of dispute. An Indian may have fired the first shot, but the battle soon turned into a one-sided massacre, as the white soldiers turned their new machine guns on the Indians and mowed them down in the snow.

Bureau of Indian Affairs

Part of the American government designed to deal with issues pertaining to Native Americans

Describe the evolution of traditional national Indian policy up to the 1880s. What did these policies accomplish? Howe were the policies and their implementation flawed?

Policy during American Indians during the 1850's to 1880's was constantly changing. After granting Indians limited sovereignty in 1860 through the Senate white demands for access to lands in Indian Territory gave whites new reservation policies known as "concentrations". In 1867 Congress established the Indian peace commission to try and calm the Indians and prepare a new final Indian policy. Since they say the Native Americans as inferiors the whites would break treaties that would benefit themselves. If the whites had to supply the Native Americans then they would give them rotten food or bad products.

What was the typical pattern of development and decline in the western mining industry?

Prospectors come and dig placer(surface) deposits, big eastern business buys out prospectors to use heavier machinery.

Comstock Lode

Richest known U.S. deposit of silver discovered in Nevada

Crazy Horse

Sioux war leader committed to preserving the traditions and values of the Lakota, leading his people in war against the federal takeover of their lands by the government

What was the vision of the Homestead Act? How was this vision flawed? What changes were made to try to remedy weaknesses in this act?

The Homestead Act of 1862 permitted settlers to buy plots of 160 acres for a small fee if they occupied the land they purchased for five years and improved it. They thought land would be enough to sustain a farm family (rising costs to run a farm). They made calculations based on Eastern experiences, which was inappropriate for the west. Many were abandoned before 5 years.

What happened to the great buffalo herds in the last half of the 19th Century? What role did the railroad play? How did this affect Native American life?

The Native Americans surrounded their lives around the great buffalo, they received all their resources from it and it was their only way of life. When the Native Americans were killing the whites, because they broke the treaty, the whites decided to kill off the buffalo species. Once the buffalos were gone the Natives had nothing else to replace it causing for them to surrender to the whites. The railroad made it easier to ruin the living spaces of buffalos and in general to kill them.

What were the responses made by the Plains' settlers to the living conditions and challenges they encountered?

The conditions of the mine life in the boom period attracted outlaws and "bad men," operating as individuals or gangs. When the situation became bad, those interested in order began enforcing their own laws through vigilante committees, an unofficial system of social control used earlier in California. Vigilantes were not under the legal system. Some vigilantes continued to operate as private "law" enforcers after the creation of regular governments.

What was the "Ghost Dance?" Why was it so threatening to the white community nearby?

The ghost dance was a part of the indian revival and it inspired ecstatic visions such as images of white people retreating from the plain and a restoration of the great buffalo herds. They would dance for days hoping that it would bring the buffalo's back to them .

Describe the origins, purposes, and practices of the "long drive" and "open range" periods of the cattle industry.

The practices of "long drive" involved more of cowboys riding longhorns hundreds of miles with their horses, mostly going through Indian country. Cowboys mostly originated from Texas consisting mostly of African Americans who dealt wtih animals and the longhorns originated from Spanish stock. Open Range is the term of when properties didn't have fences so most of the time they would allow their animals run free around their house. Open range also involved with the animals that roamed free on their own without being restrained by fences and people.

How did the railroads stimulate settlement of the Great Plains?

The railroads stimulated development in the Great Plains because the railroads made access to the Great Plains, the railroad companies promoted settlement in the Great Plains in order to provide themselves with customers and to increase the value of their land, they set low rates so anyone could afford a ticket, they sold their land at very low prices, and provided liberal credit to prospective settlers.

What was life like for the men and women who lived and worked in the mining regions?

There was more men than women, male competition for women, women sometimes worked, but there was terrible work conditions, some turned to prostitution.

What factors led to the massive increase in Anglo- European settlement of the Far West after the Civil War?

They came for gold and silver deposits, short grass pastures for cattle and sheep, the plains and the meadowlands of the mountains for farming which in turn led to the expansion of the American capitalist economy into the region. This created great opportunities for some.

Up to 1869, in what two fields did the greatest number of Chinese immigrants work?

Transcontinental railroad and gold mining.

How did Western farmers use invention, technology, and innovation to meet the challenges of Western settlement?

When the U.S Army asked the Lakota people to disarm and relocate after doing the Ghost dance for way too long, the Lakota moved to Pine Ridge for protection. They surrendered a few days later but when faced to go with Army they refused and a medicine man insisted that the Ghost Dance shirts were bulletproof and would protect hem.On the frozen plains at Wounded Knee on the Pine Ridge Reservation, government troops opened fire on the mostly unarmed Lakota people, and massacred 290 Sioux men, women and children, including many trying to flee, in a matter of minutes. Ghost shirts were obviously ineffective.

Why did women tend to gain the right to vote in the western states and territories before they did in the East?

Women gained the right to vote in the West before the East because they had won a kind of equality on the rough frontier, in a role of more independence than those in the East. It may also have been because the territories may have needed the votes to meet the needs of statehood.

What unique challenges did women settlers face in the West?

Women in the East mostly dealt with the stereotypical idea of a woman, who stays home and takes care of the house and kids and doesn't speak up when wronged. In the West it was completely opposite and women were mostly found as equals to men considering they basically did anything the men did. Women were allowed to establish business and speak up when needed, it was harder to see them as inferior. Since they had more freedom to speak, they would cause a greater women's right movement because they are more exposed to their rights.

List some of the characteristics of the culture of the Plains tribes, with particular emphasis on gender roles and the importance of the American bison, or buffalo.

Women's roles involved more of tending to the fields and gardening. They were largely known for being domestic and artistic in their jobs. Since the women stayed at home, the men would hunt for food and trade with other tribes for resources. They would also have power over supervising religious gatherings or controlling the military. Many of the Plains tribes depended on hunting for buffalo so they can use it for supplies like spoons, bowstrings, and of course food. They had a great attachment to the buffalos and surrounded their lifestyle around them.

Helen Hunt Jackson

activist that sought better treatment of Native Americans by the U.S. government

Battle of Little Big Horn

also known as Custer's Last Stand, occurred in 1876 in a battle between Indian tribes and the U.S. army. 2,500 Sioux, Cheyenne, and Arapaho Indians killed 250 U.S. soldiers. Battle came as U.S. government tried to compel Native Americans to remain on reservations and Native Americans tried to defend territory from white gold-seekers

Dawes Severalty Act (1887)

an act that broke up Indian reservations and distributed land to individual households. Leftover land sold to fund U.S. efforts to 'civilize' Indians.

''Open Range"

an area where livestock were permitted to run at large. Place of promise of huge economic gain, but land turned out to be dry.

Sand Creek Massacre (1864)

an attack on a village of sleeping Cheyenne by Colorado regiment that resulted in the death of over 200 tribal members

Cow town

cities that sprang up at railroad terminals

Col. J. M. Chivington

commander of troops at Sand Creek Massacre

Annie Oakley

famous sharpshooter who participated in the Buffalo Bill Cody show, reenacting Indian battles and displays of horsemanship and riflery

Chinese Exclusion Act (1882)

federal legislation that prohibited most further Chinese immigration to U.S. First major legal restriction on immigration in U.S. history.

Geronimo

leader of Apaches in Arizona and New Mexico who fought against the white man that was trying to push them off their land. Hated whites, eventually pushed into Mexico where he surrendered

Gen. George A. Custer

military leader famous for his mortal defeat at the Battle of Little Big Horn

Exodusters

name given to African Americans who migrated from states along the Mississippi River to Kansas following the Civil War in the Exodus movement

A Century of Dishonor

published in 1881 by Helen Hunt Jackson; exposed American corruption in dealing with the Indians

Chisholm Trail

rail used to drive cattle overland

"Ghost Dance"

religious movement in many belief systems, started by prophecy of nonviolent end to American expansion, preached social reform and cross cultural cooperation

Soddy

sod house that was successor of log cabin in frontier settlements

"Buffalo Bill" Cody

successful show that popularized Wild West shows, it romanticized the West and life of the cowboy

Great American Desert

term applied to west of Missouri and east of Rocky Mountains. Land was typically dry and had tough prairie sod, causing those that were passing through to refer to it as a desert.