westward expansion 1865-1914. u.s. land acquired in the 1800s
TRANSCRIPT
Manifest Destiny
• Americans believed they should own all the land from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean; coast to coast.
Gold Rush-1849 - 1870
• Gold was discovered in California in 1849.
• People who went West for gold were called forty-niners.
• The Comstock Lode, a Bonanza, was later discovered.
Gold Rush-1849 - 1870
• Gold was discovered in California in 1849
• The Comstock Lode, a Bonanza, was later discovered.
• People who moved West to mine are called miners.
Gold Rush-1849 - 1870• Gold was discovered in California in 1849.• The Comstock Lode, a Bonanza, was later
discovered.• People who moved West to mine are
called miners.• Immigrants, such as Mexicans, Chinese
and the Irish, went to work in the mines.• Immigrants were treated poorly with long
hours, low pay and dangerous work.
Gold Rush-1849 - 1870
• Gold was discovered in California in 1849.
• The Comstock Lode, a Bonanza, was later discovered.
• People who moved west to mine are called miners.
• Immigrants, such as Mexicans, Chinese and the Irish, went to work in the mines.
• Immigrants were treated poorly with long hours, low pay and very dangerous work.
Boom towns and Ghost towns.
Gold or Silver strike
1. Miners arrive and build a small town.
2. More people come to sell supplies.
3. Real houses get built.
Boom Town
1. Gold or silver production falls – decreases.
2. Miners move on.
3. The town is abandoned.
Ghost Town.
African Americans were called Exodusters.
• Many African Americans moved to the West from the 1840s to late 1890s.
• They were escaping the difficult life in the South where Whites practiced Jim Crow Laws and denied African Americans their new Constitutional Rights.
Why were African Americans called Exodusters?
African Americans were called
Exodusters after the book from
the Bible called the Exodus.
Why were African Americans called Exodusters?
• This book described how the Jews escaped from slavery in Egypt.
• The African Americans were escaping slavery in the South, just as Jews escaped slavery from Egypt. That is why they were called Exodusters.
I hope there’s no slavery in
the West.
Exodusters moving West.I hope there’s
no KKK.
Maybe we can vote in the
West.
An application for land.
• People staked their claim by finding a section of land that was marked.
• Then they registered the piece of land with the government.
• After cultivating the land for five years, it was theirs for free.
A difficult life for the farmers.
• Farmers had to cut through thick, hard earth called sod.
• Winters were harsh; cold, windy with a lot of snowstorms called blizzards.
• Summers were hot and had little rain.• Farmers had to use a technique called dry-
farming (growing crops that needed little water.)• Sometimes grasshoppers would eat all the
crops.
Farmers in crisis.
• Farmers could not repay their debts.• The Populist party tried to help farmers. They
wanted government to reduce railroad rates and to help with (falling) decreasing prices for grain.
• Populists wanted all the silver mined in the West to be turned into coinage (money).
• Free silver would make it easier for farmers to repay their debts.
• The United States did not turn silver into money.
Impact of the Railroads
• Railroads brought growth and new settlement all across the West.
• The railroads enabled people, supplies, and mail to move quickly and cheaply and safer across the plains and the mountains.
Impact of the Railroads
• Railroads brought growth and new settlement all across the West.
• The railroads enabled people, supplies, and mail to move quickly and cheaply and safer across the plains and the mountains.
• The largest cities and towns developed where major railroad lines met.
Impact of the Railroads
• Railroads brought growth and new settlement all across the West.
• The railroads enabled people, supplies, and mail to move quickly and cheaply and safer across the plains and the mountains.
• The largest cities and towns developed where major railroad lines met.
• Because of their rapid growth, western territories began to apply for statehood. Nevada, Colorado, North Dakota, South Dakota, Montana and Washington all became states from 1864 – 1890.
The Railroad spurs the growth of other industries
• The lumber industry grows, because wood is needed to build the train tracks.
• The steel industry grows because steel is needed to build the tracks.
• The coal industry grows because coal is needed to fuel the train.
• The growth of these industries opens thousands of new jobs for workers.
These are the states on the Plains.• Homesteaders came to
the Plains to farm the land.
• Miners searched for gold.• Railroad companies built
the train.• Exodusters came to
Kansas to start a new life and later became miners and Homesteaders and worked on the railroad.
• Immigrants worked on railroads and in mines and became Homesteaders.
Native American Land• Native Americans
lived here first.• Native Americans
and Whites came into bloody conflicts over the land.
• They tried to protect their lands, but finally, the United States government forced them onto reservations.
BROKEN PROMISES!
• The United States government made many treaties with the Native Americans not to fight and not to touch certain areas of their land.
• For example, The Fort Laramie Treaty was a treaty made with the Cheyenne tribe, where Americans said an area of land belonged to the Cheyenne forever!
• However, when gold was discovered there, the Americans forced them to sign a new treaty giving up the land.
• The United States government broke many treaties with the Native Americans.
Many Wars - Many Heroes
Many Wars
• Sioux War of 1876
• The Apache Wars• Battle of Little Bighorn
• Nez Perce
Many Heroes
• Sitting Bull andCrazy Horse
GeronimoLakotas & Cheyenne
Chief Joseph
The Dawes Act divided Indian land and gave some to the Indians in hopes they would become
farmers. But they sold it to Whites for low prices.
• Today, many Native Americans are a part of our society.
• However, many still live on reservations and try to maintain their cultures.
• New laws returned some Native American lands back to the rightful owners.
• How would you feel about your history if you were a Native American?
Native Americans Today