TOPIC 3: Challenges in the Late 1800s (1865-1914) Lesson 2: The West Is Transformed

Learning Objectives Analyze the impact of mining and railroads on the settlement of the West. Explain the impact of physical and human geographic factors on the settlement of the Great Plains. Analyze treatment of Chinese immigrants and Mexican Americans in the West. Discuss the ways various groups used land in the West and conflicts among them.

Mining and the Growth of Railroads Enormous changes in the West during and after the Civil War Gold and silver discoveries= rush to migrate Lawlessness in the “boom towns” Large scale mining= need for high pressure water; no government regulation on who controls water Negatively impacted farmers

Many boomtowns, such as this one in Leadville, Colorado, were built quickly to accommodate miners in search of minerals.

Mining and the Growth of Railroads Need for a transcontinental railroad to link eastern states with California (statehood in 1850) work started in 1863 Economic and military necessity Private companies given land grants and loans by the government to build railroad Central Pacific out of California (built with Chinese labor)+Union Pacific out of Nebraska (Irish labor) met in Promontory Point, Utah 1869 Railroad= intense western growth, demand for more industrial products Increase in states once reached 60,000 inhabitants (precedent?)

The Union Pacific and the Central Pacific Link at Promontory Point, Utah, May 10, 1869

The Cattle Industry Boom Longhorn cattle in Texas= valuable Used open range grazing Railroad depots north of Texas= “cow towns” like Abilene and Dodge City Era of the cowboy (white, black, Mexican) to round up herd and drive them over the open range to cow towns Barbed wire 1874, price of beef decreased, brutal winters= end of open era Cattle ranches developed

Colorado. "Round up" on the Cimarron, a photochrom print from c Colorado. "Round up" on the Cimarron, a photochrom print from c. 1898, showing one of the large musters of cattle done in the days before barbed wire fences

Farmers Settle the Plains Homestead Act 1862: gave people 160 acre plot of land if they lived there for 5 years, built a well and paid a small fee Settlement and closing of the frontier (1890 Census)! Life on the Great Plains was difficult Weather, drought, locusts, no trees= sod houses Exodusters= former slaves who moved west (Kansas) Farmers used industrial, mass produced technology for farming Steel plow, McCormick’s reaper, barbed wire West= ethnically diverse Resulted in discrimination, especially against Chinese Chinese Exclusion Act, segregated schools in San Francisco

Frequently faced with job discrimination, some Chinese immigrants managed to start their own businesses. These immigrants pose proudly in front of their own grocery store.

Miners used a great deal of water in their mining operations, often with negative consequences for farmers and ranchers.

Immigrants continued to migrate west in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Analyze Graphs Did the percentage of immigrants in the West increase proportionally with the total population?

Quiz: Mining and the Growth of Railroads What caused the building of the Transcontinental Railroad to be delayed? A. debates over routes B. the Civil War C. need for private investors D. lack of government finance

Quiz: The Cattle Industry Boom What contribution did Mexicans make to cattle ranching? A. Mexicans established many western “cow towns.” B. Mexican railroads moved cattle from west to east. C. Mexican vaqueros were experts in working with cattle. D. Mexicans taught cattle ranchers how to round up cattle.

Quiz: Farmers Settle the Plains What was the purpose of the Morrill Act of 1862? A. to encourage people to move westward B. to set aside land for future homesteading C. to resettle former slaves on agricultural lands D. to encourage the development of better farming methods

Quiz: Minorities Encounter Difficulties Why did many Mexican Americans in the southwest lose their land in the late 1800s? A. The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo did not protect their property rights. B. Americans of Mexican descent were not allowed to own land after 1882. C. Mexican Americans gained land rights in Mexico in exchange for U.S. claims. D. They were not able to prove legally in the courts that they owned the land.

Quiz: Struggles and Change Across the West Which use of western land negatively affected everyone? A. unwise usage of water B. building of railroad lines C. competition for grazing land D. destruction of crops by cattle