1. Settling the West and Industrial America
Chapters 13 and 14

2. Settling the West – Opportunities for Americans
Homestead Act: 160 acres of free land to a citizen who was the head of a household
given to farmers with the promise they would farm the land for 5 years
Exodusters: African Americans who moved from the post-Reconstruction south to Kansas
Long Drive - Journey north with the herd of cattle for sale
Homesteader -Farmer who helped to settle the west

3. Battle at Wounded Knee
Sitting Bull lead the Sioux tribe through poverty and disease
He encouraged the Ghost Dance to turn the fortune of the tribe
The US military enforced an end to the Ghost dance and the arrest of Sitting Bull (they didn’t want thousands of Native Americans assembling in one place)
The Sioux fought back, Sitting Bull was one of many killed
Significance: it marked the end to the plains wars between Native Americans and the US government

4. Currency Debate Terms:
Bimetallism - the idea that the government would issue paper money backed by both gold and silver
Greenbacks - Money not backed by either gold or silver
Silverites - Paper money backed by both gold and silver

5. The Cross of Gold Speech
The most famous speech in American political history was delivered by William Jennings Bryan on July 9, 1896, at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago.
The issue was whether to endorse the free coinage of silver at a ratio of silver to gold of 16 to 1. (This would have increased the amount of money in circulation and aided cash-poor and debt-burdened farmers.)
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6. Industrialists in America
Bessemer Process – the process of purifying iron into steel
Steel could be used for new projects like skyscrapers, suspension bridges, etc
John Rockefeller – revolutionized the oil industry with his Standard Oil Company
Samuel Grompers – led a major labor union (AFL) during the time of great industrial growth
Was open to white men with skilled labor jobs
Sherman Anti-Trust Act: made it illegal for tycoons to buy all of the companies within an industry
Led to many anti-trust lawsuits in the 1890s

7. Railroads and Pullman Strike/Haymarket Strike